Landowner perception of information about prescribed burning: Influence on the application of this land management tool in the Southern Great Plains by: Lars Coleman, Carissa Wonkka, Morgan Treadwell, and Urs Kreuter of Texas A&M University
The Mid-Missouri Prescribed Burn Association in cooperation with SD NRCS and SDSU Extension hosted two eastern red cedar tree control workshops entitled “Grass or Cedar: Time to Choose” on March 3rd in Mitchell and March 5th in Yankton. The Yankton workshop was recorded. The workshop is split into six separate sessions and available on Youtube at: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlldDb7IZYqIc80uMFNOSlJwKcQN87XoM. You will find an overview of the cedar tree encroachment problem in South Dakota along the James River and Missouri River valleys, a discussion of non-burning methods of control, an introduction to prescribed burning methods, and a discussion of technical assistance and available NRCS cost share programs.
Abstract: Fire created and maintains grassland ecosystems around the world, with the pattern and processes in these systems maintained by fire driven grazing – an ecological process called pyric herbivory. Pyric herbivory creates a patchwork of habitat types across space and time at local, regional, and continental scales, with each patch in a different state of post fire and grazing recovery. This diverse and shifting mosaic of habitat is what native wildlife in grassland ecosystems evolved with, and most wildlife species in these systems depend on more than one type of habitat to complete their life cycles.
The effects of fire on livestock fencing is a concern following wildfires, as well as before applying prescribed fire. There are many opinions and beliefs about what fire does to fencing materials. This fact sheet will present findings from several studies that investigated the impacts of fire on fencing materials in grasslands.
Objective: The overall objective of this study was to evaluate management practices that may impact stocker steer gains on a 90-day double stocking grazing system in tallgrass native range. Specific objectives include evaluating the timing of burning, addition of spices in a complete free-choice mineral, and determination if the effects are additive.
Study Description: Two pasture burning times (March or April) and free-choice mineral with or without addition of spices were evaluated using 281 head of stocker steers on eight pastures of tallgrass native range. The spices included garlic oil in powder form and Solace (Wildcat Feeds LLC). Cattle were weighed at the start of the study and the end. Steers grazed pastures for 87 days. Data analyzed included average daily gain, total gain, and final weight.
Results: There was no interaction between the two management practices for average daily gain, total gain, and out weights (P > 0.17). Average daily gain was increased by 0.35 lb/day (P = 0.03) with an April pasture burn instead of March. There was no difference in average daily gain based on mineral supplement (P = 0.23), even though numerically the cattle on spice mineral had a greater average daily gain. When evaluating final weights, cattle on April burned pastures tended (P = 0.09) to weigh 20 lb more than those grazing pastures burned in March. Calves on the spice mineral tended (P = 0.10) to weigh 19 lb more at the end of the study than steers on the control mineral.
The Bottom Line: Burning pastures in April results in a greater calf gain than burning in March, while the addition of spices to a free-choice complete mineral shows promise as a cost-effective method to increase gains in stocker steers on tallgrass native range.
