A range site is an area of land having a distinctive combination
of soil, topography, climate, vegetation and management characteristics.
Range sites are most easily recognizable on the basis of their
vegetative and soil characteristics. On all but the most severely
depleted ranges, sites are most easily recognized by the similar
plant communities that cover them. Each range site is thought
of as a separate part of the range for management purposes.
Since each range site grows different combinations of plants,
it is important that each site be judged separately when determining
management strategies.
Management units
A management unit is a block of land used for one or a few
specified purposes. For example it may be a spring range for
a group of cattle and/or habitat for elk.
It is extremely important to understand the difference between
a range site and a management unit. Range sites are like parts
of a jigsaw puzzle in which mother nature put the landscape
together. Management units represent the way in which we group
these natural range sites for practical management. In instances
where highly uniform soils and climatic conditions cover large
areas, a management unit may be made up almost entirely of one
range site. In most of the mountain and plateau land of the
Pacific Northwest, however, a management unit will consist of
logical groupings of many range sites, all of which have, insofar
as practicable, similar management characteristics. In some
cases, it may be necessary to group sites with different characteristics
for purposes of logical land management.
For some grasses, the proper use is considered to be removal
of about half of the growth made in the present year. While
proper use must be considered in the light of the above-named
factors, ‘taking half and leaving half’ sometimes can be used
as a rule-of-thumb’.
To determine the amount of stubble left when half the growth
is removed, follow these steps:
Wrap an average-sized, mature, ungrazed plant with string
to hold it together when cut.
Cut off plant at crown (ground level).
Adjust the wrapped plant across a knife blade to make it
balance. Measure with a ruler from bottom of plant to point
of balance. This gives height, indicating 50% use for that
particular species of grass. Desirable
approximate stubble heights for some native grasses are:
Grass Stubble left
Bluebunch wheatgrass 4-8 inches
Idaho fescue 2-4 inches
Big bluegrass 3-5 inches
Repeat this for 10 average plants of the species to get
an average 50%
utilization height.
Select 100 plants randomly, measure their heights (whether
grazed or not), and average the measurements. If the average
grazed height is more than the standard shown above, the range
is not fully used. If it is less, the range is overused.
A considerable amount of stubble and plant litter will remain
on a properly utilized range. Plant material left on the range
after being properly used is not wasted. It helps to improve
range condition in these ways:
Increases intake and storage of water
Protects soil from wind and water erosion
Adds humus to the soil
Assures plants the necessary ‘food factory’ for food storage
Increases plant vigor
Provides some protection for seedling establishment
Prevent evaporation of water from the soil
Helps hold snow in place
Watch the grazing load on the range; when the allowable forage
has been utilized, remove the livestock. Grazing management
should be aimed at proper use of the entire range area. Insofar
as possible, the livestock operation should be flexible enough
to withstand adverse weather conditions such as drought, as
well as to take full advantage of extra forage produced during
years when growing conditions are better than normal.
Some management alternatives that stabilize and add flexibility
to the livestock operation are:
1 – Develop a base herd that will be adequately supplied with
forage during the average year.
* In years of below-normal forage, strengthen your breeding
herd by
culling low producers. Be aware of the fact that years of
below-average
forage production are to be expected occasionally.
* Do not worry about being unable to use all the forage produced
in a
good year. The range needs a break occasionally.
Carry over a reasonable feed reserve in the form of hay.
Seed adapted forage species, where possible, to provide
early spring or
‘turn-out’ pasture or to be used as needed in the ranching
operation.
Develop water, fencing and trail systems to make good animal
distribution and flexible management possible.
Build up a cash reserve to help carry you over during periods
of adversity.
Where appropriate, grow more feed by seeding, brush spraying
or
fertilization. Check with local range technicians or your
extension
agent for information and guidance.
