Consider This

“I need you to come right away. The driveline just snapped off the baler” “IT DID WHAT?! Shut it down. I’ll be there in five minutes” Click. The heat of the afternoon sun smacks me in the face as I scramble down the steps of the big, blue New Holland PowerStar 120. I hit the […]

The manure your livestock leave behind in pasture can provide beneficial nutrients. But how do the nutrients get from the pile and into the soil? If you said Dung Beetles, you’re only 1.5 to 3% correct.

  Cow burps and farts – that’s mostly what first comes up when people talk about agricultural methane, making it seem kind of silly. So why all the concern? It’s because methane is a very powerful greenhouse gas, about 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide for the decade it lasts in the atmosphere. But, […]

Adding an apprentice or intern to your operation is a great way to add energy and new ideas to your operation while providing training to the next generation of graziers. But, like any new practice, there’s information to make it easier, and skills we must develop to be successful. For the past 6 weeks, Leah […]

Back in 2014, there was a lot of buzz about how a bacteria found in soil may help reduce depression. But that’s not the only thing dirt might be good for. Additional research shows that same bacteria might even make us smarter. Let’s start with depression.  Based on results in lung cancer patients, who said […]

This our third in the series to help you find and work with apprentices and interns. Last week, we talked about how to be clear about what kind of opportunity you have to offer, and the kind of person you’d like to work with. Now, let’s talk about evaluating applications and conducting effective interviews. Go […]

The national average age of U.S. ranchers and farmers is approaching 60, and less than two percent of the U.S. population is currently dedicated to producing food. Experienced producers have decades of accumulated knowledge–and unless we find ways to pass this on to the next generation, the value of this experience may be lost. Given […]

Thanks to Josh Babcock, College of Veterinary Medicine,Washington State University for this article. Researchers have discovered the reason that Lyme disease can cause persistent arthritis. It’s a “shield” that protects our antibodies from attacking and destroying the part of the bacterium that causes arthritis. Troy Bankhead, associate professor in WSU’s Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology department, […]

If you’ve worked with rolls of woven wire fencing, you know how heavy they can be and how awkward it can be to try to unroll and set up. Repairman Jared decided to build his own solution, a rig he can hook to his tracker to hold the roll and make it easy to unroll. […]

I am a fairly young man seeing things I never thought we would. In the midst of a global pandemic we’ve all been shaken out of our normal. I am hunkered in my basement (mostly hiding from a 2-year-old) while making an attempt at teleworking as a soil conservation district technician. My wife is putting […]

Self-sufficiency is on the minds of many folks these days. Victory gardens and chicken tractors were/are in the toolboxes of many families looking to harvest sustenance off their land. Back in 1918, public service flyers touted raising your own food and helping others with this tagline: “In time of peace a profitable recreation–In time of […]

Cattle play a vital role out on the landscapes for grasslands. They mimic in many ways what historic bison used to do. That’s why we need cattle out on the landscape. Marshall Johnson Vice President Audubon Society The Audubon Society knows all about the important role livestock play in protecting grassland habitat for birds and […]

Before I started On Pasture, I was best known for having invented a method for teaching cows to eat weeds. The process is based in behavior science and is very simple. In as little as 8 hours spread over 10 days, anyone can teach their livestock to add a new weed to their diet. It […]

Last year I took part in a pasture walk and workshop. The turnout was good and the folks in attendance were very attentive and seemed to be interested in what we had to say. As is normal, there was some negativity on display and this can lead to some very interesting and colorful conversations. At […]

As most of you know, On Pasture author John Marble typically offers up an article every month, something about grazing management or ranching or some technical issue. But in January, John was busy with other tasks. In another life, John spent a significant amount of time working on drinking water problems in small communities across […]