Predicting Drought
What would the value be in your operation if you could predict drought? I know we can’t predict the weather, but we can keep track of monthly rainfall. Rainfall is going to be a darn good predictor of forage growth. In addition to rainfall, we can also keep track of monthly livestock head counts and […]
Read MoreDrought Isn’t a Surprise
If you’re in the ranching business, drought is a normal part of life. David McLean is part of RCS, our sister company in Australia. David refers to planning for the average year as “riding the unicorn”. David says it a bit more colorfully, “Stop riding the bloody unicorn!” Managing your business for the average year […]
Read MoreBiggest Mistakes in Grazing Management
Too short a recovery period – When turning into a pasture ask, “Has this pasture recovered from the previous stress (grazing, fire, grasshoppers etc.)?” If not, then you need to lengthen recovery. It is possible for recovery periods to be too long, but too short is more common to see. Too long of a graze […]
$100 Per Hour WITB
In the Ranching for Profit School we make clear the difference between WITB (Working In the Business) and WOTB (Working On the Business). We often say WITB, is the $10/hr work and WOTB is the $100/hr or more work. It is critical to get the WOTB done, but WITB needs to be prioritized into the […]
Read MoreIs Your Ranch Fire-proof?
The risk of wildfire has always been a normal part of ranching. But today we are faced with a new normal that includes the increased risk of catastrophic wildfire. The number of wildfires hasn’t changed much. There are roughly the same number of fires now as when I was cutting fire lines on a Forest […]
To Move or Not To Move
How do you know when it is time to move animals from one pasture to another? Most people figure that if they are out of feed in one pasture, it is time to move. The herd is probably standing at the gate voicing their agreement that it is time to “Mooove.” There’s nothing they’d like […]
Half and Half
Take half – leave half. It is probably the most common advice you’ll hear regarding grazing utilization. In my opinion it is bad advice. It was probably the brainchild of someone looking for a one-size-fits-all, easy-to-remember recipe. It may be easy to remember, but this recipe is likely to produce a crummy meal. What does […]
Cowboys and Grassmen
I once heard Bud Williams say, “Ranchers love their cows and hate their grass.” Bud thought they had it backwards. They should love their grass and hate their cattle. I know that Bud didn’t really hate cattle or think that anyone else ought to hate them, but his point was that for a livestock business […]
You Might Be Cell Grazing If…
A lot of ranchers use some kind of grazing rotation. Very few do it in a way that has even a 50/50 chance of improving the health of the land, the performance of their cattle and the profitability of their businesses. There are so many names attached to various rotations, it is hard to know […]
Rotational Overgrazing
Nearly 15 years ago I surveyed over 300 commercial cattle producers asking them questions about their grazing practices and their attitudes about change. One hundred twenty of them (40%) identified “rotational grazing” as their primary method of managing cattle on pasture. Over 80% of the rotational grazers reported having fewer than 8 paddocks per herd. […]