The Newsletter for the Center for Grazinglands and Ranch Management

Center Staff:

• Wayne Hamilton - Director
• Michelle Lee - Assistant Director
• Travis Whitney - Intern

The Second Annual Meeting of the CGRM Committees was held in College Station October 22-23, 1998. It was held at the Sam Houston Sanders Corp of Cadet Center on campus. Dr. Dick Creger, Executive Associate Dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences opened the meeting and welcomed the committees. Following a brief orientation, committee members were given a tour of the College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Bill Moyer and his staff hosted a tour of both the large and small animal facilities. Members were shown the new multi-million dollar large animal clinic and allowed to see first-hand the high tech and technologically advanced equipment and techniques used and taught at the college. Members were impressed by the technology available for animals and the grandness of the hospital itself. Many said they would rather be treated here than their hospitals.

Later that evening, the members gathered at the College Station Hilton hotel for a social hour and dinner. The world famous Aggie Wranglers performed. Their high flying, death defying Aggie style polka entertained the group.

Friday, October 23 was opened with a review of the Center's 1998 activities by Michelle Lee, Assistant Director. Wayne Hamilton then discussed Center programs, plans and budget needs for 1999. The Center web page was then reviewed along with a demonstration of the EXSEL brush control technology selection expert system that is now available on-line through the Center's web page. CGRM's intern Travis Whitney reviewed his graduate program that will involve use of digital photography of grazinglands that can be transmitted electronically to Extension Specialists for identification and diagnosis of problems. Specialists' recommendations will then be transmitted back to producers or CEA's without the need for ranch visits, creating "virtual ranch visits." CGRM will serve as the hub for all transmissions.

Members then heard "Around the State Updates" for various extension and research centers in Texas. Dr. John Beverly, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Deputy Director of TAES, discussed programs of the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station and Dr. Bill Harris, Associate Director of TAEX, gave an overview of Extension Service programs and activities

Dr. Robert Whitson provided the committee members with information on the Beef Initiative and asked for their review and recommendations.

Dr. Jerry Stuth, Director, Center for Natural Resources Information Technology (CNRIT), presented a program on a proposed regional drought advisory project. The project is designed to provide an advisory system that would allow producers and state and federal officials to be proactive in decision-making by having early warning information on drought. The project would involve CGRM and CNRIT. It is anticipated that a proposal will be developed in early 1999 to seek funding.

The final part of the meeting was an open discussion of all committee members in attendance. The committees recommended the following as the primary activities for the Center. 1) To educate the general public on the importance of agriculture in our society. 2) To foster stewardship ahead of production by motivating producers to be good stewards of their natural resources. 3) To preserve traditional knowledge of efficient production methods by encouraging future producers to remain on the land generation after generation. 4) To explore alternate income enterprises, such as ecotourism, that can help producers increase income without losing the cultural heritage that goes with ranching. 5) To aggressively pursue development of the early warning drought advisory system presented by Dr. Stuth. 6) To develop an educational program on the need for water conservation and the role of grazinglands in meeting the water needs of society.

Our work at the Center puts us in contact with small-scale ranch owners who have purchased or inherited properties with a history of long-term overuse. These people are usually not dependent on ranch income, and often have reestablishment of the pristine vegetation that was once found on their land as a primary goal. They are committed to the personal enjoyment and satisfaction that good stewardship can bring through restoration of vegetation resources to a level that protects the soil and provides long-term stability. Most often, they still want livestock on the ranch. However, livestock numbers are a much lower priority than the primary goal of reclaiming a higher percentage of the best native vegetation species that were once found on their range sites. This approach makes good sense. The livestock numbers they reduce means they have ample forage for those remaining. It means also that they buy less supplemental feed or worry less about hay-making for on-ranch consumption. It means less labor, costs for medicine and veterinary calls. Eventually, the ranch may actually produce equal or greater net income than the former, high-intensity operation as forage resources improve over time with deferment programs and proper grazing management at moderate stocking rates.

There is another aspect to consider in lowering stocking rates to foster range improvement. Livestock prices are often depressed by too many cattle on the land. Working for maximum production means that we are perpetuating over-supply of our product - actually working against the market prices we would like to receive, and in the case of full-time producers, prices they must receive to stay in business. Perhaps producing less total numbers of livestock, but more that are specifically suitable for the market demand and with less inputs would be a better goal.

At the Center, we think that stewardship as a goal for all rangeland managers is important. However, stewardship seems to be an even more attractive management option for small-scale ranchers with significant off-ranch income. We would like to hear from more people who are seriously working toward restoration of native vegetation on their land and who embrace stewardship as their primary management goal. We can think of no more admirable objective than to restore rangeland to a higher percentage of its natural vegetation composition, to enhance the stability of the ecosystem and pass the land to the next generation in better shape than it was received. We would like to help.

The third in a series of five workshops concentrating on the region of Northern Mexico and South Texas known as the Tamaulipas Biotic Province has been planned for January 27-29, 1999 in Monterrey Mexico. The topic of this workshop will be Conservation of Natural Resources and the Marketing of Beef Cattle.

Where: Unión Ganadera Regional de Nuevo León Guadalupe, Mexico (near Monterrey)

Topics: Soil and Water Conservation, Ecotourism, Cattle Marketing

Cost: $60.00 and $30.00 for students

For more information contact the Center at 1-888-799-4442 or CGRM@tamu.edu