Reintroduction of fire and grazing, alone or in combination, has increasingly been recognized as central to the restoration of North American mixed-grass and tallgrass prairies. Although ecological studies of these systems are abundant, they have generally been observational, or if experimental, have focused on plant species diversity. Species diversity measures alone are not sufficient to info...

0308-521X/$ see front matter Published by Elsevier doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2009.01.002 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +701 667 3002; fax: + E-mail address: [email protected] (R. P Spatiotemporal variability in forage quantity and quality requires that regular assessment is needed of the capacity for grasslands to support livestock nutritional requirements. Current methods for estimating g...

The intensification of dairying can have adverse impacts on the environment through diminished soil quality and greater loss of nutrients to water bodies. Poor soil quality can reduce the productivity and sustainability of pastoral farming systems. The effects of increased stocking rate (SR) (3, 4 and 5 cows/ha) and introducing a cut and carry system on soil, pasture and water quality were comp...

Integration of cover crops and livestock (ICLS) in an existing corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] cropping system can be effective strategy to improve soil physical hydrological properties. Three on-farm long-term (≥30 yr) sites (Sites 1, 2 3) one short-term (3 experimental site (Site 4) with a randomized block design eastern South Dakota were selected evaluate the impacts ICLS...