Managing the rank growth of summer

By Janet McNally
Hinckley, Minnesota—Years ago I was interested in trying mob-stock grazing that uses higher stocking densities and daily moves.

What held me back was knowing that at some point in early June we would face a tremendous amount of rank growth going to seed and no longer nutritious.

My approach at the time was to have sheep covering every acre in late-May/early-June, biting each plant in an effort to control growth and seedheads. Continue reading “Managing the rank growth of summer”

April 18, 2020

Following the circle of life

Successful graziers must leave linear thinking behind

By Allen Williams and Russ Conser

Lion King, as with all Disney movies, has a great plot and some catchy tunes, but also a deeper moral to the story. In this case it is about the “circle of life.”

Circles have no beginning or end. If we start anywhere on a circle and follow it around, we end up in loop coming back to where we started. The Lion King circle was about the big loop of life and death.

Continue reading “Following the circle of life”

April 1, 2020July 26, 2020

Keeping a farm in the family

Corse family using grazing to maintain 152-year legacy

By Martha Hoffman
Whitingham, Vermont — For the past 152 years the Corse family has milked cows in south central Vermont.

Today, Leon Corse, his wife, Linda, and their adult daughter, Abbie, are doing their best to continue that legacy with organic-certified management tailored to their farm. And they’re helping others begin their own legacies through participation in the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship, a program aiming to bring new dairy farmers into the industry.

February 1, 2020July 12, 2022

Doing what it takes to launch a grass dairy

Beichlers flexible with funding and market niche

By Martha Hoffman

Middlebrook, Virginia — Dairy experience was the main capital Ben and Kristen Beichler used when they started their grass dairy in 2017. An investor group covered the cash.

Since then, there have been plenty of surprises and curveballs, but with some creative solutions they’ve been able to employ, the Beichlers are happy with the direction they’re headed in feeding no grain, milking once a day, and selling raw milk herdshares.

January 1, 2020July 12, 2022

Greg Stricker’s once a day story

By Martha Hoffman
Greg Stricker had been eyeing OAD milking for six years, running the numbers to see what net profit would look like with the expected 30% drop in milk production.

Greg and his family, which includes his father, Forrest, milk 120 mostly Jersey cows year-round in southeastern Pennsylvania. Greg keeps a sharp eye on the farm’s finances. The Strickers do not feed any grain, shipping to Natural by Nature’s organic grassfed program. So while the milk price is higher than with conventional organic, the herd’s production levels are lower.

December 1, 2019July 12, 2022

Finishing lambs when the rain won’t stop

By Janet McNally

Hinckley, Minnesota—Much of the Midwest received an extraordinary amount of rainfall this fall. In Minnesota, meteorologist Paul Douglass reported that most of the state had 10 to 20 inches more precipitation than normal in 2019 through October 25, making this the sixth wettest year on record. Other states also saw huge volumes of rain this year.

While the sheep in these places were knee deep in beautiful green grass, some of you might have noticed the lambs were in very lean condition and not attaining the finish required for slaughter.