Grazing, SGF Kudos, Lamb Update

Our first season of Management-Intensive Grazing (MiG) is officially underway here at Liberty Farm. Much of my posting this summer will probably be dedicated to our grazing practices. We will be doing quite a lot of mowing until we build up the size of our sheep flock and can afford to add a couple cows to the mix.

I call what we're doing here mini-MiG because we have only 10 acres on our farm. At the end of the season I may write to the Stockman Grass Farmer with a description of mini-MiG. Maybe it will be a really slow month and the editor, Allan Nation, will come here to profile us. Hey, a farmer can dream, right?

Speaking of SGF, I've finally had time to read through this month's issue and have kudos for them, as usual. First, here is an excerpt from a letter to the editor entitled, "Disgruntled Reader" and the reply (in italics) which shows the integrity of this publication:

...Now though, you have gone to this grass fed, everything paper.
...So in closing, if you are going to start putting out a magazine that is helpful to all your readers, let me know so I can sign up. If it is going to be a steady diet of articles about grass fed animals and their processing and marketing I think I will pass.

...We made the decision a few years ago that we would rather be a smaller publication with a bigger mission than the reverse. We know our shift in editorial toward all grass feeding has alienated some people and cost us subscribers.
However, all of us here at SGF have found creating a new grass fed future is a lot more fun and exciting than endlessly preaching cost control, which is the only tool commodity producers have.
Apparently, 11,000 plus paid subscribers agree. Sorry to see you go.

Amen, brother.

They also have a cool article about the importance of forage self-sufficiency before going certified organic. If a grass farmer has to buy a few bales of hay from a non-certified neighbor to get over a rough patch in the grazing year, that $650 organic certification fee is just flushed down the toilet.

Two of our five ewes have lambed for a total of four lambs - 2 boys, 2 girls. It seems that our rams didn't breed the ewes on their first heat cycle. The guys were only seven months old at the time so I guess we can't blame them for taking awhile to get the hang of it. The truth is, I'm glad for it now. The end of March was cold and brown here.

tags: stockman grass farmer, MiG, management-intensive, grazing, forage, organic, ewe, lamb