Comparison of Cage Methods for Determining Utilization on Pine-Bluestem Range

Abstract

Plucking herbage from caged quadrats to simulate grazing resulted in lower estimates of yield and utilization than did monthly or yearly clipping of herbage from caged and open quadrats. At the end of the grazing season, estimates of ungrazed herbage did not differ significantly by measurement technique. The overestimate of yield when herbage was clipped once a year was probably caused by greater growth on caged than on open quadrats.