Learn to Manage Forage Plants
Grazing livestock such as sheep, cattle, goats and horses eat plants; often grasses, but also other plants too. This course helps you understand what is desirable and undesirable forage, and various ways used by farmers to manage and control the availability of the best forage. The course can also be relevant to managing wildlife populations.
COURSE CONTENT
There are 8 Lessons in this course:
1.Scope and Nature of Forage Resources
- Introduction
- Terminology
- Types of Forage
- Types of Forage Lands
- What different Animals Eat - Avian, Monogastric, Ruminants, Pseudo Ruminant
- Managing Forage Ecosystems
- Over grazing
- Continuous vs Rotational Grazing
- Ecosystem Health
- Weed Types
- Weed Populations
2. Grassland Species and Ecosystems
- Different Ways to Feed Animals
- Different Fodder Systems
- Different Fodder Plants - grasses, legumes, roots, wildflowers, forbs
3. Fodder Trees & Shrubs
- Definitions
- Advantages & Disadvantages of Fodder Trees
- Using Fodder Trees
- Harvesting Foliage
- Criteria for plant selection
- Financial considerations
- Considering Tree Species
4. Forage Establishment
- Natural area Grazing
- Seeding
- Soil - soil biome, rhizosphere, autotoxicity
- Weed Management
- Biodiversity -riparian zone, birds
5. Forage Management
- Regenerative Grazing Management
- Improving Soil Quality
- Strategies for Soil Improvement
- Fertiliser Management
- NPK
- Using Legumes
- Irrigation Management
- Animal Management
- Animal Access Management
- Controlled Burning
- Pest and Disease Management
6. Forage Quality and Use
- Understanding Quality
- Composition and Analysis
- Cutting
7. Forage (animal) related disorders
- Recognising ill health
- Seasonal and Conditional Disorders
- Overgrazing
- Parasites
- Worms
- Species Related Disorders
- Seasonal and Conditional Disorders
- Disorders Associated with Stored Forages
8. Preserving Forage as Hay & Silage
- Making Hay - curing, weather factors, etc
- Mowing
- Conditioning
- Swathe Manipulation to Speed Drying
- Hay Storage and Preservation
- Phases in Silage Fermentation
- Silage Storage
- Silage Management
Aims
- Discuss the nature and scope of forage plants eaten by animals, both in captivity and in the wild.
- Identify the comparative characteristics of grasses and other low growing fodder plants from different natural and created habitats, including grasses, legumes and forbs.
- Identify the comparative characteristics of grasses and other low growing fodder plants from different natural and created habitats including a range of trees and shrubs.
- Explain how forage plants may be established effectively in a managed pasture.
- Explain how to manage a landscape to optimise forage production in a way that is sustainable, both economically and environmentally.
- Explore factors that impact the quantity and quality of forage produced by a landscape and the effect on productivity of forage production.
- Identify common problems that can arise in livestock and other animals as a result or the forage/fodder they eat.
- Harvest and store forage plants for feeding animals after a period of storage.
