Advice from Dr. Bart Lardner: Part 1
This article is Part 1 of a three-part series featuring pasture management advice from Dr. Bart Lardner, Professor of Animal and Poultry Science at the University of Saskatchewan. Throughout the series, Dr. Lardner shares practical strategies to help Western Canadian cattle producers build healthier, more productive pastures.
Pasture is one of the most valuable resources on a beef operation, yet it’s often expected to produce year after year with little attention. Like any crop, healthy pastures require planning, monitoring, and management to remain productive.
According to Dr. Lardner, successful pasture management starts with understanding one simple concept:
“Grazing is a disturbance, but it’s a positive disturbance. You, the producer, can manage when those disturbance events happen.”
When grazing is managed properly, plants have the opportunity to recover, produce more forage, and remain productive for years to come.
Here are eight practical ways to get more from your pasture.
1. Don’t turn cattle out too early
It can be tempting to start grazing as soon as fields begin to green up, especially after a long winter. But early grazing can slow pasture recovery for the rest of the season.
For tame pastures, wait until plants have reached approximately the five-leaf stage before turnout. This gives forage enough leaf area to capture sunlight and build energy reserves.
2. Follow the “Take Half, Leave Half” rule
Every time cattle graze, plants lose leaf area needed for photosynthesis.
Leaving about half of the available forage behind allows plants to recover more quickly and maintain strong root systems throughout the season.
3. Avoid overgrazing
Many producers think overgrazing means grazing too short.
In reality, overgrazing happens when plants are grazed again before they’ve had enough time to recover.
Repeated grazing without adequate rest weakens desirable forage species and opens the door for weeds and less productive plants.
4. Match stocking rates to forage growth
Pasture production changes throughout the season.
Instead of treating stocking rates as fixed, monitor pasture growth regularly and adjust animal numbers or grazing duration as conditions change.
5. Build rest into your grazing plan
Healthy pastures depend on adequate recovery between grazing events.
Whether you have two paddocks or twenty, giving grazed areas time to regrow is one of the simplest ways to improve pasture longevity and productivity.
6. Include legumes
Legumes such as alfalfa improve forage quality while naturally supplying nitrogen to the stand.
When managed properly and combined with grasses, legumes can increase pasture productivity while reducing fertilizer requirements.
7. Treat pasture like a crop
Healthy pasture starts below ground.
Regular soil testing helps identify nutrient deficiencies, while manure deposited during grazing contributes valuable nutrient cycling that shouldn’t be overlooked.
8. Stay flexible
Weather changes every year—and often every week.
Successful pasture managers monitor conditions throughout the season and adjust their grazing plan accordingly.
Building productive pastures starts with the basics—timing turnout, managing grazing pressure, and giving forage plants the opportunity to recover.
In Part 2 of this series, Dr. Lardner explores why rotational grazing doesn’t have to be complicated and how even simple changes can improve pasture productivity and longevity.
