62 MISC. PUBLICATION 7 02, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



Of the 350 acres devoted to crested wheat grass, 202 acres are used 

 as early spring and fall pasture to supplement the native range and 

 98 acres are cut to provide hay for winter feed. The remaining 50 

 acres of crested wheat grass is new, first-year seeding that furnisher 

 little forage. This increased pasture and hay makes it possible to 

 increase the breeding cow herd from 125 to 160 head. Under the 

 former plan 83 yearlings and 16 cows were marketed each year as 

 compared with 108 yearlings and 19 cows under the present plan. 

 With the high price level net cash income increases from $11,006 under 

 the former plan to $12,207 under the present plan. With the medium 

 price level the cash income increases from $5,901 to $6,623. 



Mainly because of the inclusion of crested wheat grass in the crop 

 rotation and the greater winter feed requirements, cash income from 

 crops would decrease 13 percent in shifting from the former to the 

 present system. Income from livestock would increase 22 percent 

 under the high price level. Under the present plan acreage of wheat 

 is reduced 22 percent but because of increased wheat yields on land 

 in the crested wheat rotation, total production of wheat would decrease 

 only around 16 percent. 



Cash operating expenses decrease from $9,310 to $9,134 under the 

 high price level and from $8,091 to $7,913 under the medium level. 

 Because of increases in livestock numbers, interest on investment, a 

 noncash expense, would be increased $160 with the medium price level 

 and around $300 under the high-level situation. 



This stability in farming, increased income, decreased cash operating 

 expenses, and increased soil productivity cannot be achieved without 

 considerable temporary sacrifice in income. As in the case of the North 

 Dakota wheat-cattle ranch, previously described, on which wheat land 

 was permanently seeded to crested wheat grass, some income from 

 livestock must temporarily be sacrificed in order to build up breeding 

 herds to utilize the crested wheat after it is established. Crested wheat 

 grass seed must be bought and additional fencing around the pastures 

 probably will be necessary. 



Before establishing such rotations considerable planning of field 

 boundaries and cropping systems must be accomplished. Many 

 ranchers, as this one has done, may find it desirable to limit the crested 

 wheat grass rotation to only part of their cropland, as the inclusion 

 of all cropland may present difficult adjustment problems. Acreage of 

 crested wheat grass must increase in proportion to acreage of land 

 placed under rotation. In this example, larger acreages would have 

 made it necessary to forego marketing of even more heifers in order 

 to build up cattle numbers and this would have resulted in even heavier 

 temporary reductions in livestock receipts. Other ranchers may find 

 that the inclusion of all their cropland in the rotation would leave 

 them short of feed grains. The proportion of cropland which should 

 be placed under rotation must be determined individually for each 

 ranch. 



Farmers and researchers are cautioned that the increases in crop 

 yields used here are based on limited experience within a particular 

 area, and that the effect of including crested wheat grass in crop 

 rotations may vary in other areas. Reliable and complete data on 

 this subject are not yet available. However, the experience of the 

 rancher discussed here indicates that crested wheat grass in the crop 





