.svg){kind=icon}
Abstract:
There has been widespread interest by the industry in spelling practices, which hold out the potential for increased production without damage to natural resources or sustained production with recovery of the natural resources. The benefits of rotational grazing in the semi arid rangelands have been little documented and it is therefore difficult for managers to commit to these new grazing strategies. The trial at Mt Riddock Station, 200km north-east of Alice Springs, compares an eight paddock rotation, used primarily by steers, with a continuously grazed paddock. Both the treatment and control paddocks are dominated by the introduced perennial buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris). The study aimed to test the hypotheses that rotational grazing will; increase carrying capacity, result in more even utilisation of pasture, improve or maintain land condition, increase species diversity, reduce fire risk and frequency and increase average daily weight gain in steers. Given that the trial had only been operating for two years at the time of reporting there is little conclusive evidence to support these hypotheses. Early results suggest that rotational grazing has the potential to improve evenness of use across a pasture. Land condition did not improve under either treatment. Species diversity declined under rotational grazing whilst remaining stable under continuous grazing. Fire risk and steer performance were difficult to assess due to methodology used and the relatively short time period assessed. It is also difficult to draw sound conclusions within this trial as the paddocks differed by far more than just grazing duration and rest. Factors such as stocking rate and distance to water are likely to be large contributors to the results to date. It is worth noting that the managers felt that the rotational grazing strategy was producing good results with regard to steer performance although they feel that it will take some years before the true impact on the pastures is understood. This is typically the case in central Australia where seasonal conditions can significantly influence the length of time before impacts on natural resources are understood. They find the rotational grazing strategy easy to implement and are very keen to continue with the existing strategy and to also extend it into further parts of the property.
Notes:
by a partnership including DPIFM, CLMA, DKCRC, CSIRO and the Cadzow family of Mt Riddock Station
