Bale Grazing as an Alternative to Tillage to Manage Field-Edge Encroachment

This episode, a look at the use of bale grazing as an alternative to tillage when attempting to manage field-edge encroachment by woody perennials like rosebush and willow.

Farmer Rob Larson operates a mixed livestock operation that covers around 5000 acres Northwest of Fort St. John, in BC’s Peace country. The encroachment of wild rosebush onto some of Rob’s fields has been an ongoing challenge that Rob used to manage with repeated tillage. This approach is effective, but, as we’ll hear, also costly from both an economic and ecological perspective. So, back in 2017, Rob teamed up with the Peace River Forage Association to conduct a trial to explore whether winter bale grazing his cattle in areas of rosebush encroachment could suppress the advance of the rosebush and other woody perennials while improving his soil at the same time. In this interview, Rob will summarize the trial, as well as provide an update on the state of his field edges since then.

Later on, we’ll hear from Sandra Burton, a soil scientist who worked with Rob on this project.