FORAGE 



Montana forests produce a considerable amount of forage 

 for domestic livestock. This is particularly true in the 

 ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir types. These timber species 

 usually permit an understory of palatable grasses such 

 as blue bunch wheatgrass, Idaho fescue, June grass, spike 

 trisetum, and others. Thinning of timber stands promotes 

 the growth of the trees as well as the grass understory. 

 Thinning also prolongs the time during which forage will 

 be produced. This combination of timber and forage production 

 provides, in many instances, the greatest benefit from 

 forest lands. 



Soil, species, age of timber, slope and aspect, are 

 some of the many factors which need be considered in the 

 management of grazing in forest types. 



Grazing can be very detrimental to forest land if 

 not properly handled. In fact, damage in the past from 

 over-grazing has led many foresters to the erroneous 

 conclusion that timber production and grazing are not 

 compatible. However, proper management and rehabilitation, 

 where poor management has existed in the past, can in many 

 instances permit livestock grazing on forested areas to 

 contribute to the over-all economy while producing timber 

 on a sustained basis. 



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