Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
February 24, 2022
A new resource for ranchers showcases how effective pasture management can translate directly to the cow herd’s health status, productivity and profit potential.
It All Starts With Grass: How High-quality Grazing Supports a Healthy, Productive Herd, a new white paper from Corteva Agriscience, addresses how providing abundant, quality grazing influences productivity in ways both obvious and subtle.
“Sound pasture management is as important as a good vaccine protocol or feed and mineral program,” said Jeff Clark, Market Development Specialist, Corteva Agriscience, and the white paper’s author. “Yet it is often overlooked.”
Dollars and cents
Toxic weeds in a pasture certainly can affect herd health. But the bigger role of pasture is how quantity and quality of grass affect cow body condition. Specifically, body condition affects breed-back, milk production, daily gains and the immune system of both cow and calf. For example, cows with a body condition score (BCS) below 5 can require an additional 60 to 90 days to cycle back before breeding. And even then, they likely achieve only a 75% or less conception rate.
- Consider other ways improper cow condition affects the herd:
- Poorly conditioned cows produce less and lower-quality colostrum
- Low-quality colostrum reduces passive immunity
- A weakened immune system leads to increased health issues
- Having more sick calves is labor intensive and often results in higher vet bills and increased death loss
“Nutrition to support body condition can come from a bale or a bag, but it’s most economical from grazed grass,” Clark said. "By removing low-value weeds and replacing them with forage, you can raise the nutritional plane of your pasture to better, more economically feed cows.”
As producers evaluate and plan for the upcoming grazing season, this latest resource from Corteva provides pasture management tips to help improve herd productivity.
Visit HerdHealth.RangeAndPasture.com to download the white paper.
Follow Range & Pasture at Corteva Agriscience at RangeAndPasture.com and on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About Corteva Agriscience Range & Pasture
Drawing on more than 70 years of Range & Pasture improvement products and service as The Dow Chemical Company, DowElanco and, most recently, Dow AgroSciences, Corteva Agriscience is the industry-leading provider of weed and brush management solutions for grazing lands. Producers can rely on Corteva for best-in-class herbicides, including DuraCor®, PastureGard® HL, Remedy® Ultra, MezaVue® and many more, along with technology-based solutions, such as LandVisor™ advanced brush management, and service offerings, including UltiGraz℠ Pasture Weed & Feed. With a specialized team dedicated to Range & Pasture management, Corteva offers producers the expertise they need, leading products, a robust new product development pipeline and superb custom services.
About Corteva Agriscience
Corteva, Inc. (NYSE: CTVA) is a publicly traded, global pure-play agriculture company that combines industry-leading innovation, high-touch customer engagement and operational execution to profitably deliver solutions for the world’s most pressing agriculture challenges. Corteva generates advantaged market preference through its unique distribution strategy, together with its balanced and globally diverse mix of seed, crop protection, and digital products and services. With some of the most recognized brands in agriculture and a technology pipeline well positioned to drive growth, the company is committed to maximizing productivity for farmers, while working with stakeholders throughout the food system as it fulfills its promise to enrich the lives of those who produce and those who consume, ensuring progress for generations to come. More information can be found at www.corteva.com.
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