I had the opportunity to meet up with a dear friend of mine this summer. He was an exchange student from Colombia who spent time with us many years ago. He told me that one of the most profound things that he learned from us here at Greener Pastures Ranching was the difference between economics […] Read more
Is that an economic or financial decision?
Management: News Roundup from the November 2018 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
A monoculture is ugly!
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
Yes, I said it. I know, this goes against every fibre in your body. It goes against everything you learned in college. It goes against what your agrologist tells you. It goes against what your neighbours say and it definitely goes against what your salesman tells you. If that offends you, I am sorry but […] Read more
Let’s talk about sex
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
Our agriculture industry is based on reproduction. Livestock need to reproduce and plants need to reproduce. It’s what we do. It’s pretty simple, right? In livestock production, we spend a great deal of time and money on genetics. Which bull to buy, which heifers to keep, and which cows to cull. (The same is true for all […] Read more
Dung beetles make the best employees
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
This is how we roll. Or maybe we dig, or just hang out, but no matter how we work, we work really hard. We have a really crappy job and I would like to tell you a little bit about us. We are known as scarab beetles, commonly called dung beetles. We have a very important job […] Read more
Consult the grazing chart
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
One of the most undermanaged crops we have in North America is pasture. The reason we don’t manage it or don’t understand it is because most pasture is not bought or sold. It is usually consumed on farm. So we don’t understand the value of it. If we never see any value in it, we […] Read more
The grazier’s magic bullet
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
We live in a world of band-aid solutions, symptom solvers and we are all looking for that next magic bullet. Agriculture has become dependent on these quick fixes to address symptoms. If there is an issue in agriculture, such as a pest, a weed, or a parasite, then somewhere in agriculture we have developed a band-aid solution to address the […] Read more
My cover crop
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
There has been lots of excitement during the last few years over cover crops. The soil conferences and seminars have been full of cover crop talks and trade shows are full of salesmen. It is the latest craze in agriculture and I agree that there are a lot of situations where the cover crop is […] Read more
The off-farm job
Grazing with Steve Kenyon
When I came out of high school, many years ago, I was under the impression that if I wanted to farm, I would need to have an off-farm job. I am not sure how that message was instilled in me as my father did not have one when he farmed. I guess I was told enough […] Read more
Calculating livestock appreciation and depreciation
News Roundup from the February 2018 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
Most farmers understand depreciation, right? When you buy a new pickup, it depreciates rather quickly once you drive it off the lot. Your tractor will depreciate over time as well as the rest of your equipment. Your accountant will depreciate your assets each year in your books. Pretty straightforward, but there are a few places where […] Read more
What can go wrong with swath grazing?
From freeze to thaw, Steve Kenyon has dealt with many a situation
I am a big fan of speakers at conferences that tell you about all the stuff that went wrong. I would rather learn from someone else’s mistakes than my own. I already have far too many “learning experience’s” here at Greener Pastures Ranching. Too many of the speakers explain how easy and trouble-free their particular […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
