Rain brings challenges for farmers
Farmers are urged to allow their grasses to grow to maturity and set seed before permitting grazing after the rain.
While rain is always a welcome delight for both livestock and crop farmers, it also comes with challenges for farmers as the fresh fodder can cause several problems for animals.
According to Meatco fodder is normally watery and does not have enough fibre, which leads to improper digestion. Therefore, the animal does not chew cud the required 55 to 70 times. According to Dr Axel Rothague, founder and consultant of AgriConsult Namibia and former agriculture lecturer at the University of Namibia (Neudamm campus), a degraded grass pasture offers less nutrition to animals in the form of quality, dependability and commonly also lower carrying capacity. Rothague says another general sign of grazing degradation is bush encroachment beating back the grasses.
“In recent times, the most frequent cause of grazing degradation is the inability of farmers to control the selective grazing of their livestock.”
He says all animals eat selectively. “Cattle and sheep in Namibia generally prefer only a handful of climax grass species. If poorly controlled, animals will graze these palatable grasses into oblivion.”
He explains that thereafter they tackle the next-most palatable grass until it too is finished, then the next one and so on down the ladder of palatability until only the least palatable, least dependable and most variable grass species remain.
“A perennial grass cannot survive being grazed all the time.”
Meatco says after every grazing-down period, the pasture will need time to recover, grow new leaves and roots and recuperate its vigour.
“Generally, a grass has recovered from a previous grazing when it has grown to the point of making seeds. It is now very leafy and can be grazed again with minimal danger to its survival. Obviously, such recovery can only happen in the rainy season. In winter, all grasses are dormant (do not re-grow) due to low soil moisture and night-time temperatures,” Rothauge says. Farmers are also advised to check their land for poisonous plants as young animals are particularly vulnerable to consuming these.
Meanwhile, Meatco has advised farmers to refer to national rainfall forecasts which are more relevant to local circumstances. National Service Centres are expected to provide regular short-term forecasts, which should be simplified and packaged in languages comprehensible to local users, particularly farmers, according to Meatco.
“While the regional outlook may inform national planning processes, the information provided thus far is not adequate for farm-level decision-making as the forecast is more probabilistic in nature and does not completely account for all the factors that influence regional and national climate variability, such as local and month-to-month variations.”
The Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook indicates that the region is likely to receive normal to below-normal rainfall for most of November and December followed by normal to above-normal rainfall for January, February and March 2018.
STAFF REPORTER
According to Meatco fodder is normally watery and does not have enough fibre, which leads to improper digestion. Therefore, the animal does not chew cud the required 55 to 70 times. According to Dr Axel Rothague, founder and consultant of AgriConsult Namibia and former agriculture lecturer at the University of Namibia (Neudamm campus), a degraded grass pasture offers less nutrition to animals in the form of quality, dependability and commonly also lower carrying capacity. Rothague says another general sign of grazing degradation is bush encroachment beating back the grasses.
“In recent times, the most frequent cause of grazing degradation is the inability of farmers to control the selective grazing of their livestock.”
He says all animals eat selectively. “Cattle and sheep in Namibia generally prefer only a handful of climax grass species. If poorly controlled, animals will graze these palatable grasses into oblivion.”
He explains that thereafter they tackle the next-most palatable grass until it too is finished, then the next one and so on down the ladder of palatability until only the least palatable, least dependable and most variable grass species remain.
“A perennial grass cannot survive being grazed all the time.”
Meatco says after every grazing-down period, the pasture will need time to recover, grow new leaves and roots and recuperate its vigour.
“Generally, a grass has recovered from a previous grazing when it has grown to the point of making seeds. It is now very leafy and can be grazed again with minimal danger to its survival. Obviously, such recovery can only happen in the rainy season. In winter, all grasses are dormant (do not re-grow) due to low soil moisture and night-time temperatures,” Rothauge says. Farmers are also advised to check their land for poisonous plants as young animals are particularly vulnerable to consuming these.
Meanwhile, Meatco has advised farmers to refer to national rainfall forecasts which are more relevant to local circumstances. National Service Centres are expected to provide regular short-term forecasts, which should be simplified and packaged in languages comprehensible to local users, particularly farmers, according to Meatco.
“While the regional outlook may inform national planning processes, the information provided thus far is not adequate for farm-level decision-making as the forecast is more probabilistic in nature and does not completely account for all the factors that influence regional and national climate variability, such as local and month-to-month variations.”
The Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook indicates that the region is likely to receive normal to below-normal rainfall for most of November and December followed by normal to above-normal rainfall for January, February and March 2018.
STAFF REPORTER
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