BENEFITS:

Shade: Silvopasture decreases heat stress for the animals. One study found that cows with shade access were observed at the water trough up to 6.42 times less and lying down up to 1.75 times more. They also grazed up to 1.5 times more during the hottest time of the day, compared to those without shade.

Increased feed: Silvopasture systems introduce new, free, long-term options for feed. Our planting includes wild apples, northern pecans, Chinese chestnuts, and hazelnuts which will drop nutritious fruits and nuts for cattle and pigs.

Increased revenue: Silvopasture has been shown to increase the “average daily gain” of beef cattle, meaning they gain more weight each day due to less heat stress and a more diverse diet. More weight means more product at the end of the year. Other forms of revenue can come in the form of selling carbon credits, selling fruits and nuts, and decreasing reliance on hay. For us, we don't plan to sell tree crops - but rather improve beef yields and increase tree crops options as feed.

Improved animal health: In addition to decreasing heat stress, animal health improves through a diverse diet, including trees like black walnuts that act as a natural parasite which the cattle will learn to eat when needed.

Climate solution: Silvopasture was ranked #11 of 94 solutions to climate change in the book Drawdown because of its incredible ability to sequester carbon in the soil through tree and grass roots.

Wildlife habitat: Before settler colonialism, Ohio had a diverse landscape of varying habitats and forest conditions. These included savannas and woodlands. Savannas are grasslands with a few interspersed trees. Woodlands are forests that allow enough light for grasses and forbs to thrive in the understory. After savannas were plowed for agriculture and woodlands clearcut for industry, the trees grew back into overly dense forests and savannas and woodlands became almost non-existent. The restoration of savannas and woodlands is now “a primary goal for public agencies and conservation organizations.” Silvopasture mimics these conditions, which many birds, bats, and other species need to survive.

CHALLENGES:

Vegetation management: We wish we had protected the trees by stringing polywire along the *top* of each Plantra tree shelter and wrapping aluminum wire around the tube. This would have allowed free movement of cattle around the tubes and flexibility in paddock size. Instead, we strung the polywire along the tubes at waist-height and so the herd can never graze completely under this wire, meaning we have raspberries and grasses growing up under each tree row. This required weed-whacking and more labor hours than ideal.

Girdling: Once trees grow above the Plantra tree shelter height, they begin moving around in the wind and encircling the top of the hard-edged tube, causing some girdling. Nothing too major, but concerning enough to do something about it. We used scissors to cut strips along the top edge so it can flare out, which helps some.