INCREASED CATTLK PRODUCTION. 9 



under protection from yearlong grazing as under protection by light 

 stocking during the main growing season. 



The fact that the middle portion of the Reserve is made up largely 

 of tobosa-grass flats, which are primarily summer range and stand 

 heavy grazing during the growing season, has made it possible to 

 remove most of the stock from the grama-grass range while the forage 

 there is making its growth. The summer range, however, may need 

 some protection during the growing season if it is to be kept in the 

 best condition. To this end, additional fences and watering places 

 are being provided as rapidly as possible. The biggest problem on 

 this class of range, however, is believed to be the proper distribution 

 of stock to secure full, even utilization. 



For either light stocking during the main growing season or deferred 

 grazing to be successful, there must be enough good forage plants 

 remaining on the range to bring about the improvement desired by 

 natural seeding or by vegetative development. Where the valuable 

 forage plants have been killed out and the soil fertility reduced by 

 water or wind erosion, many years of protection or light stocking 

 would be required to bring about marked improvement. This con- 

 dition is found frequently around watering places on unfenced range. 

 Figure 1 shows, for example, that there is very little vegetation of 

 any kind and practically no good forage plants within the first half 

 mile out from water on the unfenced range. 



There is believed to be no doubt as to the advisability o light 

 grazing of the grama-grass range during the growing season. *In the 

 case of the Jornada Range Reserve, the protection of Pastures 2 and 

 10, for example, aside from improving the range with little loss of 

 forage any year, has made possible the production of steers which 

 brought $2.50 per head more than was paid for the same age and 

 class of stock from unfenced range. Further than this, the reserved 

 feed has made possible the avoidance of loss among poor cows during 

 the spring months and has at the same time been a form of insurance 

 against loss in case of prolonged drought. 



Where the whole of a range unit is made up of grama grass or 

 similar grass range, about one-third of the area should be grazed 

 lightly during the growing season two years in succession. Each 

 third of the unit in its turn should then be given as nearly as possible 

 this amount of protection. 



WATER DEVELOPMENT. 



The importance of a well-planned water supply for cattle ranges 

 of the Southwest can hardly be overemphasized. Where watering 

 places are from 6 to 15 miles apart, the range near water is overgrazed 

 and denuded, while that away from water is undergrazed. Loss from 

 starvation increases as the distance from feed to water increases, 

 5546 17 Bull. 588 2 



