If you live in Iowa, you know it’s been raining a while. It seems like the faucet turned on in June, and basically hasn’t stopped very much since. I believe east of here (east of Kalona – like Des Moines) has been getting more, but we’ve been still pretty wet. For the conventional farmers it’s been difficult but not disastrous – but for the organic farmers it’s been very very hard. Organic row cropping relies much more on timely planting along with initial and subsequent cultivation. Hard to cultivate when the ground is sopping wet. Are the harvests reduced? More than likely.

Now, how do I feel about it? I love it! Rain waters my grass. Managing the cows properly will also result in timely planting of future seed. Since my grass this year shot to the reproductive stage in May before I could graze it, a lot of grass went to seed. Utilizing high-density grazing, my first time through the paddocks with the cows resulted in a lot of grass seed being planting in moist soil with cattle hooves. As I’ve said before, I strive to organize the grazing paddocks so that the cows have enough to eat for one day or less plus trample at least half of the forage available. That trampling effect lays a layer of grass down as mulch and future organic matter, plus shakes loose all the grass seed ready to increase my grass sward.

I believe that years like this can help focus the debate. We grow way too much corn and soybeans in Iowa. We use way to much questionable hilly erodible ground for row crops, when those areas should be planted to grass or some long-term perennial that will hold the topsoil. The more grass we plant and the more focus we have in managing animals in such a way as to create more topsoil, the more water we’ll hold, the less floods we’ll have, as well as minimizing drought.

Filed under: Animals, Grazing/Pasture on August 23rd, 2010