Research on Use of 

 Forest Land by Livestock 



The long-established prac- 

 tice of grazing cattle and 

 hogs on the "open range" 

 of the South, with woods- 

 burning the primary tool of 

 management, posed many 

 questions for researchers 

 at forestry and agricultural 

 experiment stations in the 

 region. Could grazing be 

 made compatible with 

 timber production? Would 

 both timber growing and 

 livestock production be 

 profitable on forest lands? 



An impressive series of 

 investigations dealing with 

 the grazing of cattle on 

 forest ranges, particularly 

 on the coastal plain, was 

 begun in the 1940's by 

 scientists such as H.H. 

 Biswell, R.S. Campbell, J.T. 

 Cassidy, LK. Halls, R.A. 

 Read, and B.L Southwell. 

 Both studies and 

 observations indicated that 

 in the longleaf- slash pine 

 belt, properly managed 

 cattle grazing does little 

 harm to pine regeneration 

 and growth and utilizes 

 grass and other forage that 

 might otherwise feed wild- 

 fires (e.g., Campbell and 

 Cassidy 1951). 



Studies of prescribed burn- 

 ing demonstrated that 

 controlled fires improve the 

 nutrient content and di- 

 gestibility of forage and 

 increase its availability for 

 livestock (e.g., Duvall and 

 Whitaker 1964). Related 

 studies revealed how open 

 strips of improved pasture 

 can serve as firebreaks, as 

 well as provide feed and 

 access to adjoining forest 

 range (Halls and others 

 1960). 



Supplemental feeding and 

 access to improved pas- 

 tures proved to be important 

 elements in efficient systems 

 of cattle management that 

 utilize forest ranges (Duncan 

 and Epps 1958). Forage on 

 forest areas was found to 

 be generally deficient in 

 energy and nutrients re- 

 quired for good animal 

 growth, especially for breed- 

 ing herds. Hence crude 

 protein, phosphorus, and 

 trace elements often must 

 be supplied for efficient 

 livestock production (Lewis 

 1983). In other studies 

 seasonal use proved to be 

 preferable to year-round 

 forest grazing. Proper 

 stocking of both trees and 

 livestock was likewise shown 



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