Forage and grazing field day set for Swift Current

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food

Cattle producers and forage experts will be interested in a forage and grazing tour taking place at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Research Station in Swift Current on June 26.

The tour is a joint effort of Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food (SAF), AAFC, the Southwest Forage Association and other industry partners.

SAF forage development specialist Trevor Lennox says that previous forage and grazing tours at the research station have been very successful, and organizers are expecting another great event for 2007.

“This is an excellent opportunity for participants to see first-hand the forage and grazing work going on at Swift Current and to interact with the researchers,” Lennox stated.

Among the research activities that tour-goers may see are an intensive legume grazing study, a crested wheat preference study, rotational grazing of seeded native mixtures, establishing native grasses in combination with various legumes (alfalfa and purple prairie clover), AC Saltlander, intermediate wheatgrass, pubescent wheatgrass, and a comparison of warm and cool season perennials for forage.

One of the tour organizers is Dr. Alan Iwaasa, a research scientist at the Swift Current station. He says the field day has been offered since 2000, although, in recent years, they’ve moved to holding them every two years.

“This gives producers a better opportunity to observe how the forages they saw on a previous tour have progressed and matured over that time,” he said. “So it makes everything more relevant and more interesting, because they’re always seeing something that’s changed a little bit.”

Iwaasa says forage practices have evolved in recent years, with native species becoming commercially available. “A large part of our program now deals with native species,” he noted, “how they can be re-established on land, some of the advantages they have in terms of quality and growth characteristics, and how they can be an important complement to the existing pasture and forage system that we have.”

Native and tame forage species have often been looked at as separate choices for forage stands. However, Iwaasa indicated that research is now starting to study different possible combinations and their benefits.

“If we can combine them to see how cattle will graze these potential species, we can help producers reduce their feed costs and keep the animals on the pasture longer into the year,” he said.

Another focus of research is to study the actual animal interaction with the forages being tested. Iwaasa says forages have sometimes been selected and bred without observing their response under a grazing scenario.

“You not only want forages that are productive and palatable,” he said. “You also want to see if these stands can stay viable under animal impact and grazing pressure. It’s not going to do you any good if you have to reseed every couple of years.”

Part of the animal interaction that tour participants will be introduced to is a study looking at the production and economic impact of moving cattle to a summer calving date. The research station has shifted half of its cows in this direction, and will be discussing some of the observations witnessed.

The tour will also offer a glimpse at new forage species that have been developed by AAFC. “This gives producers a good chance to see some of these new varieties that are just coming out. They can come out and view how they’re being grown and what kind of production we’re getting out of them,” Iwaasa said.

“It’s an invaluable opportunity for producers to see how the species have performed for a couple of years before they might make that investment themselves.”

Registration for the forage and grazing tour will take place in the Thomson Room at the Swift Current AAFC Research Station, starting at 9:30 a.m. The tour runs until 5:00 p.m. The cost is $5 per person, which includes a hot beef lunch.

Those wishing to participate in the tour are asked to pre-register by June 22 at the Swift Current SAF office at (306) 778-8285.

For more information, contact:
Trevor Lennox, Forage Development Specialist
Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
Phone: (306) 778-8294
e-mail: tlennox@agr.gov.sk.ca