Managing the Residual

The pastures really needed the rain we just got after the 90 degree weather we had last week. September is usually a good grass growing month with lower temperatures and plenty of moisture, but every now and again we get a pretty dry fall with not much grass growth.

As we rotate the animals around the farm, we try to leave lots of residual - the technical term for uneaten grass. If we graze the grass down hard, the plants take longer to grow back than when we just let the animals clip the top half and move on.

This time of year there is no such thing as wasted grass. The more we leave the faster it grows back. The animals really thrive with this type of grazing.

Thanks for reading, Leith, Mary Kate & Norah MacKenzie