We Do Grass
Hello Folks,
Spring is in its full glory right now. Dandelions galore! And grass that grows SO fast it’s hard to keep up with.
I joke that farming in Maine is essentially farming on a huge piece of granite jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. It’s not that far from the truth if you stop to think about it. We have about 100 acres of pasture. There’s a lot of exposed ledge, it’s rocky (although we’ve done a LOT of rock picking over the years), and while the soil that we have is great, there’s just not much of it.
So….What am I getting it with these geographical and geologic references?
We believe that grazing cattle is the best use for our land. Most of our land isn’t suitable for growing grains, or vegetables, or Christmas trees. Pasture is what grows best, and it’s what we’re best at doing.
Basically, on our farm we seek to mimic the rotational grazing strategies employed by the bison for millions of years. Bison didn’t range in Maine, but we like the metaphor 🙂 We move the cattle across the landscape using a single strand of electric fencing, and they deposit their nutrient- rich manure, helping to slowly build the soil.
We have different groups of animals based on their stages of life. Right now, we have a group of nursing calves and moms, a group of pregnant heifers, and a group of pesky teenagers we call the weanlings.
Because we reduced the number of animals on the farm since we got out of dairying, we have more acres of pasture per cow than in the past. It’s an exciting time to be a beef critter at Maine Organic Beef Co.!
Cowtastically Yours,
Sonja
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