Hearth, Wind & Sol Farm lies in the heart of the Estancia Valley on 640 acres of New Mexico rangeland with a purported average rainfall of 14 inches. Owners John and Debbie Humphries purchased their land in the summer of 2021 and did some initial biological monitoring in preparation for looking at trending ecosystem health indicators over the years as they transitioned management from a lower stocking rate and density to a higher stocking rate and density. Now with 4 years of data collection, it’s time to determine how they must adapt their grazing management with an eye toward increasing land resilience.
John began with determining monitoring transects on three locations in 2021, using 3 of the different soil types within key paddocks. A fourth transect was added in 2023 to allow comparisons in a pasture with less intensive management. Monitoring data has been collected at these monitoring transects at the middle or end of the growing season depending on when the cows will be coming on, and each transect takes about 1 hour to complete to collect data. Transects consisted of a 100-foot tape measure per transect with readings every five feet. HMI staff, through funding by a Thornburg Foundation grant, assisted John in collecting and analyzing the following key data:
Soil surface (bare ground, litter, plant base)
Type of plant (grass, forb, cool- or warm-season, species)
Distance to nearest perennial
Age/Form of plant (age--young, seedling, mature, decadent/dying and form—normal, overgrazed, overrested, dying)
STAC (forage assessment) reading (done separately after biological monitoring to determine current productivity of landscape)
Water infiltration rate (using a standard can for 12 cubic inches starting in 2023)
Photo taken at beginning of transect facing down and across the transect (see pictures below)
The data collected has provided information to help guide decisions about the herd size and number of days these cattle can stay, as well as the potential stock density and labor needs to achieve that density. In addition, the data has provided information on how that stock density has impacted the land not just for a growing season but whether soil health indicators demonstrate increased resilience or vulnerabilities during the highly probable likelihood of future droughts.
Management Practices
The farm straddles Riley Road, with 480 acres on the east side of the road, and 160 acres on the west side. Adaptive grazing practices have been used primarily in the larger parcel. In 2022 John installed additional permanent and semi-permanent fencing to divide the 480 acres into 8 large paddocks and then used additional temporary fencing within each of those to open up a 1.5-acre paddock seven times per day (allowing the herd to walk back through grazed areas to get to water).
With a herd of 82 SAU, John was able to achieve a 50,000-lbs/acre stock density in 6 out of the 8 paddocks during the growing season, with an average graze period of 7 days per large paddock. However, doing so was pretty much a full-time job for 10 weeks. Growing season grazing totaled 67 days and 5420 ADs. The higher-than-average rainfall in 2022 provided a substantial stockpile of forage at the end of the growing season (much better than the herd’s home pasture), so these paddocks were also grazed in the winter of 2022-23 with protein supplementation at 18 bags/week (approximately $235/week). The herd stayed most of the winter for a total of 8319 ADs during the dormant season, and average recovery time was 48 days between the two grazing seasons. In contrast, management prior to 2021 had grazed 14 cow/calf pairs for 6 weeks annually or 882 ADs.
During the 2023 growing season, John did not do the temporary fencing so the herd of approximately 100 SAU had an average of 60 acres to graze for 7-9 days, for a total of 6077 ADs. Recovery following the 2022-2023 dormant season was approximately 120 days before the cows returned that summer. Due to the fencing project at the herd’s home pasture (see next paragraph), the cattle had to stay at Hearth, Wind & Sol Farm longer than planned, resulting in more severe grazing in a few of the paddocks during a year with below average rainfall (9.5 inches from May through September).
With no dormant season grazing in the winter of 2023-2024, the recovery period for any given paddock was approximately 13 months before the cows returned in the late summer of 2024. Essentially the same strategy was employed in 2024 as in 2023, with the exception that John used temporary fencing in the two most productive large paddocks, opening up a 5-acre paddock twice each day and thereby achieving a greater stock density and better utilization in these higher-production areas. The herd of about 105 SAU grazed a total of 4503 ADs.
The home pasture for this herd is a portion of the 7 Up 7 Down Ranch (owned by John’s dad) that lies about 5 miles east of Hearth, Wind & Sol Farm. In 2023, John installed 3.5 miles of new permanent cross-fencing, creating four large pastures of 600-800 acres each (previously, the herd had continuous access to all 2,760 acres). During the 2024 growing season, John used temporary fencing to subdivide those pastures into seventeen paddocks (average size was about 160 acres), with grazing periods of 7-10 days. Even with the new fencing, stock density is still very low (<1000 lbs/ac). The herd now rotates through the pastures once in the growing season and once during the dormant season, providing recovery periods of roughly 180 days. Initial biological monitoring was done in 2023 prior to implementation of the new grazing plan to provide baseline data which we will share later for comparison of more intensive management of larger landscapes.
Biological Monitoring Process & Results
In 2013 when the previous owner of the 480-acre parcel increased stock density to a little over 100 pounds per acre and allowed for longer recovery, the forage shifted from predominantly blue grama grass to the return of other native grasses like sideoats grama, ring muhly, vine mesquite, squirreltail, alkali sacaton, silver bluestem, western wheat, galleta, and sand dropseed for a total of 25+ plant species. However, there was still a lot of bare ground, plant pedestaling showing erosion, and dead plant centers from not enough animal impact.
2021 monitoring showed 45-55% bare ground and 85-90% overrested or dying grasses. Plant spacing averaged from .9 to 1.4 inches to nearest perennial.
2022 brought a good rain year with 17 inches of rain from mid-June to the end of September, showing the potential for the property. Average rainfall in this area is approximately 12-14 inches. 2022 monitoring was completed in the middle of the grazing season, before the cattle arrived in the pastures with the monitoring transects. There were some shifts in terms of decreased plant spacing in some pastures but there was still the issue of overrested and dying plants and a large percentage of bare ground (50-55%) despite a 30-50% decrease in plant spacing which was a positive trend.
Because the cattle were at higher stock density during the 2022 and 2023 growing seasons, they were utilizing the forage more evenly as well as distributing their manure more evenly, and disturbing more ground to help address the overrested plants. These actions seem to have made a significant difference in soil health indicators in 2023. In particular, overrested and dying plants dropped to 10-40%. Likewise, bare ground decreased to 20-40%.
Transect #4 was added in 2023 in an area of the 160-acre parcel on the west side of Riley Road with similar soil type and vegetation as much of the 480-acre parcel on the east side to allow comparisons between different management practices. The smaller parcel currently has no cross-fencing and has two horses grazing continuously, with short-term grazing by cattle averaging less than 1000 ADs (6 ADA) annually.
While 2024 was a good rain year overall (13.6 inches from May through September), more than half the rainfall came in three really hard “gully washer” type rains, with up to 3 inches of rain in a short amount of time. Unfortunately, those rains washed away a lot of the accumulated litter, which was noted in the biological monitoring that took place in the middle of August before the cattle came back on. Likely because of increased cattle pressure in 2022 and 2023, along with the rains washing litter away in 2024, the only transect that improved was the one located in a draw. Plant spacing increased by a little over 100% in one transect (one of the paddocks that had been more severely used in 2023), while another transect did not see much change. However, the mineral cycle had improved dramatically in that there were no signs of overrested and dying plants and there was little sign of desiccated cow pies.
The concern now is how to address the increased plant spacing and get more litter back on the soil again in the upland areas to continue to improve soil health. That recognition guided the decision to graze more lightly in 2024, hoping to build a stockpile back up and allow for adequate recovery. Total ADs this year were 26% less than in 2023 and 17% less than during the 2022 growing season. With no dormant season grazing planned for this winter, the ADs for this year will be less than one-third of the total ADs (growing season + dormant season) in 2022-23. The biomonitoring results also prompted John to invest the time and energy to use temporary fencing to increase stock density in the draw (two paddocks with the highest production potential) this year. He also created in exclosure in one of the draw paddocks to determine what is adequate recovery for desired grasses like the sand dropseed.
Because the herd grazes most of the year on the 7 Up 7 Down Ranch, the need to pressure the pastures at HWS Farm is reduced, but the management practices at HWS Farm over the past decade (including those by the previous owner) have produced much healthier soils and grass, making it tempting to extend the grazing periods to take advantage of the better forage (as happened in the winter of 2022-2023). John expects that the improved fencing on the 7 Up 7 Down Ranch, which has allowed the introduction of grazing management practices with recovery periods, will begin to improve the soils and grasses there and facilitate stockpiling forage as a hedge against drought.
By keeping a focused eye on the distance to nearest perennial, amount of litter, amount of bare ground, and if plants are overrested and/or dying, John has the information he needs to determine if he can push cattle numbers and where he needs to increase stock density. These soil health indicators are key to a land’s resilience in times of drought and cannot be ignored. But with accurate forage inventory, he can plan ahead for the number of animals that can be retained sustainably and determine what he will do with the assets of grass, animals, and money at his disposal.
Potential ROI
The potential return on this investment is creating a more resilient landscape but also increasing the carrying capacity and productivity of the land. One simple thought experiment is to use the information below to consider what your gross profit is per animal and how carrying more animals on the land, sustainably, allows you to increase your profitability by as much as 400% based on the information below. The challenge is determining how often the additional stock density is necessary to continue to improve land health and productivity. Likewise, while the land will be more resilient, even a resilient landscape will reduce in productivity during a drought. Having that information in hand at the start of the growing season allows you to look for other grazing options or reducing your herd so you can trade the asset of cattle for that of money and protecting your natural resource base to grow more grass when the rains come.
Let’s assume a gross profit of $200 per cow (not including depreciation) as noted in the following article: https://www.feedlotmagazine.com/news/cow_calf_corner/cow-calf-profitability-estimates-for-2021-and-2022/article_238bf19a-ab76-11ec-9d89-ef2b7030c883.html
Using those figures and the figures from the cow/calf profitability table, we can then look at the potential return on investment (ROI) if this kind of production can be maintained in average years using the following numbers:
Previous carrying capacity of 2.4 cows (882 AD / 365)= $480 (2.4 cows X $200)
Current carrying capacity increase would be 12.3 cows (4500 AD / 365)=$2460 or an approximate 400% increase in gross return.
With almost $2000 increase in gross profit and a 20-year life expectancy of the permanent fencing that would be $40,000.
Fencing & Water Investment
Fencing and water costs to divide the land into 8 paddocks included:
Fencing supplies approximately $6,000 (includes $1,000 for temporary fencing materials with possible shorter life span)
Labor for permanent fencing 1 mile: 100 hours X $15/hr=$1500
Water line & fittings, portable drinkers, and Ditch Witch rental add up to about $4,000
Labor for ½ mile of water line: 50 hours X $15/hr=$750
(Does not include researching time)
Total Cost $12,250
However, the local Soil & Water Conservation District provided $5,000 cost sharing grant for the fencing and probably would have covered the $4000 in water costs thus reducing the cost of investment for John to $3,250 for a 13.37% Annualized ROI.
Biological Monitoring Transect Photos
