When we started running cows on our farm we were thrilled to begin producing the healthy grass-fed beef we had been dreaming about. We know, though, the most important part about raising grass-fed beef is that you have good grass. We began a journey towards improving our grass. Since we do not supplement with corn or anything else, except loose minerals, which would be the equivalent of us taking daily vitamins, our grass needs all the nutrients we can get. 

In 2016, Chad and Grace, our 2nd child and youngest daughter, went to the Red Devon USA Cattle Conference. It was there we learned about a strategy for improving the grasses in your fields called: Intensive Grazing. This strategy requires setting up temporary fencing and putting cattle into a smaller pasture than the average field we see in rural Arkansas. When you put cows into a smaller area it forces them to trample some of the brush or weeds that they might not have even touched had they the option of better grass. It also causes them to eat some of the weeds that might not taste as good to them. What this does is allows room for the grasses that have been suffocated by weeds to grow. By the cattle trampling plants it actually provides room for healthier growth in the long run. 

While this causes our cattle to eat and push down more of the weeds it also causes them to leave manure in places they would not venture on their own. See below to track our intensive grazing progress and journey!