<< Back to pasture management

Tactics for improving pasture management

The first step in improving productivity is understanding what you’ve already got to work with. What is your pasture and grazing system telling you? What are its limits? What needs to change? Is an alteration to the fertiliser program warranted, do your grazing tactics need to change, or does overall stock pressure need to be changed or managed differently?
Looking closely at both pasture and livestock performance together is necessary.  Information on pasture condition, soil nutrients, stocking rate and kg of product per ha are all great things to monitor and track progress across time. At any time, however, this type of information can act as signposts to dissatisfaction or change for the better. The very act of collecting information can be vastly undervalued as a business improver.  
 
When thinking about tactics at both the paddock and grazing system level, remember that they can be specific to a purpose. They don’t mean a commitment to always do something, or to do it everywhere. They are tools to use, not a straitjacket.  
 
Tactics to improve clover in one paddock may not be required or feasible across all paddocks. But they can still have great value. Intensive rotations may be a tool for some mobs at some times, not a prescription for what you do. Make your own tactical plan. ​