Broken Bow, Neb. — On Thursday, the Nebraska Sandhills Grazing Conference was held at the One Box Center in Broken Bow.
One of the guest speakers, Kevin Sedivec, a rangeland ecologist with the North Dakota State University, shared more about the benefits of utilizing forbs to improve land and cattle health.
Sedivec mentioned that wildflowers and other forbs can make up approximately 25% of a cow’s diet. Furthermore, forb plants also usually provide more nutrients, minerals, and resiliency for cattle.
In addition to cattle consuming wildflowers, Sedivec states, milkweed is another forbs option. However, it should only be considered when the amount cattle consume is being monitored.
To improve plant and soil health for grazing lands a diverse plant community is needed with grazing strategies that detail the time, deferment, and recovery needed for the pasture.
Sedivec says their work is not done, the next step is to break down the composition of the plants allowing more data to show which parts of the plant cattle prefer and why.
Following lunch, the conference was taken outside to look at a various of rangeland surrounding the Broken Bow area.
