Greg Judy's Guide to Effective Grazing Operations from Ground Zero

[@C.Hawkshaw]

Didn’t Einstein say that the best invention ever was a blade of grass? Well maybe it was Edison: Until man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so-called scientific knowledge. Remedies from chemicals will never stand in favor compared with the products of nature, the living cell of the plant, the final result of the rays of the sun, the mother of all life.” - Thomas A. Edison

[@danielmaclean8932]

Good stuff

[@thistles]

Joel Salatin talks about the benefits of keeping animals off the pasture in the winter because the manure doesn’t compost and fertilize, but instead leaches into the ground water or off gasses ammonia. How can I reconcile keeping animals out on winter stockpile with preserving as much of the fertility from the manure and urine as possible?

[@SinandLerd]

I'm no expert but in nature animals are outside all year, so i do think nature has ways of dealing with manure in winter. As I recall Joel Salatin always talk about the carbonatious diaper. Isn't grass residue and the carbon in the soil just that? So it might only hold true on badly managed pasture / soil.

[@thistles]

@@SinandLerd Thank you for taking the time to answer 🙂 I don't think that's what Joel means because he did specifically talk about taking his cattle off pasture and putting them in the barn over winter. He also talked about the problem with waste over winter not being broken down immediately. It's cold. so the decomposers aren't as active. In the summer, I think you're correct, but Joel seemed to think winter was different.

[@SinandLerd]

@@thistles As far as i know the biggest reasons for putting cattle in a barn in winter are to prevent muddy pastures (depending on lots of things), loss of calves (depending on the calving season). Also Obviously everything is a little easier in a barn. Feeding Hey, Water etc. except clearing out the manure. Also the cattle get a little fatter in a barn. Back to the manure: When it's freezing outside the manure freezes as well and nothing happens to it. Then when it isn't frozen volatile compounds can be absorbed by carbon compounds on top or in the soil. At last as you mentioned the decomposers start their work on the non volatile stuff only when it's warm enough outside. Which is coincidentally the same time that the grass starts growing again. 😆 Another reason specifically to Joel is that he uses the manure as gardening soil.

[@NATPatty26]

Manure pile up by the barn does the same thing as far as offgassing and losing nutrients