Managing pastures serves multiple needs

By Stephanie Hughes

OSU Ext. master gardener volunteer

Whether you call them fields, pastures or hayfields, Ohio is dependent on this rich resource.

They are vital to man, farm animals, wildlife, insects, birds and microbes, providing forage, nesting, cover and stabilizing soils and preventing erosion.

Plus, their beauty during a drive in the country makes you feel closer to nature and time gone by.

Many residents have moved to the country, only to find that mowing a large area can be quite taxing on time and energy.

Thus, the opportunity to grow a pasture like the surrounding farms is a good way to use the five or so acres around the house.

The pasture can be used for wildlife and nature, or for raising livestock.

There are three main components of pastures:

True grasses – There are 2,000 species of true grasses in North America. The ones growing here in Ohio are cool season grasses. They are most productive in early spring and late in the fall.

Legumes – These are the alfalfa and clovers, that not only provide rich proteins for grazing animals or bales of hay, but also (through the aid of bacteria) fix nitrogen into the soil for grasses to grow.

Forbs – These are herbaceous, nonwoody flowering plants. These miscellaneous pasture plants can be good forage, or they can be a threat – toxic, hazardous, and/or poisonous to grazers, as well as the cuttings in hay.

Pastures are most productive during the rainy season when foliage grows the most and when cool season grasses thrive. This reduces chances of poisonous plants to be eaten, as there is so much else to eat.

When the hot, dry weather slows grass growth, this can give rise to more poisonous plants, as they were not eaten by livestock before.

Less forage means choices the animal may not normally make. Animals graze on what is readily available.

Good pasture management begins with knowing the elements of your fields. The person in charge of the well-being of these lands must know the plants growing in the pastures, as well as those growing around the land, and in the area.

There’s a great book entitled “Weeds of the Northeast” that is the best source for identifying plants so the good ones can be nurtured and the invasive ones reduced or eliminated.

Certain plants are toxic to horses, so being able to identify the plant makes all the difference.

If raising livestock, do not over-graze or undergraze the fields. Alternating fields is one way to maintain plant growth, by giving plants time to recover.

Walking the fields and identifying plants that are growing is important.

Mowing helps to keep taller weeds down, not flowering, not seeding.

Remember, a productive pasture is important in reducing the potential of toxic weed exposure and eliminating invasive species in our county.

To learn about managing pastures, visit http://go.osu.edu/pastures.