A weekly report prepared by the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food (OMAF) and the Ministry of Rural Affairs (MRA). If you require further information, regarding this report, call the Elora Resource Centre at 519-846-0941. Office hours: 8:30am to 5pm. For technical information, call the Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300 or visit the OMAF and MRA website: www.ontario.ca/omafra.
PASTURE RECORDS
Jack Kyle, Grazier Specialist, OMAF and MRA
Keeping pasture records is an important part of good pasture management. With written records you can see the results of management changes as well as weather impact on both forage and livestock performance. If you have these records you will be able to draw a number of comparisons between years that will provide valuable management information.
With a set of records that provide details of what has happened you can accurately compare month to month and year to year performance. A pocket notebook and or a three-ring binder can form the basis for a good system. If you want to expand to a more complex computer spread sheet at some future date you can.
Your records should include weather data- amount of rainfall, frost dates, and extreme summer temperatures. Forage or sward information on species mix in the pasture, additional fertility applied, and pasture growth at different times during the grazing season. Livestock information including size, type and number of animals on the pasture, frequency of moves to new paddocks, beginning and ending dates of the grazing season, amount of residual forage and any supplemental feed required. This is a long list but the records can be as simple or as complicated as you wish.
There are a number of tools to assist in measuring the amount of forage present. Height and density are the two important components.
The use of a grazing stick or a rising plate meter will help in determining the quantity of forage present. There is such a wide variation in the species composition of our Ontario pastures that the accuracy of these measuring devises leaves a lot to be desired.
If you take a close look at the pasture density and height along with current stocking rate you should be able to estimate the number of animal days per acre that is present.
A notebook will provide the basics for the record keeping and will over time give a clear picture of your grazing management.
By recording and accumulating this information you will be able to make grazing decisions that will have a positive benefit to your operation.
At regular intervals during the grazing season (every two weeks would be optimum) you can establish the amount of forage available in each paddock and create a graph of your grazing wedge. This graph will show the amount of forage available in a paddock at that point in time. The wedge should be a line declining from the paddock about to be entered to the paddock that the livestock just left. This wedge graph will indicate if there are problems in one or more paddocks and also allow you to project future forage needs.
Each year is different in the grazing business but with information you will be able to analyze the differences and manage your pastures for maximum returns.
SUPPORTING JOBS AND GROWTH IN RURAL ONTARIO
MRA – August 15, 2013
Province Helping to Attract Investment and Create Jobs
Ontario is helping rural communities, organizations and businesses create jobs and attract investment with renewed support from the Rural Economic Development (RED) program.
The province has already invested more than $167 million in over 400 projects through the RED program since 2003, generating more than $1.2 billion in local economic activity and creating more than 35,000 jobs. The continuation of the program will help:
• Strengthen the capacity of rural communities and regions to undertake economic development activities, such as market research and business expansion plans
• Create more competitive and diverse rural and regional economies
• Attract investment, increase competitiveness and encourage greater collaboration among rural communities and businesses
Strengthening rural communities is part of the Ontario government’s plan to create jobs, boost the economy and build a more fair and prosperous society.
Quick Facts:
• Eligible applicants include municipalities; not-for-profit organizations; industry, economic development and regionally-focused associations; businesses and corporations; First Nations, Metis, and Inuit communities; and broader public sector organizations, such as school boards, colleges and universities.
• The province is also supporting regional economic development through programs such as the Eastern Ontario Development Fund, the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund, and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation.
• In its 2013 Budget, Ontario announced a new $100 million infrastructure fund to help small, rural and northern communities address roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure. Consultations on the fund took place across the province this summer and are now complete.
COMING EVENTS
Aug. 30 – Sept. 2 Orangeville Agricultural Fair. Call 519-942-9597 or refer to www.oaseventcentre.ca.
Aug. 31 – Sept. 2 Mount Forest Agricultural Fair. For information call: 519-323-2272.
Sept. 5 – 8 Arthur Fall Fair. Call: 519-848-3820 or refer to website: www.arthurfallfair.ca.
Sept. 5 – 8 South Waterloo (Cambridge) Fall Fair. For information call: 519-622-3247.
Sept. 25 Forestry Twilight Tour – “Planning For Trees on the Farm” – 7 to 9 pm at R&R Poultry,
7649 Sideroad 6 East, Kenilworth, ON. Please RSVP to: Mark Funk at the GRCA: 1-866-
900-4722 Extension 2259 or e-mail mfunk@grandriver.ca.
Sept. 25 Shakespeare Swine Seminar, Shakespeare, ON. For more information contact: Mary at the
Elora Resource Centre at 519-846-3392.
