The impacts of patch-burn grazing, rotational grazing and traditional grazing on livestock performance will be one of the topics covered during the Central Grasslands Research Extension Center’s field day. (NDSU photo)

CARRINGTON, N.D. (NDSU Extension) – This year’s North Dakota State University Central Grasslands Research Extension Center (CGREC) grassland, forage and livestock field day will be held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Producers and others will be able view the center researchers’ work by watching short prerecorded videos shot on location. The videos will be available starting at 10 a.m. July 28 at https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/centralgrasslandsrec.

Topics for this year’s field day and the presenters are:

• Growing cereal forages for hay: production, quality and economics by forage type – Scott Alm, CGREC forage agronomist, and Kevin Sedivec, CGREC director
• Comparing winter cereal crops for spring grazing: production, livestock performance and economics by forage type – Alm and Sedivec
• Impacts of dietary energy on fetal development and growth performance in heifers – Friederike Baumgaertner, NDSU Ph.D. graduate student, and Carl Dahlen, NDSU animal scientist
• Feeding the bees: which grazing practices can promote native floral resources – Cameron Duquette, NDSU Ph.D. graduate student, and Torre Hovick, NDSU range scientist
• Grazing is for the birds: how grazing practices influence nesting birds – Duquette and Hovick
• Comparing impacts of patch-burn grazing, rotational grazing and traditional grazing on livestock performance – Devan McGranahan, NDSU range scientist, and Megan Wanchuk, NDSU master of science graduate student
• Grazing cover crops: which species to add to a mixture and why – Sedivec
• Assessing livestock grazing behavior and cattle inventory on pasture using GPS collars and smart ear tags – McGranahan; John Nowatzki, NDSU Extension Ag machine systems specialist; and Michael Undi, CGREC animal scientist
• Determining what cattle eat when grazing rangelands – Undi
• Using rotational grazing to enhance plant growth and harvest efficiency: how often should you rotate and how heavily should you graze – Erin Gaugler, CGREC range research specialist, and Sedivec
• Beef quality assurance tips for improving your cow herd – Lisa Pederson, CGREC Extension livestock and beef quality specialist
• Cover crop grazing management to enhance livestock production and soil health on cropland in southcentral North Dakota: a SARE-funded project – Miranda Meehan, NDSU Extension livestock environmental stewardship specialist, Gaugler and Sedivec

For more information, contact Sedivec at kevin.sedivec@ndsu.edu or Sandi Dewald at 701-424-3606 or sandi.dewald@ndsu.edu.