Drought Grazing:  Do You Have a Back-up Plan?

by Roger W. Tacha, Resource Conservationist
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Colby, Kansas

Another year of it and the drought continues. You'd think we'd get used to it! Even though we DID get some nice late-summer rains, they were too late for the grass. The grass-growing season was already 95 percent complete.

None of us can make it rain or snow. What we CAN do is have back-up plans for whatever NEXT year might bring. Will the moisture and temperatures be better, the same, or worse? Plan for ALL of it. One thing that is an absolute necessity is aiming for a LIVESTOCK FORAGE BALANCE. This means to balance forage availability with livestock forage demand.

A back-up plan (contingency plan) for dealing with drought on rangeland considers the following factors--some are just normal range management ideals, and some are simply for the drought itself.

• Animal Numbers (stocking rate)
• Animal Type
• Weaning Time
• Supplemental Forage
• Rotational Grazing
• Deferred Grazing
• Trigger Points

Animal Numbers (Stocking Rate)

Animal numbers is the factor most in the limelight. Most all producers have already reduced cattle numbers by a significant percentage. . .ranging from 10 to 100 percent!! If there's little or nothing growing, there's little grazing. Cull EARLY. Cull HEAVY. Good record keeping tells which animals go first.

What rain we DID get in late summer WILL help next year's early grass green up. But it might take years before we see grass vigor and production like it was eight years ago.

It's just the reality of it. If your forward planning says you can maintain this year’s animal numbers, try it. If it does not, reduce NOW.

Conservative stocking rates in both wet and dry times is a wise management tool to prepare for the ever-looming drought.

Animal Type

Animal type is another factor. Diversifying to run both cows and stockers gives a lot of elbow room for dealing with no rain. The stockers, in a sense, are quickly disposable. But adding stockers to a cow operation means initially reducing cow numbers too. This sort of planning needs to happen NOW. If this kind of "change" is a knee-jerk reaction about one third through the next grazing season, it's already too late.

Weaning Time

Removing the half-grown youngsters from the range a month earlier than "normal" might mean the cows get two to three weeks more grazing before they're out of groceries too. This part of the contingency plan is admittedly short term, but it adds a little cushion time before you take the next step (which could be one of several things).

Supplemental Forage

Supplemental forage may be feasible, or it may be "just fooling yourself," depending on what and where the feed is. If the producer (or cooperating neighbor) has a nearby crop field with residue, volunteer, or weeds, this might get the animals by for ANOTHER three to four weeks. Remember Livestock Forage Balance!

However, if it's mid-summer and there's no cropland grazing, better think it over before actually physically feeding the critters. It's an expensive quick fix. It very rarely pans out!

Trucking the herd to "parts unknown" for the remaining grazing season could be an option. It's been done. But, that too is going to be expensive, if even available at all. With more of the range across the state also feeling the effects of the drought and high trucking costs, this probably isn't the best alternative.

Rotational Grazing

Many ranches are using grazing rotations. Most like it and it works. Available grazing days for each individual pasture can be easily calculated. This is based on what plant species are there, and what the production (forage yield) is. Also calculated is the days of rest each pasture needs to recover between grazing periods.

This REST period is what really makes the whole system work. A given pasture is "worth" a certain number of grazing days in the growing season. . . Period. Will the herd be rotated through the fields once, twice, three times? When the grass is growing fast, move the animals quickly. When the grass growth slows (semi-dormancy, drought, etc.), move the animals through the system slower.

If it appears the grass needs more rest during the rotation, combining herds might be an option if there are adequate water supplies to accommodate higher animal numbers. A higher number of pastures will automatically give each pasture a higher percentage of REST.

Regardless, continue to monitor how many of the allotted grazing days have been used in each pasture. Remember Livestock Forage Balance!

Deferred Grazing

This means NOT grazing a certain pasture. This can be incorporated into a rotational system where a different field is deferred each year. Deferred grazing can provide several benefits, from wildlife habitat, to winter grazing, to fuel load development for prescribed burning. During a drought, it can provide stockpiled emergency grazing opportunities if forage is actually produced on pastures which are deferred from grazing.

Obviously, this too, needs to be planned MONTHS in advance. It is a very feasible and a very smart management option.

Trigger Points

Simply stated, this is monitoring some climatic and ecological factors to help predict the odds of when, or if, to take contingency plan actions. It is comparing moisture received to date, to "normal" amounts. Then comparing grass production grazed to date (grass growth curves, exclusion cages) to the expected amount yet to grow.

By mid-July, 70 to 80 percent of our normal grass production has already occurred. By making these moisture and production comparisons, if there's an inevitable, obvious forage deficit, it should be evident. Just another tool that might temper an already-bad situation.

With the exception of rain, all of these other things are ones people CAN control. Focus on what we CAN control. Plan options MONTHS in advance. During drought, bad decisions can be common, but they generally lead to more bad decisions. Rather than reacting to them this way, contingency planning is a proactive way to start next year's grazing.

If you would like to learn more about contingency planning or would like help in developing a plan, please contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) staff located in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Service Center.

For more information about natural resources conservation, talk to the NRCS or conservation district staff or visit the Kansas NRCS Web site at www.ks.nrcs.usda.gov.

This article is also available in Microsoft Word format.

Drought Grazing: Do You Have a Back-up Plan? (DOC; 56 KB)

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Last Modified: 08/13/2008