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ARS Home Research Annual Report on Science Accomplishments FY 2021





- Advancing Human Nutrition Research
- Advancing Sustainable Aquaculture Production
- Advancing Sustainable Livestock Production
- Combating AMR
- Combating Citrus Greening
- Controlling Insect Pests
- Developing New Crop Varieties
- Expanding Public Access to Agricultural Information
- Improving Pasture and Rangeland Management
- Improving Rural Economies
- Monitoring and Mitigating Plant Disease
- Optimizing Agricultural Management to Mitigate Climate
- Optimizing Water Use Management
- Protecting Animal Health Disease Detection
- Protecting Human and Animal Health
- Protecting Pollinator Health
- Reducing Labor and Advancing Precision Agriculture
- Safeguarding the Food Supply

**Improving Pasture and Rangeland Management** DOWNLOAD TWO-PAGER PDF  **The ARS pasture and rangeland management research program enhances the utility, function, and performance of rangelands, pastures, forage, and turf agroecosystems while providing ecosystem services.**ARS research on smart agriculture is being conducted to enhance the resilience of agriculturalsystems that support resource conservation and enhance productivity. To support rural prosperity, foodsecurity, and healthy agroecosystems, ARS research helps producers improve management decisionsand ultimately achieve healthy and productive pastures and rangelands, as illustrated by the followingresearch accomplishments in 2021. **Impacts of fire on mesquite persistence.**Mesquite encroachment into arid lands worldwide hasnegatively impacted livelihoods and ecosystems. In Texas, more than $50 million has been spent in 10years to control mesquite. ARS researchers in Sidney,Montana, and university collaborators assessedmesquite persistence across a range of fire intensities.High-intensity fire caused mortality in 29 percent ofmesquite, but did not alter soil chemistry or microbes,and did not permanently harm dominant grass species.High intensity fires are a low-cost option as part of anoverall management program for reducing mesquiteabundance in rangelands. **Improved pasture mixes and annual forages increase dairy cow productivity.**Milk production fromcows grazing pasture is the fastest growing segmentof organic agriculture. One challenge of organicproduction is that grazing dairy cows produce up to32 percent less milk than non-grazing cows, mostly because they eat up to 30 percent less forage. ARSresearchers in Logan, Utah, and Utah State University collaborators determined how much young dairycattle eat and grow when grazing four different grasses alone or in mixtures with the legume birdsfoottrefoil. They found the mixtures of grass and birdsfoot trefoil increased the amount dairy heifers ate by 34percent, improved growth by 25 percent, and increased heifer value around $166. In related research,ARS scientists in University Park, Pennsylvania, and University of New Hampshire collaborators evaluatedfive winter annual forages for providing high-quality, lower-cost pasture in early spring to meet grazingneeds that traditional pasture forages cannot. Barley showed the most potential and fewest tradeoffs forsupplementing spring pastures to maximize harvest yield and livestock nutrient value. These grazing toolsare now being used by dairy farmers to increase cow forage intake and milk production. **Finding cause of acute liver toxicity in cattle helps “save the ranch.”**A herd of cattle in Coloradowere poisoned after eating weed-contaminated alfalfa hay produced in Wyoming, resulting in the deathof 165 cattle and other production losses. ARS scientists in Logan, Utah, worked with the U.S. Food andDrug Administration and Colorado State University over 5 years to identify toxic compounds in the hayand traced the poisoning back to the toxic weedSalvia reflexain the contaminated hay.Salvia reflexa,commonly known as lanceleaf sage, is an annual native U.S. weed that is found in pastures and prairiesand can be toxic to cattle, sheep, and goats. Identifying the cause of the poisoning allowed the cattleowners to file an insurance claim to recover their losses. This is the first report ofSalviacausing liverinjury, and the research was used to retrospectively identify the cause of poisoning in other cases. Thisinformation is now available to veterinary practitioners and diagnostic laboratories to aid in solving futurecases where Salvia poisoning may be involved. **New stocking rate guide shows 72 percent more grazing capacity for semiarid rangelands.**ARSdeveloped a stocking rate guide in the 1960s for use in semiarid rangelands worldwide. The guide relatesgrazing animal weight gain and beef production to how much forage remains at the end of the grazingseason. ARS scientists in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Fort Collins, Colorado, and collaborators at theUniversity of Wyoming analyzed contemporary data (2000-2018) from the same long-term study initiallyused for the 1960s stocking rate guide. They determined that sustainable stocking rates for westernGreat Plains semiarid rangelands increased by 72 percent over the past 50 years, likely due to combinedeffects of recovery from the 1930s Dust Bowl, more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and better livestockgenetics. The scientists revised the guide and made it available on the web as a Colorado State Universityextension fact sheet. The guide is being used by more than 60 ranchers and on approximately 200,000acres of the U.S. Forest Service Pawnee National Grassland for adaptive stocking adjustments to increaseprofitability, production efficiency, and resilience of the semiarid shortgrass steppe rangeland. LOOKING AHEAD As the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency, ARS focuses onsolutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in agricultural research results in$17 of economic impact. Going forward, ARS will continue to conduct important research with bold action,collaborative leadership, active dialogue, and a deep commitment to serving all Americans. These effortswill enable us to work together and maximize impact to achieve extraordinary results for years to come. Keres, Preston. Dominique Herman leads a flock of Corriedale Merino cross and Ike-de-France Merino cross to pasture for morning grazing on her farm in Warwick, New York. May 16, 2022. USDA Photo. https://flic.kr/p/2nmgCeq


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