{"id":10072,"date":"2024-07-24T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-24T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalland.com\/blog\/?p=10072"},"modified":"2024-07-24T15:17:50","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T19:17:50","slug":"managing-ranchland-in-drought-conditions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalland.com\/blog\/managing-ranchland-in-drought-conditions\/","title":{"rendered":"Managing Ranchland and Cattle in Drought Conditions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 2023, many parts of the country saw record-breaking temperatures and struggled to adjust their agriculture and livestock operations to account for these changes, forcing some to list their ranches for sale. With water availability still a concern for landowners across the country, many ranchers have begun to look for ways to maximize their cattle operations in drought conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During a recent episode of the National Land Podcast,<\/a> ranch management specialist for Blue Ranch, Mike Turner shared some of his strategies for managing cattle herds in a drought and making the most of the water that\u2019s already available. In 2023, the Blue Ranch was awarded the Outstanding Range Land Stewardship Award by the Texas Section of the Society of Ranch Management, and in 2024 they received the Texas Outstanding Rangeland Stewardship Award from the Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few ways that Turner has managed one of the most successful ranches in Texas!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consolidating Herds for Better Forage Use<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One way that Turner has lessened the overall impact of grazing on the land is by condensing multiple herds down to a single large herd. By doing this, he minimized the area impacted by the herd and maximized the forage available in that smaller area. This also trains the cattle to eat some of the less desirable species, as Turner explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stated, \u201cOn big pastures with moderate numbers, cattle will cherry-pick what they want. One of the things we try to avoid is cattle overutilizing or underutilizing forage, so when we have a larger volume of cattle and smaller paddock sizes, they have to go in there and take a bite of everything that\u2019s there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rotating this larger herd around multiple different grazing sites gives the sites not currently in use a chance to recuperate and regenerate foliage depleted through grazing. This is especially important during drought conditions where the water needed to help these plant species regrow is in short supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Optimize Water Distribution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Water availability is always important when managing ranchland, but especially during a drought. Taking stock of how grazing areas are receiving water and working to improve the flow of water to these areas can make a world of difference in terms of overall resource consumption. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turner echoed this, explaining, \u201cWe\u2019ve been able to utilize the forage that\u2019s there and rotate those animals into a location where they normally wouldn\u2019t spend a lot of time. Water is always your biggest Achilles heel in any ranching operation, but if you\u2019ve got the water distributed correctly, you can utilize a lot of the stuff that\u2019s already available there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He went on to describe that on the Blue Ranch, they employed a mix of live water sources, perennial creeks, and multiple holding facilities with water lines running strategically to grazing areas and water troughs for cattle. In drought conditions, it\u2019s important for landowners to utilize every water source at their disposal but also have the infrastructure in place to supplement these natural sources as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid Overgrazing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the biggest things landowners need to keep in mind when managing ranchland in drought conditions is the harm that overgrazing can do to their property. By allowing a herd to deplete the forage in a given grazing area fully, landowners can create more problems for themselves and their ranching operation later down the road. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Landowners should carefully monitor the available forage in their grazing areas, since this leftover forage will aid in promoting new growth as well as holding water in the soil. Speaking to the benefits of not overgrazing forage areas, Turner stated, \u201cMy goal is not how much [forage] I take off an area, it\u2019s how much I leave behind. I think for any operation to be successful, you\u2019ve got to leave something behind for the next growing season. It\u2019s the same thing with our water table. If we deplete that water table down to a point, it takes a long time for those things to recharge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy year nine, we saw quite a bit of change from mid to short grass transitional prairie back to tallgrass prairie. I think it goes back to a better utilization of our water and maximizing our grazing. With a properly functioning water system with a water table, you shouldn\u2019t have any runoff whatsoever because you should have biomass to capture what is there so it\u2019ll infiltrate back into the water table. I think that\u2019s part of the reason we\u2019re seeing a lot more water utilization, we\u2019ve got a lot more biomass left behind to capture the water that hits the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through careful management and observation, ranchland owners can create successful grazing areas and foster healthy herds even in the dry conditions seen in many parts of the country. If you\u2019re looking for ranches for sale or have questions about managing ranchland on your property, get in touch with your local Land Professional today!<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2023, many parts of the country saw record-breaking temperatures and struggled to adjust their agriculture and livestock operations to account for these changes, forcing some to list their ranches for sale. With water availability still a concern for landowners across the country, many ranchers have begun to look for ways to maximize their cattle … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Managing Ranchland and Cattle in Drought Conditions”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":10074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[13],"tags":[101,1654,1652,1655,1650,1651,1653],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nManaging Ranchland and Cattle in Drought Conditions - National Land Realty News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Managing ranchland during a drought presents its own unique challenges. 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