BQA Tip of the Month – Winter Pasture Grazing

Texas Beef Quality Assurance - Tip of The Month

Brought to you by The Texas Beef Quality Producer Program, a collaborative effort of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Texas Beef Council, and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.

Winter Pasture Grazing

Winter annual pastures (e.g. ryegrass, wheat, oats, etc.) are great resources to reduce hay and supplementation needs in cow-calf operations.

Pregnant cows and heifers in the last 3rd of gestation should be limit-grazed on winter pastures to prevent larger-than-expected calf birthweights.

One approach is to graze spring calving cows and heifers for about 2 hours each day. Pairs can be grazed full time or limit-grazed on winter annuals depending on forage availability.

If forage is abundant, full-time grazing of pairs will result in excellent animal performance at a low cost.