Page 4 - Sep302021
P. 4
The Midwest Cattleman · September 30, 2021 · P4
bit, the ragweed dried
out sooner and cows
weren't having it.
And it is not just
the ragweed. Weeds of
all kinds became part
of their diet with that
added grazing pres-
sure. We put about
50 pair on an acre and
a half - sometimes 2
acres every morning
and they stay there
I love this time of year – for about 24 hours. Of
cool mornings, warm after- course, we can move
noons, and there is often a sooner, or later based
breeze. on the forage.
Thankfully we've had In this pasture, we
plenty of rain recently in start the cattle right
west central Missouri. The down next to the water.
leaves will soon be turning The pond is fenced so
and falling. Halloween, deer they can only water
season and Thanksgiving in one location where
will be here soon - all im- there's a gravel base, surprised to see that, early it, even in September, which
portant events when you and they can't walk out into on, they were eating almost is amazing to me. With this
have grandchildren. the pond very far. Each day the entire cocklebur plant. grazing pressure, mouths go
It's also that time of year we pull a fence and then Thankfully, as the burs down in the grass, legume,
when ragweed makes it un- place it behind another, so dry and harden, they leave weed mix and they eat
bearable for many. This it becomes the fence we use those alone. Cocklebur tox- what's there because if they
season, we’re trying to turn tomorrow. It's like walking icosis can result from inges- don't the cow standing next
that around on the ragweed. up stairs. The entire process tion of young two-leaf seed- to them will! It's a competi-
Moving cattle this morning takes about twenty minutes. lings. The toxic substance, tion.
to a new section of grass, I Every animal walks right by carboxyatractyloside, is also For some reason this set
noticed that they had real- me so if there is a problem, I present in the seeds. This of cattle are hard to drive. I
ly been eating the ragweed see it early. We move away toxicity disappears by the guess they have just never
down to nothing. Cattle can from water each day until 4-leaf stage and is not pres- been driven much but I can
eat just about anything in that entire pasture is done. ent in the mature plant. lead them anywhere walk-
the pasture if they have This system certainly will I'm sure those burs will ing with a reel of polywire
proper motivation which is not work everywhere, but it go on to mature if allowed to in my hand. If I’m on foot
tied to stocking rate, and works here for us. grow there but in this sys- with a reel in my hand, to
there has to be adequate The ragweed is not the tem the plants really stand them that means new, fresh
moisture. In many plac- only casualty. With this kind out and are easy to find with forage is ahead. I think it
es, you really can't tell the of grazing pressure, cat- a hoe or a shovel. We try to works even better than a
ragweed had been there at tle have learned to eat just make sure those burs end bag of feed.
all – and this is almost Oc- about everything in the pas- up in a dumpster or fire, so
tober! On the other hand, ture. Once they’ve moved they're not allowed to seed KwC
on drier places, or where on, it’s really easy to see back. We used to fight John-
soil has been compacted a and deal with the occasional son grass but
rogue rosebush. I was also
now, as long
as there hasn't
been a frost,
it's not a prob-
lem. In this
system it never
disappears but
it is well under
control.
In one field
we have quite
a bit of Sericea
Lespedeza. It
has been there
for years. In
this system it
is not spread-
ing, and it is
not a problem.
They eat all of
