Mob grazing on public lands

   Drought will make people consider actions that were formerly off limits. With 100% of our state now considered abnormally dry, some MN legislators have broached the idea of supplementing cattle foraging options by opening public lands to grazing and possibly even haying. Like all things government there are winners and losers that may be created.

   Haying on public land would be another form of extraction of public resources by private interests. Managed grazing, though, could be more of an exchange where grazers could leave patches more fertile than they were. Of course, the effects of such grazing would depend on the skill and knowledge of the managers.

   In past drought years grazers ordinarily turned to woodlands and swamps, the harbors of functional biology. I remember an old fellow from Iowa telling my dad that “grass don’t grow under trees” and that if you want to have cattle you have to cut down the trees. It wasn’t too many years later - the drought of 1988 - the only place grass was growing was under trees and in swamps. The young poplars supplemented grass for our cows then; the bull would walk over them, bending them under his armpits until the tops were in reach of mouths. Our place didn’t have much “real pasture” as defined by the neighbors but there was always enough forage for the animals.

   The move some forward thinking people are making toward regenerative ag holds many solutions to problems caused by drought. Alley cropping is one method of regenerative ag worth considering that is a more organized form of what my dad did - planting or pasturing between rows of trees. The 1930’s Dust Bowl is not unrepeatable, especially with the continuation of current chemical ag practices.

   If grazers are allowed on public lands this year it could be beneficial to some areas that haven’t seen large herbivores since the caribou, elk, bison and moose were here, cycling nutrients on the landscape. In a natural system herds are moved around by predators in a chaotic way so they don’t spend too much time in one area and degrade high functioning ecology. This system is mimicked by many now with mob grazing and cross fencing, so that animals can be pushed to a new area frequently and the old area can rest. Plants respond well to the grazing/growing periods and this helps retain moisture on the land while building organic matter in the soil and encouraging biological diversity. If this natural system was mimicked on public land it could turn out well.

   Someday, to be seriously regenerative we need to consider pulling up the fences and welcoming the full return of the caribou, elk, bison and moose. They taste just fine, handle the wolves better, don’t need vaccinating, and… I love cows... but they just aren’t as smart as their wild cousins.

   Creator’s blessings to all.