Tuesday, December 13, 2016

The Case for Paddocks


Winter in Texas is so much easier than what I had grown used to in Idaho. That said, things do slow down here with the lack of sunlight and cooler days. Last year I went through 10 round bales of hay with 5 head of cattle, this year we've doubled the herd to 10, but since 4 of them are calves I only bought 18 rounds to try and make it through the winter.

In the interim I'll run the cattle through each paddock for 1-2 days, versus the week or so they cattle get to spend there during the growing months. It's not a real supplement, since the grass is only 6-8 inches tall, but based on their reaction they enjoy the change of pace from hay, and I'm sure there are nutrients available in fresh grass lacking in the baled hay.

Depending on how hard the next two months of winter are I might be able to cycle the cattle through twice. My focus is on taking care of the soil in the paddocks and the main pasture. The main pasture will get turned in to paddocks soon, if the time affords itself.

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