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Holistic management can help improve grazing landBy Jennifer Bremer
Being good stewards of the land is something farmers have always been known to be, but these days that also entails holistic management. University of Nebraska Extension specialist Terry Gompert told a group of cattle producers at a grazing conference recently that holistic management is creating sustainability by healing damaged land and increasing the productivity of healthy land. "We have to have a 'can do' attitude when it comes to taking care of our land," he said. "Know what you need to do and do what it takes to meet those goals." Gompert explained the similarities and differences in conventional and holistic management. "Both practices have objectives, goals, missions and visions using similar techniques, but conventional grazers assume they are correct in the way they are managing since that is the way they have always done it. "Holistic managers assume they are wrong until they get feedback and know if they have done something that will work," he said. Holistic management is more than just taking good care of the land and animals; it is also taking good care of yourself. Holistic goals include: how you want your life to be, what you have to produce for it to happen, and how does the land need to be to provide the life that you and your family desire. In order to meet these goals, Gompert said it is important to make a checklist to help you make better decisions: --Cause and effect: Look beyond the symptoms and know how doing something will affect the land. --Weak link: Consider people, biological life and money when making decisions. --Marginal reaction: Be sure to get the best bang for your buck. --Gross profit analysis: Make a comparison of what the best management options are. --Money/energy source/use: Know how much everything costs. --Sustainability: Know what is healthy for your land. --Society and culture: Use your gut feeling when making decisions. After the checklist is made and gone over, Gompert then recommends making a financial plan because making a healthy profit takes a plan. "Producers must decide what type of operation they want to have--conventional/grain fed, grass fed, organic, or low-cost," he said. "Each has its benefits and its downfalls, but most of all, you have to believe in what you are selling." Different management practices work in different situations. Gompert said it is important for each producer to take an overall look at their operation before determining what to do; but taking care of the land and the soil is a huge part in making agriculture work now and in the future. "We need to care for our land because it is the beginning for everything," he said. With a holistic grazing plan, producers need to get animals to the right place at the right time and for the right reasons. An increase in litter or residue on the soil surface can help preserve the land. In order to increase litter, he suggests increasing the use to trample ratio: never mechanically harvest hay, rarely use fire as a tool, use frequent moves, use high stock density, feed hay where the land needs it, eliminate grazing during dry matter accumulation periods; combine herds into one group and follow a holistic management planned grazing. He said by following the correct guidelines, cattle can become forage converters and help improve the land. To effectively manage holistically, producers need to understand nature functions in wholes and an understanding of the environment a producer is working with is a must. "Livestock can improve land health, but time is more important than numbers. If a producer defines what they are managing for and tests their decisions while monitoring their results, they can have a successful holistic management system," he concluded. Jennifer Bremer can be reached by phone at 515-833-2120 or by e-mail at jbremermaj@hotmail.com. 5/5/08 Date: 5/1/08
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