This is a tricky riddle that someone asked me the other day... "How do you prevent pigs from ruining your pasture in very humid weather?"

It turns out that even if it rains non-stop, you can successfully graze pigs on the pasture! This is what we have done at Singing Pastures Farm in the past 11 days, and there is hardly any sunshine.

In your farm, some places are more resilient in wet weather than others. The longer you observe the land, the more you will notice the nuances of each different corner and location. Almost every place has its own personality. With this in mind, when it really rained, we moved our breeding herd (the most influential group) to the east-facing hillside where there was no grazing for 12 months. The slope helps prevent water pooling. If you accumulate water somewhere, then that place will be very, very sensitive, as long as it is submerged. If these animals run around in the puddle with sharp hooves, it will undoubtedly disturb and compact the soil, so it is unlikely that good perennial grass will grow there next year.

Like the people who went to high school with me, you might also describe the pig as having a "path of least resistance" mentality. This means that they may drink the stagnant water in the puddle instead of the high-quality, clean water from their drinking fountains. If left long enough, this may be a potential carrier of diseases and parasites.

In addition to the gentle slope, another factor that helped us a lot is that the paddock has not been grazing for 12 months. All the grass on the surface was eventually razed to the ground, like a thin layer of armor between heaven and earth. As we all know, keeping the soil covered and protected is one of the signs of increasing the magical and ubiquitous microbes that keep the whole world spinning.

The location can be described as the "big strokes" of management. It is a big picture or a macro element, which enables your smaller and finer strokes to produce good results in time.

Duration: How long the animal will stay in a given enclosure. We try not to let our animals stay for more than 10 days.

Stocking rate: how many animals do you have in a paddock? Many beef herbivores use an estimated number of pounds per acre. I mainly measure it by animals per square foot. Our enclosure usually allows approximately 1,350 square feet per animal. For reference, CAFO uses 10.8 square feet of each fattening animal.

The use of nose rings: We use humanely certified nose rings to wear every weaned pig on the farm. Just like an electric fence, if an animal tries to venture to a place you don't want it to go, the nose ring will provide a short-term negative experience. We want our pigs to eat grass, not to the pasture. We manage our pastures to keep the grasses in the vegetative stage. In other words, it will grow about 4 to 8 inches after grazing. The longer it leaves the grass, the faster it rebounds.

Some farmers seem to be able to not wear nose rings. I don't know what to do. Every time I try to leave, I end up with a temporarily destroyed pasture, which seems to need to be replanted by the Army Corps of Engineers. According to my experience, to become a carbon storage pig farmer, I need to ring my nose. Oops, if I thought it would help sequester carbon, I would hit my nose!

Finally, the rotation of breeders and shelters in the paddock. I found that this last detail is invaluable for the recovery of the pasture by pigs in wet or dry weather. During wet weather, rotating feeders and cages are particularly important, so the impact will be evenly distributed throughout the enclosure. Without this extra labor, you will end up rolling in the mud in the hut where you don't want them, and the destroyed ground leads to them towards the feeder or the door of the hut.

For example, in the past 11 days of rain, I moved the feeder and hut 22 times. This is not as difficult as it sounds. My feeder is a Pepsi barrel, cut in half. I arranged these feeders in a row, about 20 feet apart. Every time I do housework for the pigs, I use my boots to push the feeder forward about 5 feet. You can easily do this by holding a bucket in each hand. The hut is an 8 ft x 6 ft metal shed, made of material that looks like a grain bin. Every time I do housework, I will move them to a piece of fresh grass because it is wet. Every 36 hours while drying. Our drinking fountain is the least moving element in our design. They stayed in the same place throughout the paddock being used. For this reason, we use half a plywood or several metal bucket covers to protect the ground around the drinking fountain. You know, nothing is too good for pigs!

If this seems like a lot of work, don't worry. This little work can systematically improve your farm’s ability to produce more grass next year. In the long run, it will bring dividends. As early as 4-5 months later, due to your hard work and attention to details, your grass will increase significantly. What's more, your pasture will become more lush and greener. You will store large amounts of carbon in the form of organic matter on every acre of land. As the years go by, the more you pay attention to these details, the more resilient and self-sufficient your farm will become!

John Arbuckle aims to change the trajectory of modern pig farming on Singing Pastures Farm. He proved that a farm with few trees, if properly managed, can sequester a large amount of carbon, support many family farmers, create the most nutritious pork, and nurture it. A coyote, owl, frog, worm, lynx and happy children. Read all of John's Mother Earth news posts here.

  All MOTHER EARTH NEWS community bloggers agree to abide by our blog guidelines and they are responsible for the accuracy of their posts. To learn more about the author of this article, click the byline link at the top of the page.

Join us for the long-awaited return of the Lone Star State! Early bird discounts are now available online.

In MOTHER EARTH NEWS for 50 years, we have been committed to protecting the natural resources of our planet and at the same time helping you protect your financial resources. You will find tips for cutting heating bills, growing fresh natural produce at home, etc. This is why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing to our earth-friendly auto-renewing savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you can save an additional $5 and get 6 issues of "Mother Earth News" for only $12.95 (US only).

You can also use the Bill Me option and pay $17.95 for 6 installments.

Canadian subscribers-click here for international subscribers-click here for Canadian subscriptions: 1 year (including postage and GST).

Already a member? Log in with your online account.

Already a member but no online account?

Already a member but no online account?