CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Grazing animals and birds are a natural part of prairie landscapes. Allowing animals to harvest their own feed by grazing is the best mimic of the natural ecosystem. Organically raised livestock can improve the biodiversity of the farm landscape by closely approximating the wild state. Manure and trampling on grazing land stimulates nutrient recycling and promotes plant regrowth. Manure from barn yards and chicken runs can be spread as a natural fertilizer, which is rich in all the nutrients crops require and in microbes that stimulate the release of minerals from the soil for plant uptake. Livestock are good for the land. Not all land on the prairies is well suited for annual cropping, but perennial grassland is ideal for land prone to erosion because of slope, sandy texture, or a tendency to drought. We can?t digest this grass, but grazing animals can harvest it effectively. By providing economical use for land unsuited to annual cropping, raising livestock can improve the ecological management and profitability of the farm. Having an income from ?marginal? land can protect it from the temptation to cultivate it in a cash-strapped time. Livestock can be incorporated into an existing grain, vegetable, or orchard operation. Each of these operations helps produce feed in the form of low-grade crops, weedy patches, or vegetables or fruits that have been culled. Marginal land, even poorly drained or saline soils, can provide useful forage. Straw can provide bedding and can be composted with the manure to build soil for future crops. Finally, livestock close the circle in nutrient recycling, an important goal of organic production. For their many benefits to the organic system, livestock remain relatively underutilized. Consumer demand for organic meat, eggs and dairy is growing, offering a tantalizing opportunity for sound farm practice to meet the consumers? ethical concerns in livestock production

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