The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Cattle => Topic started by: Backinwellies on April 20, 2013, 07:59:29 am
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I've just read a write up of a recent trial on cattle breeds and reducing rushes by grazing.....
http://www.farminglife.com/news/could-a-traditional-breed-of-irish-cattle-become-another-weapon-in-the-farmer-s-arsenal-1-4917598 (http://www.farminglife.com/news/could-a-traditional-breed-of-irish-cattle-become-another-weapon-in-the-farmer-s-arsenal-1-4917598)
anyone have any experience of any particular breed actually reducing rushes by grazing? I am still deciding what breed of cattle to add to my smallholding... .. a rush grazer could be ideal! Pasture all unimproved and quite wet with areas of rushes. I intend mixed grazing on lowish stocking density and would like a traditional breed.
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The Moileys are nice but the only one I've met had a kind of wild eye ;)
Shetlands will also graze rushes and are widely used for conservation grazing. For information contact Ruth Dalton at RBST. She's the Northern Field Officer and also keeps Shetland cattle [email protected]
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Yup, my Shetlands (cattle & pony) are doing a great job of munching the rushes :thumbsup:
But they've only been at it for a couple of months, ask me again at the end of the year ;)
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Highlanders certainly eat rushes and dead grass
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The Moileys are nice but the only one I've met had a kind of wild eye ;)
I've only met one too, but she looked very gentle to me. Lovely cows - this would be my choice if we were to keep a rare breed of cattle.
Re the rushes, the only thing here that eats them is the pony, and I think that is only because we don't keep him anywhere that has grass as he is such a fattie!
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Our sheep and our ponies - the Fells in particular - seem to eat the rushes to a greater extent than do our cattle, including our Blue Greys (Galloway x Whitebred Shorthorn), Angus and Hereford cattle. However, the Blue Greys live on our 'fell' (rushy boggy area) with only a little hay over winter, so must be finding something to keep them alive. ;)
They all particularly enjoy eating new growth. :yum: So if you can top regularly, you'll get more grazing off.
As Dot says, the ponies probably eat rushes as much as they do because, being very good 'do-ers', they are always on very poor grazing. ; And we probably don't see much damage to rushes on the 'fell' as we've just a handful of cattle up there and it's a massive, and very rushy, area.
Irish Moiled look gorgeous - if there's a conservation reason to keep them, that's great, innit?
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Irish Moiled look gorgeous - if there's a conservation reason to keep them, that's great, innit?
Some strains are pretty milky too - I believe there is still one herd in Ireland being milk recorded.
Sadly heifers for sale are as hard to find as hen's teeth.