Farm & Ranch
Meanwhile back at the ranch…
By Rayford Pullen
With the new year we have an opportunity to make resolutions regarding our personal lives and our business lives and in this case, our cattle operations.
What tops your list of things you’d like to see change or at least improve? Having seen several summers, falls, winters and springs in my lifetime, I don’t know what I’m really willing to change. I guess I’m more into trying to right a few wrong choices from the past while at the same time attempting to do the right thing in my cattle operation, but therein lies the problem and specifically how my ideas shared through a medium such as this may be the best for me but not the best for you.
That is why I try to share what we do here at Pullen Angus as maybe something for you to think about more than “that’s the way it needs to be done.” You’ll also notice I use the phrase “in my opinion” quite often as well as “my observation,” which is my way of letting you know that my thoughts may not be exactly how it is or works or what causes it, but that I’m probably not going to dig any further into that particular subject because I don’t want to do the research. Your job, as I see it, is to follow through on some of my thoughts and how they may be something you need to consider. We all have different goals and objectives and our abilities are limited or enhanced by knowledge, finances and/or our wives or other family members.
Where do you start?
By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH
With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.
If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.
Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Tony Dean
There are a handful of grasses on North Texas grazing lands ranchers need to know, not because they are highly desirable, but rather because they are not of much value. I call them “decom” plants, which is am acronym for “Don’t Ever Count On Me.” Silver bluestem is a “decom” grass.
Silver bluestem is a perennial which grows in all areas of Texas. It can survive in almost all soil types, and in full sun conditions or in semi shade. It grows up to three feet tall and is easily recognized with the presence of the white fuzzy seed head. Also, one of the identifying characteristics of Silver bluestem is a bend in the stems at each node, causing the plants to take on a rounded shape as they mature.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Rayford Pullen
Fall is here which means winter is closing in on us and before we officially get into winter, we need to make sure our factories are either producing or will be producing in a few months.
We have been pregnancy testing our cows this fall and if they are not bred or nursing a calf, we are bidding them adios. With annual costs somewhere between $900.00 and $1,000.00 per cow, those cows not producing a live weaned calf are costing us quite a bit.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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