Calculating Grazing And Forage Needs The Cattle Site

Calculating Grazing And Forage Needs The Cattle Site By grant lastiwka, forage program manager, areca af and published by alberta agriculture, food and rural development. pasture seasons see some real challenges as beef producers strive to keep costs down by grazing longer. Example: original wet weight was 100 grams. dry weight is 60 grams. 100 60 = 40 (40 ÷ 100) x 100 = 40% moisture and 60% dry matter (dm) to determine the amount of forage based on dry matter percentage, you need to know the size of the collection area (1 or 2 ft²) and the total weight (in grams) of the sample collected in the square.

Calculating Grazing And Forage Needs The Cattle Site It is important to calculate the forage needs of the grazing animals and how much land is necessary for periodic rotations. iowa state university extension has educational material that includes useful worksheets for calculating forage availability. generally, a stock rate of 30,000 50,000 pounds of animals for 1 acre over a day works well. The bcrc carrying capacity calculator allows producers to determine the carrying capacity of pastures based on two methods: 1) estimates based on provincial guides and 2) field based sampling. producers can use the method 1 calculator if they wish to calculate an estimate of carrying capacity based on available provincial forage production guides. An animal unit month (aum) is the amount of forage to fulfill metabolic requirements of one animal unit for one month (30 days). therefore, one aum is equal to 780 lbs of dry matter forage (26 lbs day x 30 days). think of an aum as the amount of forage that you need to provide to an animal to maintain them for one month. The bcrc carrying capacity calculator provides two methods: 1) estimates based on provincial guides and 2) field based sampling. step 1: map the range site (topography, soil types and zone) and vegetation types. step 2: assess range health or tame pasture condition (e.g. poor, fair, good or excellent).