Publication - Extending the Grazing Season: Swath Grazing

Title in English
Extending the Grazing Season: Swath Grazing
Publication ID
12300E
Published Year
2014
Author(s)
Organization
Subject(s)
Type
Electronic PDF
Cost
Free Publication
Language
English
Region
Ottawa/Hull (NCR)
Also Available In:
Status
Available
Pages
1-6
Summary in English
In recent years, extensive research on swath grazing has been carried out across the Aspen Parkland of western Canada to optimize the swath grazing system.
Feeding accounts for the majority of the costs of wintering beef cows and producers are looking for ways of reducing these costs. Forage yield, quality and the local environment are the three major considerations in developing strategies for reducing wintering costs and the focus has been on developing grazing systems that reduce feeding costs, hauling costs, harvesting costs and losses, and manure removal costs.
Grazing cereals that have been cut in fall and left in the swath for winter grazing is the cheapest way to winter beef cows in western Canada: this system may reduce wintering costs by about 37 to 60 percent compared to a traditional winter feeding system. This grazing system is much cheaper than feeding stored feed in a traditional winter feeding system.
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