Illinois Success Story

Pastureland Improvements
With Rotational Grazing

By: Jill Creamean, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist
Date: May 2003

In 2002, Peoria County producer Troy Wagenbach completed installation of conservation practices that transformed his 71-acre cow-calf beef operation into a showcase of conservation-friendly rotational grazing. Wagenbach received NRCS technical assistance and cost share for the project through NRCS’s Soil and Water Conservation Assistance (SWCA) Program.

Wagenbach approached NRCS District Conservationist Jon Hubbert with a goal to maximize the efficiency of his forage land and to improve the health of his 37 head of cattle by providing higher quality forage. Hubbert called in NRCS Grazing Specialist Richard Hungerford and NRCS Agronomist/Water Quality Specialist Steve Hollister to help plan and design a rotational grazing system tailored to meet the needs of the landowner, the cattle and the resources.

With rotational grazing, producers move the herd between many smaller paddocks, rather than continuously grazing a single large, pasture. The system promotes healthy plant communities, reduces soil erosion, allows for better animal waste management, and improves water quality.

Through SWCA, Wagenbach received 50-75% cost share to install fencing, a watering system and spring development. NRCS also provided practice design, engineering design for the watering system, soil survey information, and NRCS technical standards. "NRCS provided the information and financial assistance I needed to put in a rotational grazing system that works," Wagenbach said.

Once the fences were installed last spring, Wagenbach began to see the benefits of rotational grazing. "Even with the dry summer, I could see improvements in the quality of the pasture," said Wagenbach. "The cattle were able to graze through the summer without additional feed."

Wagenbach controls the time and intensity of grazing in each paddock to promote growth of vigorous grass stands and improve the forage available to the cattle. Wagenbach now increases the time his herd spends grazing and reduces time spent in confinement—a definite cost benefit.

"With the right conservation practices, Troy was able to reduce his operation’s impact on soil and water resources without reducing the number of cattle," said Hollister, who worked with Wagenbach to develop a detailed long-term management plan to sustain the system’s benefits over time. "Troy went above and beyond simply installing basic conservation practices," continued Hollister. "He used available technical assistance to achieve maximum conservation benefits, and he improved his operation’s bottom line in the process."