Released March 2, 2010
VERNON, Texas – The application of summer patch burning to heal native rangeland may be best accomplished using rotational grazing, according to a Texas AgriLife Research range ecologist.
Richard Teague recently completed a study of native rangeland vegetation and soils subjected to summer patch burns followed by cattle being allowed to graze either continuously or using a rotational grazing system.
Prescribed summer fire as a management tool is gaining interest among resource managers in the southern Great Plains, Teague said. Applying a prescribed fire in the summer is more effective in controlling unwanted woody plants and prickly pear cactus than winter fires because they burn hotter.
--continued on Texas AgriLife Extension news
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