Land & Grazing
Set Your Salt Half a Mile From Water and the Cows Graze the Country They’ve Been Ignoring
Cattle chew the grass around the tank and the gate flat while the back corners go to waste. Where you put salt…
Land & Grazing
Grasshoppers Hatch on the Dry Ridges in June and Eat the Grass You Were Saving for August
Rangeland grasshoppers build quietly through June, and by the time you notice bare ground they've already eaten forage you can't get back.…
Land & Grazing
Graze the First Pasture Into the Dirt in June and You Borrow Grass You Won’t Pay Back in August
Early-summer grass grows fast and tempts you to sit in one pasture. Push it too hard now and the regrowth stalls, leaving…
Land & Grazing
Water Hemlock Comes Up in the Wet Draw, and a Cow That Pulls the Root Is Dead Before You Get to Her
Water hemlock is the deadliest plant on most Montana places, and the soft June ground along creeks and ditches is exactly where…
Land & Grazing
Cattle Pound the Creek Bottom While the Ridge Grass Goes to Waste—Here’s How to Spread Them Out
On big summer country, cattle bunch in the bottoms and leave half the pasture standing. Salt placement, water, and a little riding…
Land & Grazing
Don’t Graze It to the Dirt in June: Leave Enough Leaf to Get a Second Bite
How you handle pastures in the first few weeks after turnout decides how much grass you'll have in August. Grazing too hard,…
Land & Grazing
Spray the Weeds While They’re Still Green: June Is the Window on Spotted Knapweed and Leafy Spurge
Noxious weeds on Montana rangeland are easiest to kill before they set seed. Here's how to time June herbicide work and biocontrol…
Land & Grazing
Leave Grass Behind on Purpose: Stubble Height Sets Next Year’s Feed
Grazing a pasture into the dirt in June costs you regrowth this fall and vigor next spring. Here's how much to leave…