Posted: Thursday, April 06, 2023
Author: Katie Salsbury, Co-Founder, Fisheries Scientist
What is regenerative grazing?
Regenerative grazing is the practice of using grazing animals to regenerate the land. To regenerate something means to regrow or bring new and more vigorous life to an area. Historically this word has been used by biologists to describe the process of regrowing or regenerating tissues and by urban planners to describe bringing new economic life to a depressed area. More recently, the word regenerative is being used by ranchers and ecologists to describe the practice of strategically using grazing animals to regenerate degraded land.
How does it work?
Utilizing grazing animals to regenerate degraded land typically involves converting an existing or historic ranching operation from a season-long or rotational system to high-intensity, short-duration grazing. Instead of grazing a few animals over a large area for a long period, you graze a larger number of animals in a small area for a short period. The land responds to this change in management with increased productivity and diversity. Regenerating additional above-ground and below-ground biomass while increasing species diversity. It turns out that most rangeland ecosystems evolved under conditions of short, intense disturbance followed by long periods of rest, and regenerative grazing mimics these conditions.
Throughout the world, range and grassland ecosystems evolved with large migrating herds of ungulates. These herds frequently moved under pressure from native predators or hunters, evenly grazing large swaths, aerating the soil, and trampling seeds into the ground. These conditions created lush, diverse ecosystems capable of absorbing precipitation, urine, and manure.
What did we use to think?
In his well-known Ted Talk, “Fighting the growing deserts with livestock,” Allan Savory tells the story of a terrible mistake he made in his early career. In the 1950s, after helping protect several large areas in Africa as National Parks, the land continued to dry up and degrade. Savory and the park managers concluded that it must be the inflated herds of grazing animals (aka too many elephants), so after careful deliberation, they culled the herd by shooting 40,000 elephants, but the desertification only continued. After this mistake, Savory was determined to figure out what was causing the degradation. If it wasn’t the grazers, what was the problem? “What we had failed to understand was that… the soil and vegetation developed with large numbers of grazing animals.” It wasn’t the elephants; it was the way they were managed that was harming the land.
In a similar revelation, managers in Yellowstone National Park concluded that the degradation observed along the Lamar River was caused by too many elk in the park. However, Robert Beschta concluded in his scientific article, “Cottonwoods, Elk, and Wolves in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park (2003),” that it was the total removal of wolves from the park in the 1920s that might actually be the cause. Once the wolves were removed, the elk herds of Yellowstone were allowed to graze un-checked and this resulted in degraded conditions along frequently grazed riparian areas. As wolves were re-introduced into Yellowstone, Beschta continued to watch vegetation trends in riparian areas. In 2016, Beschta & Ripple presented their results documenting a significant increase in the health of riparian areas previously “over-grazed” by elk prior to the reintroduction. Once again, it wasn’t the animals causing the degradation it was the way they were managed.
What do we know now?
What we now understand is that many healthy ecosystems developed with periodic disturbances from grazing, fire, flood, and other natural events. Land management systems developed in the 1800s and 1900s prioritized suppressing these disturbances and the results have been calamitous. Wildfires are ripping through fire-suppressed forests; floods are ravaging flood-suppressed developed floodplains; range and grasslands are drying up, burning, and degrading under traditional grazing regimes. Changing management in forests and floodplains is complicated and controversial, but the lack of development in rangelands makes them an ideal place to start implementing large-scale changes that promote rather than suppress disturbance.
In the past, when a ranch property was classified as over-grazed, the management’s response was to reduce the stocking rates, rotate the herds, or remove grazing altogether. These efforts often resulted in an initial positive response; however, the positive gains usually plateaued due to the lack of disturbance. Since the early 2000’s researchers and practitioners have been using regenerative grazing to mimic disturbance and manage for healthy ecosystems. The results have been significant.
Case studies abound throughout the U.S., from Idaho to California, Texas, and Georgia, where ranchers are managing for healthy soil systems, increasing productivity and diversity, and increasing profits. Below are links to some relevant studies.
New York Times - White Oak Pastures
New York Times - Regenerative Grazing Study
New York Times - Cows, Grassland, Carbon
Allan Savory’s Savory Institute has implemented regenerative grazing methods on 21 million hectares of degraded lands. Regenerating the soils, increasing productivity and biological diversity, as well as the economic and social viability of the communities that they serve.
The Nature Conservancy is working to apply regenerative grazing methods on 240 million acres of U.S. grazing lands by 2030, resulting in enhanced wildlife habitat, soil carbon storage, water quality, and rural economies.
Why should you make the switch?
Switching a ranching operation to regenerative grazing makes both ecological and economic sense. Ecologically, one can use their grazing operation to regenerate the land. Making it more diverse for a variety of wildlife species, including ungulates, birds, bees, and butterflies. Increasing its ability to absorb and store precipitation events, making it more resilient to climate change. Increasing productivity of above and below-ground biomass and storing more carbon than traditional methods. The literature suggests that the larger the herd the greater the ecological response. The University of Idaho Rangeland Center found that pastures that were grazed heavily had greater improvements for sage-grouse forbs, cattle nutrients, and willow regeneration than moderately grazed pastures. When managing large herds using regenerative methods, ranchers can stimulate grass production, capture re-growth, and put more pounds on their animals in a shorter period of time. Both the larger herd sizes and gains pencil out to greater economic gains that can be used to support the ranch.
How to make the switch?
Switching from a traditional ranching operation to regenerative grazing is simpler than you might think. Most ranches already have good infrastructure, including fences, stock water systems, and labor resources to manage their existing operation. Switching to regenerative grazing requires an investment in an electric fence; a simple plan that includes your goals, a map depicting your existing infrastructure (fences and water), forage types, production and grazeable acreage; stocking rate/paddock configuration analysis; and a labor analysis. Ginny Robbins, a regenerative grazing practitioner, says, “We typically try to budget 2 people per 1,200 pairs. Two college techs can easily manage 3 herds of 400 pairs plus bulls or a similar configuration. You’ll obviously need more hands on deck for bigger tasks like branding, weighing, and shipping.” Once you’ve outlined your plan and invested in the electric fence, you can start right away. Robbins likes to start by training her herds to an electric fence in a small pasture with an electric cross-fence so that it is easy to gather the strays. Once the herd is respecting the fence, turn them out in a small, electrified paddock sized for their needs for a 24-hour period and let them loose. After a day, confirm that you are getting even grazing to your target residual, then set up your next paddock based on your observations, drop the electric fence, and the herd will almost move itself to the fresh pasture. The larger the herd and the more frequently they are moved, the faster you will see results. Keep track of your herd size, paddock area, and grazing duration daily so that you can track your productivity gains over a season and adapt. Robbins likes to plan out the grazing areas for the entire season to plan for water availability, recovery periods, capture re-growth, and stockpile reserves. One key component to successful regenerative grazing is to keep mixing things up. Try not to graze the same areas at the same time each year and keep a variable grazing schedule. Making the switch takes a little bit of planning and daily herd moves, but the potential gains are significant to both the health of your ranch and your pocketbook.
Katie Salsbury, BS Environmental Biology, University of Colorado; MS Rangeland Ecology & Watershed Management, University of Wyoming. Katie is the co-founder of Intermountain Aquatics Inc. and founder of Landganics, where she specializes in river restoration, ecological ranch management, and organic weed control. Her team at Intermountain Aquatics can also help you draft a simple regenerative grazing plan to help you make the switch.
