Guest guest Posted July 29, 2011 Report Share Posted July 29, 2011 Greetings, Managing a farm, any farm of any type to show a profit is a very complex and difficult job. Especially since the variables keep changing with each new round of 'weather', be it political or physical. Just getting animals to be healthy on a 100% forage based diet is easy, just pay attention and feed hay when needed. The two are not the same. Many people raise animals for themselves, not for profit. However, my farm is our only income, so we do raise ours for profit as well. I find it much easier to show a profit when I grow most of my own feed. The market price of feed makes showing a profit difficult, at best. Bright Blessings, Garth & Kim www.TheRoseColoredForest.com Bedias, Texas > > > Whom ever said that grass feeding is not rocket science is correct. It > is much more complex than Rocket Science. I hand load my own rifle > cartridges, I can reduce every aspect of performance to simple physics. > > Keeping animals in sufficient numbers to keep pastures properly rotated > in summer, may mean buying a lot of hay in winter. Having enough grass > for year round may mean not carrying sufficient numbers to make a profit > considering land cost. There is NO one size fits all formula. Right now > I have just mowed my millet to get it to have good regrowth. My cows are > in knee deep crabgrass. We just had 2.5 inches of rain in the last week. > But it is 102 degrees today. Will the crabgrass last until the millet > comes back? Will I be able to go into fall with some surplus standing > hay? Will the crabgrass die in the heat and I have to feed hay this > summer? Will Lassie make it to the barn in time to save Timmy? > > I live in an area of cheap hay. I get good quality bermuda delivered for > $20-30/4x5 roll. I err on the side of eating all the grass and feeding > hay. For me, if I have grass go to waste, that is lost money. But I do > feed 2-3 pounds of grain (mostly ground ear corn) in winter if it is > below 30, just for the extra energy. Then my calves do not have as much > rebound time in spring. > > Bill > Roseboro, NC > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com <http://www.avg.com> > Version: 10.0.1390 / Virus Database: 1518/3796 - Release Date: 07/29/11 > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 29, 2011 Report Share Posted July 29, 2011 However when you have no option but to buy all your feed because your farm is not able or large enough to produce all your forage then you have no option but to buy. This makes it much more difficult to be healthy because you must then rely on someone else to provide incredible forage that is suitable for a forage only diet. Not to mention minerals. RHonda Re: "no-grain" idealism Greetings,Managing a farm, any farm of any type to show a profit is a very complex and difficult job. Especially since the variables keep changing with each new round of 'weather', be it political or physical.Just getting animals to be healthy on a 100% forage based diet is easy, just pay attention and feed hay when needed. The two are not the same. Many people raise animals for themselves, not for profit.However, my farm is our only income, so we do raise ours for profit as well. I find it much easier to show a profit when I grow most of my own feed. The market price of feed makes showing a profit difficult, at best.Bright Blessings,Garth & Kim www.TheRoseColoredForest.comBedias, Texas>>> Whom ever said that grass feeding is not rocket science is correct. It> is much more complex than Rocket Science. I hand load my own rifle> cartridges, I can reduce every aspect of performance to simple physics.>> Keeping animals in sufficient numbers to keep pastures properly rotated> in summer, may mean buying a lot of hay in winter. Having enough grass> for year round may mean not carrying sufficient numbers to make a profit> considering land cost. There is NO one size fits all formula. Right now> I have just mowed my millet to get it to have good regrowth. My cows are> in knee deep crabgrass. We just had 2.5 inches of rain in the last week.> But it is 102 degrees today. Will the crabgrass last until the millet> comes back? Will I be able to go into fall with some surplus standing> hay? Will the crabgrass die in the heat and I have to feed hay this> summer? Will Lassie make it to the barn in time to save Timmy?>> I live in an area of cheap hay. I get good quality bermuda delivered for> $20-30/4x5 roll. I err on the side of eating all the grass and feeding> hay. For me, if I have grass go to waste, that is lost money. But I do> feed 2-3 pounds of grain (mostly ground ear corn) in winter if it is> below 30, just for the extra energy. Then my calves do not have as much> rebound time in spring.>> Bill> Roseboro, NC>>>> > ---------------------------------------------------------->> No virus found in this message.> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com <http://www.avg.com>> Version: 10.0.1390 / Virus Database: 1518/3796 - Release Date: 07/29/11> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 30, 2011 Report Share Posted July 30, 2011 Bill, Rejoice. We are paying $10 a square bale and $110 per round bale during this terrible drought in TX. We have had no grass growth since last fall, so no mineral or compost tea spraying has been done. We are culling aggressively. Tina in TX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 30, 2011 Report Share Posted July 30, 2011 Aliza WROTE: Problem is that folks want to put a 10 gallon milker on grass only - they dont do so well. Same with a 2 gallon a day saanan. She will be skinny. You have to match your stock to your feeding system..... Exactly! This(among other things), is the type of thing I am speaking of. It needs taken into account that not all animals are equal, so plan according to what you want your end results to be when buying a cow/goat/whatever. This is just one part of successfully managing a system. It takes thought. DixonOzark JewelsNubians and Lamanchaswww.ozarkjewels.netMorningland Dairy Raw Milk Cheeseswww.morninglanddairy.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 30, 2011 Report Share Posted July 30, 2011 It is a shame when a harmless group like this gets people who are looking to pick a fight. What had to say was in no way rude to anyone. It was her opinion. Not everyone is raising their animals as a business, for many it is a hobby, for a lot of us it is a way to maintain our health as we fight off diseases, etc. To do this as a business is not possible in all areas of the county, and for many of us, we are stuck at the moment on lots that don’t produce the right feed for our animals. We can only pray that things will turn around and be able to move somewhere lush, with the right nutrients in the soil, where the land hasn’t been contaminated, and where the water is clean. We are all providing the best for our animals based on what is available to us. Many people aren’t able to increase their herds this year because there isn’t any hay available. Be nice to each other! Becky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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