Let's talk about pastures

Grasses as we have already mentioned in previous articles are plant species that can be native or introduced and that their main benefit is the feeding of ruminant animals since, among other fundamental elements for nutrition of these animals is fiber that can be degraded in their digestive systems. For the management of these species in agricultural systems, it is essential to know each of the components found in pasture ecosystems, in this way both agronomic and zootechnical planning can be carried out that allows maintaining enough quality green matter for livestock feed.

On the other hand, it is important to mention that the management of these plant species is very complex because the animal component intervenes, that is why the defoliation of these plants by the animal can influence the growth and sustainability on the surface, this is because these plants accumulate reserves in their radical system and bases of the stems that are used to generate a new regrowth, the meristems being growth tissues also influence the regrowth and the remaining area of the plant that remains after cutting to perform photosynthesis. That is why it is important that the plant has adequate rest and grazing days.

The above was studied by Canto, Valdés, Torres and Moscoso (2017), who pointed out that the reserves present in the roots (carbohydrates) are important in the first days after cutting the grassland (approximately 7 days) to accelerate the process of formation of new leaf areas, from that moment the new leaves generated will begin their photosynthetic process and accumulation of new reserves.

Within this management, the cutting height can influence regrowth, since, if an erect growing pasture is cut at ground level without leaving growth points, it will hardly be able to emit new foliar content. Taking into account the aforementioned aspects, a foraging planning should be carried out, which is based on the species of grass present in the ecosystem, their performance and the presence of animals.

To achieve a good management of these forage plants, a planning should be implemented as mentioned above, where the yield of green and dry matter of the pasture that is established is determined and through it to be able to estimate the forage supply, the animal load, the bearing capacity, always taking into account the grazing pressure exerted by the animals, therefore, we talk about animal unit, because each age group exerts a different pressure taking into account that an animal consumes 10% of its live weight in green matter and 3% of its live weight in dry matter. Therefore, a calf exerts less grazing pressure than a cow, because its consumption is lower and therefore the number of calves can be greater in a paddock.

Finally, another aspect to consider and that every producer mentions is the type of grass that can be had on the surface where the animals are handled, The question that is always asked Which is the best grass for milk? and what is the best grass for meat? From our perspective, all grasses provide the nutrients that a ruminant animal needs, they cannot be classified, it all depends on the management that we supply to the plant, agronomic practices and the characteristics of soil and climate. The pastures that express their best performance and quality can be supplied to the most demanding animals such as cows in production, that's why we need excellent management.

There are many points to deal with on these issues, which will be addressed soon. Thank you for reading our article, until a next installment.