Grazing Management Practices to Enhance Soil Health in the Northern Great Plains

View the project final report

Commodities

Practices

• Animal Production: feed/forage, grazing management, manure management, stocking rate
• Crop Production: cover crops, nutrient cycling, livestock integration
• Education and Training: demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, on-farm/ranch research, workshop
• Natural Resources/Environment: Soil health, infiltration
• Production Systems: integrated crop and livestock systems
• Soil Management: organic matter, soil analysis, soil chemistry, soil physics, soil quality/health

Cover cropping is a practice that has been adopted to improve soil health and has been used as a forage resource for livestock. Despite the ecological benefits of cover cropping, the economic benefits might not be realized if the cover crop is not also used as a forage resource for livestock. Integrated crop and livestock systems (ICLS) have the potential to impact the agronomic quality of cropland. Yet, there is limited information to support ICLS grazing management decisions in the northern Great Plains and other semi-arid regions. A 3-year ICLS project was initiated during the spring of 2020. North Dakota State University Extension partnered with farming/ranching producers to establish five research sites located in central North Dakota, along with a demonstration site near the main campus of North Dakota State University. A full season annual forage cover crop was subjected to two forage utilization treatments: 1) 50% and 2) 75% degree of use. Comparisons were made to a non-grazed, annual forage cover crop. Treatments were imposed for 2 years, followed by a cash crop of corn (Zea mays L.). Differences in growing season conditions occurred, but livestock maintained their body condition while grazing during the late fall and early winter months. Despite a lack of changes in soil physical properties or primary soil nutrients, grazed cover crop treatments yielded more corn (P ≤ 0.05) than the non-grazed cover crop treatment. The net effect on profit was negative when cover crops were grown for the sole purpose of soil health, mainly due to the loss of cash crop revenue and no fertilizer savings being generated. However, net returns were less affected when the cover crop was sold as hay. The costs associated with a cover crop and ICLS were variable due to fence and water infrastructure, and environmental conditions. The costs per head per day ranged from $1.50 to $2.73, and savings was greater for the higher forage utilization treatment for both years. Cover crop budgets were also created for producers to use as a guide or tool for decision making.

The objective of this project is to identify the impacts of livestock grazing management on the environmental and economic sustainability of an ICLS. Specifically, the influence of forage utilization of grazing livestock on 1) soil physical and chemical properties, 2 ) crop production, 3) livestock production and 4) economics. This project will provide valuable information on the effects of different grazing management strategies in ICLSs, assisting producers in making management decisions. Project results will be disseminated through cafe talks, workshops, tours, bulletins, news articles, videos, and social media.