The Grass Whisperer
By Troy Bishopp
(Peterboro, NY
) When South African rancher and holistic planned grazing educator Ian Mitchell-Innes landed in Madison County, he couldn’t believe the grass growth and how much opportunity there was in Central New York for pasture-based operations.
“This is cuckoo-land,” he said.
The leading mentor of high-density mob grazing and grazier of 6,500 head of cattle on 15,000 acres, drew more than 140 farmers to Nathan and Kristine Weaver’s organic dairy farm while their newly built post-and-beam barn provided a relaxing venue to learn about grazing management against the driving rain and wind outside.
Ian’s theme of Ranching in Sync with Nature focused on maximizing animal performance, capturing solar energy with plants and trampling grass on the ground to feed the microbes in the soil.
In a mostly dairy audience, he challenged quite a few misconceptions in the debate over grazing taller forage and “wasting” grass and the problems high-protein grass causes on rumen function in cows. He spent considerable time on the importance of increasing carbon in the soil which feeds the whole ecosystem.
“I’m suggesting, not telling, farmers to feed the carbon on the soil, as well as getting top animal performance by grazing for energy and not for protein, which means grazing just the tops and letting the animals have more selection,” he said. “If you concentrate your management on improving soil health, you won’t be sending your money to town.”
His wry wit kept the crowd engaged with the concepts of creating goals toward what you want, grazing planning and implementation, sell-buy marketing, clipping pastures and making hay (or not), a cow’s energy field, matching birthing to the onset of grass production, mineral feeding, bringing young people into the business and addressing financial weak links.
After a truly enjoyable local lunch made by the Peterboro Amish Church Community featuring a homemade beef stew cooked over an open fire, Maple Hill Creamery yogurt, Organic Valley Cooperative milk & cheese, Kriemhild Farm’s butter and a cornucopia of desserts and ice-cream, farmers strapped on their raincoats and headed to the pastures.
The group perused the Weaver’s paddocks and discussed management techniques, the degree of trampling and residual grass heights, rumen fill of the animals, biological monitoring, the ecosystem processes, animal grazing behavior and making more money by lowering inputs.
The international guest even received his first buggy ride.
“Ian was engaging and gave us a lot of food for thought on how to apply tall grazing techniques in our local climate,” said Nathan Weaver. “His passion for the soil food web and how important our microbes are for overall farm profitability was uncanny.”
Co-organizer Pam Moore from Moore Farms in Nichols was pleased with the turnout from all over New York.
“It’s great to see how farmers share information and learn from each other in a forum that allows people to think big picture and try some new ideas back home,” she said.
Major sponsor, Tim Joseph from Maple Hill Creamery in Stuyvesant, was excited to get farmers from his 100-percent grass-fed yogurt company to the event.
“We believe in grass-fed production and the health benefits it offers our customers while improving soil health and the financial well-being of farmers as a community,” Joseph said. “We want to build our milk supply from the grass up and realize we need to focus on the management of wholes. Ian definitely changed paradigms, offered practical perspectives and stretched minds. This will help us capitalize on New York’s most important crop.”
This workshop was generously supported by Maple Hill Creamery, Organic Valley (CROPP Cooperative), NYS Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative, Nathan and Kristine Weaver, The Peterboro Amish Church Community Amish, Fingerlakes Graziers, Tioga and Madison County Soil and Water Conservation Districts and the NESARE PDP Holistic Planned Grazing Project.
Troy Bishopp is grazing specialist for the Madison Co. SWCD/Upper Susquehanna Coalition. He can be reached at (315) 824-9849 ext. 110, troy-bishopp@verizon.net or thegrasswhisperer.com.