The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1914-02-07
IMPROVE RANGES
WITHOUT CLOSING
Forestry Service Believes
Remedy Lies in Abandon
ment of Spring Grazing.

That 4 serious decline in the carry
ing capacity OF vast areas OF western
grazing lands. due largely to the act
that StoGkmcn fail To give tho range
plants Il chance to keep growing. can
be remedied without closing these
areas to cattl" and sheep. is the state
ment made 10y h department of ag-
riculture in Il bulletin recently issued
OH range Improvement. Excessive
grazing in the spring before the for
e crop is mature. and such Srazing
continued year after "a says the
department, are the main causes of
+ range deterioration.
On the national forests. the depart
meut points out, where the govern
ment is doing away with these evils
and stock is handled under govern
men regulation, tho range lands have
improved to a point where it is again
possible to market large numbers of
beef and mutton animals directly
from the range.
In the free for all" period of early
days, tho department goes on to say,
the mos paiatable forage plants were
so closely cropped that they We're UNI
able to develop the necessary plant
food. and SO literally starved. In addi-
lion. the roofs were frequently injured
by trampling or killed by exposure. AS
4 result the best kinds of vegetation
grew weaker from season to season,
and where the practice Of early and
close grazing WAS continued. the range
at last became practically denuded.
The vegetation which furnishes the
grazing crop has much he same
growth requirements as a farm crop.
No farmer who hopes to realize the
best eturns from a permanent hay
yo.aNlnu. ~ in ~totol ,.0,,1I tL;,,l, 80
harvesting the crop as soon as it Is
tall enough to cut. regardless of
whether or not 1t is mature. Nor would
he Craze a permanent pasture closely
from tho time the growth begins an
til it ceases. for he knows that this
will result finally in killing it out. And
since climate and soil conditions over
much of The western grazing lands
are loss favorable to plant growth than
those on tho average farm, e great
Ell care u be exercised in utilizins
tho range roD than is necessary With
that on the farm.
The remedy suggested for range de-
terinration is n system of deferred
grazing. Under such a plan an over.
grazed portion Of the range, sufficient
ly large to supply the forage from the
time OF seed maturity until the end
Of the grazing season. Is protected
from stock until the seed crop has ma
tured- Upon maturity of the seed crop
the forage is srazed during the first
season. but not to the extent of injur-
ing seed plants. The same area Is pro-
trcted in the same way during the
second and. il necessary, subsequent
seasons, or until the new plants have
heen securely established. When the
area has been thoroughly reseeded it
can he again grazcd carly in the sea-
son. and a second area, large enough
to ccolnn1odate the stock from the
time of seed ripening to tho end of the
season, is protected until the forage
is mature.
Ely this method OF alternating late
graZing from one area to another.
weakened vegetation can recover its
vitality without the need Of having
the. land closed to grazing the entire
year.