Pasture

Knowledge Nuggets

Knowledge Nuggets are currently being worked on.

• It is important to evaluate pasture production costs to determine whether or not a particular pasture system is profitable. Profitability is dependant on the productivity of the pasture and the associated costs as well as the value of the returns.

• Pasturing stocker cattle, cows and calves, sheep or milking cows have unique costs and returns. Value of returns differ for the different classes of livestock resulting in overall profitability differing.

• Economics of pasture production can be broken into two broad catagories. The first catagory is the costs associated with the establishment of the stand. This catagory is very dependant on ecological factors such as soil type, climate and species desired and are spread over the number of years that the stand is to remain productive.

• The second catagory involves the costs of maintaining the stand during it's lifetime. Costs in this catagory include fencing, fertilizer, renovation costs and annual labor.

• The costs of the stand over time are affected by the life expectance of the stand. Typically, the longer a stand remains productive the lower the initial costs of establishment become.

• The annual costs of a stand are largely affected by the effectiveness of grazing management and resulting stocking rates. Grazing management which requires higher levels of planning and labor results in higher productivity and resulting higher stocking rates or longer grazing season which offset the annual costs.

Economics of Clubmoss Control on Saskatchewan Rangelands - available in PDF format only

Economics of Managing Crested Wheat Grass Pastures Infested with Wolf Plants - available in PDF format only

Economics of Riparian Grazing Management - available in PDF format only

Guidelines For Estimating Pasture Cost Of Production - available as Excel spreadsheet

Partial Budgets as a Decision-Making Tool - available in PDF format only

Pasture Costs and Production Charts

Pasture Development Costs

Pasture Lease Agreement - British Columbia - available in PDF format only

Pasture Lease Agreements - South Dakota

The Wealthy Rancher

Research Papers

Let us know of good research papers for this topic.