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Plants and Grazing
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Early growth | Small shoots and green leaves begin to emerge, sheep love these and will overgraze |
| Vegetative state | Lush and leafy before seed heads emerge, very nutritious, prime grazing time |
| Mature/Reproductive state | Seed heads emerge and plants mature, more stem and fiber, lower forage quality |
| Why do you have to know when grass will peak? | So when you put your sheep on pasture there is always something to eat |
| Continuous grazing | One-pasture system, unrestricted access to same pasture for entire season |
| Pros of continuous grazing | Simple to manage, less fencing and infrastructure |
| Cons of continuous grazing | Uneven grazing, can reduce forage quality, greater risk of parasite build-up |
| Controlled/rotational grazing | Multi-pasture system, sheep rotate through different pastures throughout the season |
| Pros of rotational grazing | More even pasture utilization, better control of forage growth, can reduce parasite exposure |
| Cons of rotational grazing | More feeders and waterers, more labor-intensive |
| Simple rotational grazing | Sheep rotate through a few pastures every month or so |
| Complex rotational grazing | Sheep rotate through many pastures every 3-7 days |
| How much time should pastures be given to regrow? | About 60 days |
| Strip grazing | Sheep are moved to a fresh strip of grass every few days, separated by an electric fence |
| Creep grazing | Two pastures for ewes and lambs, lambs get a higher quality pasture only they can go into for better nutrition and less parasites |
| Perennials | Plants that naturally come back every year |
| Annuals | Plants that must be replanted every year |
| Cool season annuals | Ryegrass, oats, barley, wheat, good for spring and fall grazing, grow in 50-75 degrees |
| Warm season annuals | Sorghum, millet, good for summer grazing, grow in 75-90 degrees |
| Cool season perennial grasses | Most common in MO, thrive in 60-75 degrees, ideal for spring and fall grazing |
| Warm season perennial grasses | Thrive in 80-95 degrees, ideal for summer grazing, good root system, |
| Examples of cool season perennial grasses | Orchard grass, tall fescue, bromegrass |
| Examples of warm season perennial grasses | Big bluestem, switchgrass, indiangrass |
| Legumes | Can be annual or perennial, high in protein, easily digestible, nitrogen fixation, good for animals and pasture quality, good ro-crops |
| Nitrogen fixation | Plants that can fix nitrogen in the earth so other plants can use them |
| Examples of legumes | Alfalfa, red and white clover, field peas, lezpedeza |
| Forbs | Broadleaf, non-woody, flowering plants, wildflowers and weeds, highly palatable, nutritious, good for pasture diversity |
| What do sheep like best? | Forbs |
| What effects how poisonous plants are? | Plant, part consumed, stage of growth, time of year, amount consumed, animal factors (age, sex, condition) |
| Examples of forbs | Chicory, plantain, dandelion, yarrow, thistle, milkweed |
| Clinical signs of poisonous plants | Sudden death, neurological symptoms |
| What should you do about poisonous plants in pastures? | Inspect pasture before grazing sheep, eliminate poisonous plants if possible, provide water and minerals, ensure pasture diversity |
| Four poisonous plants | Cockleburs, milkweed, nightshade, poison hemlock |
| Cockleburs | Neurological symptoms, 0.75-3% body weight, seeds and seedlings toxic |
| Milkweed | Respiratory and neurological symptoms, 0.05-5% body weight, any part when the plant is green is toxic |
| Nightshades | Neurological and muscular symptoms, leaves and berries toxic |
| Poison hemlock | Muscular and respiratory symptoms, 0.5% body weight, green plant parts toxic |
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