PROGRAM ROUND UP

Low-Cost, Low-Risk Grazing Workshop

Low-risk, low-cost grazing was the focus of HMI’s two-day workshop on August 12-13, 2021. Hosted at the beautiful 3R Ranch of Beulah, Colorado by long-time practitioners of Holistic Management, Reeves & Betsy Brown and Chad Helvey. The event provided an overview of how to plan and monitor animal productivity and ecosystem improvement in a way that reduces business risk to 20 participants who manage 32,350 acres and influence over 841,360 acres.

Because changing grazing management from traditional to more regenerative practices is perceived as risky and expensive, the workshop put forward techniques and plans to lower the cost and risk of starting out with Holistic Planned Grazing should be, to observe the trial’s influence on soil cover. Anticipated results include longer recovery times with different grass species and changed “growth habit” of the species that were already there, more diverse plant communities, faster nutrient cycling, and improved water infiltration and recovery.

The 3R has been awarded the “Excellence in Rangeland Conservation Award” in 2020 by the Colorado Section of the Society for Range Management and the Southern Colorado Conservation Award in 2010 for its accomplishments over the years.

Other workshop’s activities included:

• Establishing the priorities—a case for low-cost, low-risk ranching

• The importance of ecosystem health and key monitoring to ensure results

• Identifying risks and how to manage, monitor, and correct deviations from the plan

• Steps to accelerate learning with certainty and confidence

• Determining optimal plant recovery times for your land

• Financial considerations and decisions for healthy profits

• Considering risk, stress, and quality of life in production decisions

• Takeaway actions for managers to implement on their ranch or as they help others to better manage lands.

Here are some of the comments and outcomes from participants:

• Wonderful! Comprehensive yet concise course. I’m excited to have actionable steps to take and implement today.

• It was an amazing event, a great group of people. Host location was amazing!

• Excellent blend of lecture, discussion, and practical exercises. This course provided me with resources to be a better steward of the land and our animals.

• Exceeded expectations. Gave me methods to take home and use to plan, monitor, evaluate, and correct as needed.

Participants also observed and learned how to use a Safe to Fail Trial on their own lands to safely and effectively learn the impact of enhanced grazing management on their own land, in a low-cost, low-risk way.

With the obviously well-managed pastures, diverse plant species, high productivity covered soil and stable grass sward, participants could easily appreciate the inspiring results Reeves and Betsy have achieved using Holistic Management since the late 1980s. As the Browns say, HMI has been their “leader and teacher and joy.”

Participants eagerly practiced ecosystem health evaluations, forage assessments, and livestock monitoring techniques over the 2 days. On day two, the group was able to see a Safe to Fail Trial in action as approximately animal densities of over 100,000lbs/ acre were tested for a short time span. Pulled from the 3R herd of Black Angus/Simmy cross cows, these animals did what was intended, they ate and trampled the grass and ground in the trial area. As a follow-up to this initial trial, Betsy, Reeves, and Chad will monitor the grass regrowth to determine what recovery periods

We had a diverse group of participants, from experienced practitioners to novices, young and old who traveled from as far away as Texas, Ohio, and Arkansas. There was lively discussion and sharing of experiences throughout the workshop.

• I loved the class. Every time I take an HMI class, I learn such valuable, practical information that I can immediately apply.

• 85% of attendees felt the workshop was excellent and 95% would recommend it to others

• 100% indicated a significant increase in their ability to run trials to learn about ecosystem function on their land

• 95% reported learning around animal production targets

• 95% reported learning on how to monitor and correct management decisions

Thank you to our funders, Martha Records and Rich Rainaldi, who made this event possible. Thank you also to our sponsors and collaborators: CO NRCS and the Conservation Tax Credit Transfer.

Grow the Growers Program Update

In June and July HMI led a 12-hour Holistic Crop Planning workshop for the Albuquerque Grow the Growers Program participants. Grow the Growers is a comprehensive farm training and business acceleration initiative designed to attract new and emerging farmers into professional food production.

During the workshop, instructor Sarah Williford covered the necessary material for participants to begin a successful holistic crop plan. We began with a review of Whole Farm Resource Inventory and Holistic Goal Setting and talked about how a holistic crop plan is directly related to and reliant on both of these foundational documents. Sarah also shared the benefits of creating a holistic crop plan.

Key learning points and outcomes of the workshop were:

• Key crop planning principles and guidelines

• Ecosystem Processes & Soil facts and terms

• Tools for Managing Ecosystem Processes

• Farm Ecosystem Strategies

• Crop Rotation and Sequencing

• How to develop your Holistic Crop Plan

• Bio-monitoring techniques

We had five in-class activities plus four homework assignments throughout the workshop guiding us to and through the first four steps of creating a holistic crop plan including a Farm/Garden Resource Inventory, a field map and identifying management priorities.

Participants finished with a list of next steps for their personal garden plots as well as steps towards ways Grow the Growers can spend time together more effectively. Thank you to the Thornburg Foundation for making this training possible.

New Mexico Open Gate Report

Twenty-seven participants who manage 35,828 acres from Wyoming, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, and Mississippi attended HMI’s Lazy M Ranch Open Gate near Angel Fire, New Mexico. The focus of this Open Gate was looking at how regenerative grazing practices can improve soil health and productivity.

Shawn Howard purchased this 230–acre ranch and has spent the last six years on this regenerative agriculture experiment which has increased forage production and diversity as well as improved ecosystem function.

We started out the day at the Angel Fire Community Center where participants heard how Shawn began his journey into regenerative ranching. As he explained his practices, HMI Education Director Ann