Managing Photosynthesis Through Optimal Grazing

The primary goal of grazing, or any other farming endeavor, is to convert light energy efficiently and profitably from the sun into food. Many graziers think of themselves as grass farmers, harvesting sunlight and converting it through forage into animal products.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Lee Rinehart and Justin Duncan talk specifically about photosynthesis and whether it can be managed. And if so, how? If indeed it is possible to optimize photosynthetic activity and get more nutrient-dense forage for longer in the grazing season, it would be a new spin on grazing management.

Contact Lee Rinehart and Justin Duncan at [email protected] [email protected].

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Related ATTRA Resources:

· Grazing

· Advanced Grazing Series. Session 2. Plants and Grazing Management

· Building Healthy Pasture Soils

Other Resources:

· How Healthy Plants Create Healthy Soil

· Characterization of Root Exudates at Different Growth Stages of Ten Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Cultivars

· Responses of Root Exudation and Nutrient Cycling to Grazing Intensities and Recovery Practices in an Alpine Meadow: An Implication for Pasture Management

· Carbon Dioxide Concentration Gradients above the Soil Surface at High Elevations