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Range school well attendedColorado Branson-Trinchera and Baca County Conservation Districts joined forces to bring a Range Management School to area ranchers Sept. 18. The morning speakers educated the 39 attendees on a myriad of range related topics. Ranchers Keith and Bonnie Long gave personal testimony of their grazing strategies in New Mexico and "Why Stewardship Pays." With their management system the grass production more than doubled, and consequently the Longs were able to double their herd size, on the same number of acres. Throughout the presentations there were numerous "monitoring" photos, showing how within a few years of utilizing a good grazing management plan plant species diversity and grass production can be dramatically improved. Other presenters included: John Valentine, Colorado State Land Board, on How Plants Grow and Respond to Grazing; Tim Steffen, Springfield NRCS, on Understanding and Applying Ecological Site Descriptions; Roy Roath, CSU Cooperative Extension, on Managing Rangeland for Desired Outcomes; and Floyd Reed, U.S. Forest Service (retired), on Intensity, Frequency and Timing of Grazing. Branson-Trinchera CD provided a delicious home cooked lunch for everyone. The highlight of the day was touring Everett and Flo Jackson's ranch. Everett shared their grazing strategies as the group explored range that had been clear of cedars using both prescribed burning and pushing with heavy equipment techniques. The tour included a site where snakeweed had been replaced with perennial grasses by intensive hoof action for a brief period of time. It was a day filled to capacity with fantastic grazing management information. Thank you to the many sponsors who made the event possible: Colorado Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative Committee, Colorado Section SRM, Branson-Trinchera and Baca County CD's, CSU Cooperative Extension, the NRCS Area Office, and Springfield NRCS Field Office. Date: 10/3/07
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