HOW MUCH IS PASTURE WORTH?
Pasture
rental charges are often based on tradition rather than logic. Frequently
they fail to reflect either the value of the forage or the value of
the nutrients to the livestock.
Monthly
pasture charges are commonly based on
animal units (AU’s), but
people have different conceptions of
what an AU equals. Pasture consumption is highly related
to animal weight. An AU
is defined as a 1000-pound mature cow with a small calf. Thus
a 1200-pound cow would equal 1.2 AU’s. A calf probably doesn’t eat much pasture until it is
two or three months old or weighs about
200 pounds. If
the calf grazes from the time it weighs
200 pounds until it weighs 500 pounds,
it’s average weight for the grazing period would
be 350 pounds or .35 AU’s. An
1100 pound horse equals 1.25 AU’s. A
mature ewe equals .2 AU’s. A
dry cow equals .77 AU’s.
Thus
a 1000 pound cow with a 200 pound calf
that is put on pasture and the calf grows
to 500 pounds would equal 1.35 AU’s for the grazing
period.
The
animal performance obtained from the
pasture is determined by the forage species
and the pasture’s
condition and stage of growth. Best
quality pastures are assigned a value based on anticipated performance. “Excellent” pastures are those that contain seeded
grasses or grass-legume mixes with abundant
growth and are tender with no blooms
or seed heads showing. Yearling
cattle would be expected to gain 1.75 pounds or more per day on this
pasture.
“Good” pastures
show abundant growth of seeded or native
grasses or legumes, but are less palatable
due to the grass species and a high proportion
of the plant being in early to late bloom
or seed stage. Gains of 1.25 to 1.75 pounds per day
would be expected.
“Fair” pastures
are composed of grasses which are less
abundant but adequate. They
can be either weedy or are of lower quality because of lack of moisture
or advancing maturity. Gains
of .75 to 1.25 pounds per day would be expected.
“Poor” pastures
are short and overgrazed, droughted,
or heavily infested with weeds. Gains
of less than .75 pounds per day would be common.
The
values assigned below for each classification
were derived from the nutrient content
of the pasture, the anticipated animal performance and the consumption
expected by a 1000 pound animal. The “Excellent” pasture with
a value of .3 should result in performance
comparable to alfalfa hay. “Good” pasture has a value
of .25, “Fair” a value .2 and “Poor” a value
of .15.
The charge for standing pasture should reflect the
current market value of hay, minus the cost of harvesting. It costs about $35-$40 per ton to put up hay. Selling forage as pasture, rather than
hay, removes the risk of weather damage. The
risk of weather will vary from area to area, but 10% of the selling
price of hay during the grazing season seems to be a fair price. You should set your own level of damage
risk.
To
come up with a monthly charge for pasture use the following formula:
Monthly Charge = Animal units x (Average price of stacked alfalfa hay during the grazing season - Cost of harvesting hay - Weather risk factor) x Pasture quality factor.
Let’s
look at an example. Assume
the average weight of this cow herd is 1100 pounds and the average
weight for calves during the grazing season is 350 pounds. Average
alfalfa hay is selling for $85/ton. The pasture is classified as good.
Animal units involved: 1100# + 350# = 1450#/1000 = 1.45 animal units.
Pasture charge per cow-calf month: 1.45 (animal units) x 41.50 (value of standing pasture) x .25 (pasture quality factor) = $15.04.
Similarly if the hay price were $60/ton and the
pasture quality factor was fair, the monthly pasture charge would be
$6.89.
This formula reflects the value of the standing
forage and does not take into account other factors associated with
pasture rental such as water resources, fence maintenance and livestock
grazing management. Grazing management is the key to good
animal performance and maintenance of good pasture condition.
Most overgrazing is a result of time of exposure
to grazing. Once a pasture
is grazed to the recommended level, it needs time to rest, recover
and regrow. If not given enough recovery time, pasture
will progress to an overgrazed condition.
Reference: EB1191. Calculating Monthly Pasture Charges on the Basis of Feed Value.
Compiled by John Fouts. For more information, contact WSU Extension, (509) 477-2048.
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