Hintze Kayla, Bir Courtney, Peel Derrell
Department of Agricultural Economics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74074, USA.
Animals (Basel). 2021 Apr 23;11(5):1226. doi: 10.3390/ani11051226.
Pasture and grazing land in the southern and central Great Plains is being invaded by woody species, especially eastern redcedar. As a result of woody plant encroachment, cattle production on native rangeland is becoming less profitable because stocking rates must be decreased. Eastern redcedar encroachment can be controlled by grazing management, herbicide use, prescribed fire, mechanical control and mixed species grazing. This study utilizes traditional management practices, prescribed fire and three types of mixed species grazing operations to determine the most economically feasible way to manage redcedar encroachment on rangeland. The cost-benefit analysis in this study found that the source of redcedar management on rangeland with the highest net present value was the use of a breeding goat operation in which goats were grazed alongside cattle with the use of prescribed fire. This suggests that producers who are fighting redcedar encroachment will likely be able to implement a mixed species grazing operation with breeding goats to better manage their land and increase returns.
美国大平原南部和中部的牧场和放牧地正受到木本植物的入侵，尤其是东部红雪松。由于木本植物的侵入，原生牧场的养牛业利润越来越低，因为必须降低载畜率。东部红雪松的侵入可以通过放牧管理、使用除草剂、计划性烧除、机械控制和混合物种放牧来控制。本研究利用传统管理方法、计划性烧除和三种混合物种放牧操作，以确定管理牧场红雪松侵入的最经济可行方法。本研究的成本效益分析发现，在牧场进行红雪松管理时，净现值最高的方法是采用繁殖山羊的操作，即利用计划性烧除，让山羊与牛一起放牧。这表明，与红雪松侵入作斗争的生产者可能能够实施繁殖山羊的混合物种放牧操作，以更好地管理他们的土地并增加收益。
