Pasture Production Measurement Tools

[isurob]

As an Agronomist I'm interested in knowing if anyone is interested in or has ever used tools/devices to accurately measure forage production in their pastures? There are several tools available on the market that will measure total forage with a fairly high degree of accuracy. The first is called a 'Rising Plate Meter' which is used a lot in New Zealand where forage-based animal production is dominant. Details about rising plate meters can be found at the following links:

www.platemeters.co.nz/platemeters.html

jenquip.co.nz/categories/rising-plate-pasture-meters  

www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9XLEnSCsl4

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEI4dTQwWUE

The second most commonly used tool is the grazing stick. This is less accurate, but is more preferable than simply 'eye balling'. Information about grazing sticks can be found at the following links:

www.noble.org/ag/pasture/grazingstick/


www2.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/agr/agr191/agr191.pdf


www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTMYjvbwtA0

The third method is the 'cut and weigh' method which is exactly as it sounds. It requires that you clip the forage in a known area (1 sq. yard/meter), dry it to down to 'oven-dry' and then weigh it. This method is the most accurate and the most time consuming. Information about the cut and weigh method can be found at the following links:

store.extension.iastate.edu/Product/Estimating-Available-Pasture-Forage

msucares.com/pubs/publications/p2458.pdf

www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Hp0BIIwU9g

I hope some of this information helps. Let me know if any of you use these methods or are considering them. Lastly, Iowa State University has a very useful pasture management guide that really helps answer a lot of questions regarding pasture management. The guide can be found at the following link:

store.extension.iastate.edu/Product/Pasture-Management-Guide-for-Livestock-Producers

[Dahdo]

We use rotational or managed intensive grazing. I can create 16 paddocks with poly wire reels. I usually strip graze a paddock in 1-4 days depending on stage and rate of growth and of course how many animals we have. I have not gotten too quantitative, but have developed a feel over the past five years we been doing this. My rules of thumb are never to let them graze the grass shorter than 3 inches, and to try and keep the grass in the vegetative state, that usually means not letting it get taller than 10-12 inches. My favorite book on managed grazing is "Grass Productivity" by Andre' Voisin. I'll look at the Iowa State publication, thanks for posting, this is one of my favorite topics. Love to hear what others are doing.