Good cattle ranchers have to be good grass farmers first.
That’s what we believe. Our regenerative approach is the daily work of looking after forage, soil, and grazing cattle together. We don’t use artificial fertilizer, herbicide, or insecticide on our pastures.
We’re working toward a diverse, prairie-style pasture, while using seasonal forage mixes to help feed our herd. Here are the main parts of our grass-farming program.
01 / SOIL BIOLOGY
Dave brings the compost tea.
Several times a year, Dave Phillips of Big Little Farm sprays our pastures with aerated compost tea. He brews it fresh, with air supplied during brewing to support oxygen-tolerant microbes.
We use it as part of our effort to support the soil’s living community. Bacteria and fungi help break down organic matter and cycle nutrients. Our broader pasture work—keeping plants growing and giving grazed ground time to recover—is aimed at giving that soil life a place to do its job.
Where do mycorrhizal fungi fit in?+
These fungi form partnerships with plant roots. Their fine threads help plants reach water and nutrients, while the plants supply sugars to the fungi. That relationship is one reason we care about living roots and recovery time.
Compost tea is one part of our soil program. Root–fungus partnerships also depend on living plants, soil conditions, and how we manage the pasture.
Read Colorado State’s guide to living soil ↗02 / MORE THAN ONE KIND OF PLANT
We plant a mix, with a job for each part.
Our forage plantings are polycultures: several kinds of plants growing together. We look for a mix that feeds the cattle, keeps the ground covered, and contributes to the soil.
Legumes can bring nitrogen into the system through bacteria living in their root nodules. Other plants take up nutrients already in the soil. As plant material breaks down and cattle return manure to the pasture, nutrients cycle back through the ground. The mix helps us work toward fertility without artificial fertilizer.
Does every plant in the mix fix nitrogen?+
No. Legumes do that through a partnership with the right root bacteria. Grasses and other forages have different roles. Plants don’t create phosphorus or potassium; they take up and recycle nutrients already available to them.
How forage legumes fix and share nitrogen ↗03 / A PASTURE THAT FITS THIS PLACE
We take our cues from the prairie.
We try to favor native species where they fit our land and grazing needs. A diverse, prairie-style pasture is the direction we want to move toward, alongside the seasonal forage mixes that help feed our herd.
The reason starts with the plants: species adapted to local conditions can be a good fit for North Texas. The cattle’s part is different. Their rumen microbes help digest fibrous forage and adapt to what they eat. We choose plants for the land, the season, and their value as cattle feed.
04 / MAKING THE NEXT MOVE EASIER
Our cattle wear solar-powered collars.
We use Monil virtual fencing collars to manage our rotational paddocks. We can adjust the grazing boundaries in the app, rather than moving temporary electric polywire every time we change a paddock.
That makes consistent pasture moves more practical for us. The collars help manage where the cattle graze; we still decide when a pasture is ready and when it needs a rest.
How does a virtual fence guide a cow?+
The solar-charged collars use positioning technology and an audible warning at the virtual boundary. If an animal keeps moving outward, the collar can deliver a brief electrical pulse. The signals guide animals back into the grazing area.
Monil’s explanation of the system ↗ Recovery is part of the grazing plan.
We move the herd through rotational paddocks and allow grazed ground to rest. Available forage, weather, and plant recovery help us decide when a pasture is ready for cattle again. The collars make changing the boundaries easier; they don’t replace the grazing decisions.
