TAG grazing Cattle as a Tool for Range Management: Targeting Cheatgrass and False Annual Wheatgrass to see the impacts of restoring native species

View the project final report

Commodities

• Animals: bovine
• Animal Products: meat

Practices

• Animal Production: range improvement, rangeland/pasture management, stocking rate

-A recent 40 year BLM study, shows continued degradation of our range land in the challenging arid west ecosystem, loss of top soil and native grass species. How can we reverse the trend and be financially and socially profitable? Can we suppress cheat grass and promote native grasses with animal management. Can we increase stocking densities with TAG management. What are the stocking densities in this setting with TAG grazing management

Our badlands plant community is dominated by less desirable grass communities, having suppressed native species through competition. Though seasonally palatable in the spring months, native grasses provide a more stable and consistent nutrient source for cattle and wildlife year round.

With funding from Western SARE, we will evaluate the merits of Targeted Adaptive Grazing, in shifting the species composition in a range setting. We will establish stocking densities and and measure Animal Unit Days per acre with this grazing strategy.We will compare species composition, forage biomass production, and soil biological populations within our treatments.

This research will advance range renovation and regeneration in the west. We also expect to gain fundamental insights regarding Targeted Adaptive Grazing on non irrigated arid western rangeland. Given that this technique is relatively novel in Wyoming, there is a need for more context-specific research to use this tool effectively.

To extend our findings, we will host a field day with Farmers Footprint, Bionutrient.org and in conjunction with the University of Wyoming Ag Extension. Share with multiple news outlets across the US. Findings will be posted in our news letter and on digital outlets. We have a sizable social following of 17,ooo, with which we will share. We will also encage in podcast discussions  

Implementing Targeted Adaptive Grazing of Cattle to target Cheatgrass and False Annual Wheatgrass communities to monitor the impacts on range, in an effort to better understand those affects on strengthening biology and restoring native grass species.  Also research stocking densities on arid mountain west range under TAG grazing management.