of the ranchers actually have some funds and some time to put towards brush management, so now would be a great time to start cleaning up those pastures and getting ready for when we fi nally get back to what we might consider to be normal rain- fall and are able to restock again.” Before replenishing a depleted
herd, producers should monitor their vegetation — not just for quan- tity but quality and also for signs of soil erosion like soil capping, when soil is so crusted over it comes off the surface in large chunks, or pedestalled plants, where the base of the plant is elevated above the level of the soil. “It’s always best to leave enough
stubble on the property so you have that root system holding your soil in place, so when we fi nally get that rainfall more of that water is going to infi ltrate the ground, rather than
running off on the neighbor’s prop- erty,” Clayton says. “It’s amazing in South Texas when we get a little bit of rainfall to see the huge response we get with the great diversity of plants we have down here.” After taking inventory of the
property, determine which brush species you want to spray at the time of year it’s appropriate to do so, and how much of it you want to tackle in the coming year. Clayton says followups are always needed, so don’t exhaust your entire budget for brush management at once. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
Service has been taking a multi- faceted approach toward educating landowners on resource manage- ment during the drought. Infor- mation is available in their online bookstore (
agrilifebookstore.org) and at other Internet sites like the Extension Disaster Education Net-
PRIVATE TREATY CARCASS DATA
work (
texashelp.tamu.edu). Indi- vidual counties have been hosting local workshops where producers can get information from specialists throughout the state. Daniel Kunz of TPWD adds,
“Water is key for both livestock and wildlife, so if I had any money to spend, I’d spend it on water fi rst. It also helps you to spread out your wildlife distribution and your live- stock distribution so they can take advantage of the available habitat, and provide supplemental water in the form of water troughs and ponds. In the hardest droughts, if you have ponds, you might supple- ment with well water.” He says a decade of frequent
drought in South Texas has taken a toll on species like hackberry and ce- dar elm and is stressing live oaks. But mesquite and other brush are adapted to drought and will survive.
Since 1952 – Crockett, Texas
BULLS ANGUS CHAROLAIS
HEREFORDS REGISTERED
18-24 MONTHS • EPDs READY FOR HEAVY SERVICE
OPEN AND BRED HEIFERS COWS AVAILABLE
CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT TODAY BILL CLARK
936-544-9013 Gene Stokes, Manager
Website:
www.clarkangus.com Email:
clarkangus@aol.com
tscra.org November 2013 The Cattleman 87
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