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Mentor David Kruger posted an update
Working with DU to plant some native grass and fencing 550 acres. Plan on putting up 3 or 4 wire high tensile fence with a couple wires hot.
This 550 acres has three fields with the plan to plant 3 different crops in these fields so that we can have one field which we can plant cover crops to graze after wheat or possibly camilina (if this crop continues to gain traction). Another ffield of corn to graze after harvest and the last would be soybeans which if camilina works would need to be seeded to camilina in fall so probably not grazed. Also would consider planting something else in corn field and going away from beans if we can find the right crop and market.
Questions?
Thinking of using composite posts from zahntech, any good or bad experiences with these post? Pretty new product only being out about a year so probably not a lot of experiences yet.
8 inch posts on corners and 4 inch line posts. Will the 4 inch line posts be large enough?
How close should post be located to help with snow load and keeping wires from getting tangled up from deer? Also want to build as much of a maintenance free fence as possible.
What is a fair cost per head per day for leasing this ground? I would assume a good cover crop would be more valuable than corn stalks but need to come up with a number that works for both the livestock producer and grain farmer.
What i would like to determine and show is as a non livestock producer (and i dont have the gift or desire to become one). Is there an economic and environmental benefit to introducing livestock on my ground comparing this section to adjacent quarters that will not have livestock. I figure i will need at least 5-10 years before i start to see economic advantages.
Any thing i maybe missing?
Any thoughts and ideas would be welcomed and discussed.
Thanks for your input.
Garrett Dean4 Comments-
Hi David,
Great thoughts and it sounds like an exciting thing to pursue.
As far as the fencing I would ask what type of cattle would be grazing there. Yearlings, or cow calf pairs?
Also is it along a road or out in the boonies? Reason I ask is because you can get by with less fence for yearlings like just a nice three wire with and electric. But calves will be out if you have pairs.
I like composite posts, I’m not familiar with that brand but I am using some fiberglass 1.25” posts that you pound in and then wire the high tensile electric to. This is nice because the deer can’t wreck it, it bounces right back when the snow leaves and it’s substantially cheaper than permanent barb.Can space your posts at 30’ and do however many wires you want. (You just drill new holes for where you want to put a wire) I order mine pre drilled. Goes up super fast and is 1000 per half mile for a three wire vs 3500 for barb. Lower maintenance too.
As for charging, we pay $1/day for cornstalk rent and water is typically paid by the land owner. I just grazed my milo as well as a diverse mix with my cows and without taking a crop off the same year and doing a double crop, I would’ve needed more than 1/day per head if I were to have taken cows in. They gained well but it didn’t last them as long as I was hoping. So I agree diverse mixes should be higher rent.
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@rthompson the fence is right along highway 12. I have been told by others also that calves will not stay In with 3 wire high tensile. Some have said adding a 4th one on the bottom for a ground will help with calves. I believe we will have cows generally but it doesn’t hurt to have it ready to handle pairs if that is what someone wants to bring. I think I will space posts 25 foot apart and 20 foot where the snow will cover it. My thoughts are the closer the posts less maintenance should be needed and less chance of deer tangling it up. The local deer will learn where it is and not bother but the deer that move into the area in Nov and Dec are the ones that seem to break fences down.
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Also I meant to say, I’ve seen soil turn for the better super quickly. I would say you could start noticing change within the first two years if grazed properly but yes the economical side could take 3-5. Of course the longer it’s done the better it will get 👍
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When you say “I’ve seen soil turn for better super quick”. Can you give examples what you mean or what I should be looking for. These are fields that have over 30 years of notill history without livestock except for the wildlife that has been grazing it which in my opinion should have some impact on soil health.
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