Riparian fence allows the area to be excluded from grazing as a part of his rotational grazing system. In 2000, the Texas Department of Agriculture award-
ed Stone and his sister, Bryce Thiemann, the “100 years of Agriculture” award for the ranch being owned by the same family for over 100 years.
An adaptable program Along with Scrub Oaks ranch, Stone uses additional
leased property in South Texas near George West. Once he gathers his stocker cattle in South Texas, he moves the herd to Tom Green and Coke counties for backgrounding. Running stockers in the dormant season allows
him to adjust his stocking rates to the actual available forage. He begins grazing his stockers around Oct. 15 and sells them around April 15. He calls this spring sell time “selling into the green.” This allows pastures to rest during the critical growing season. This graz- ing system also allows for fl exibility, especially in dry years when forage production is low. “I like the way I can adjust my numbers. If I need
to sell them because the forage isn’t there, then I sell them. This year I have tried something new where we are selling directly to other ranchers as pairs or as three-in-ones,” explains Hugh. “You have to be fl uid with your operation and watch the market.” “I supplement with mineral that was developed from
some analysis of forage from my pastures to ensure that my cows get what they need to stay healthy, along with 20 percent protein cubes and molasses tubs that I can place in particular areas to increase grazing potential in areas further away from water.” As far as Stone’s bottom line, although he does
tscra.org
have supplemental input costs, by selling his cattle during the springtime his profi ts stay strong because cattle prices tend to be stronger during that time of the cattle-cycle market.
Stocking and partnering for success Stone knows that health of his rangeland forages
and soils are key to successfully managing the natural resources on his operation. Working alongside him over the years has been the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). “I have had a long history of working with the NRCS
and have been a director for the Tom Green SWCD (Soil and Water Conservation District) since 1989, so I modifi ed my existing conservation plan to ensure that I would have the proper stocking rates with my forage to meet my range health goals,” Stone said. However, as any rancher knows, Mother Nature can
sweep in and disrupt or destroy an operation’s best-laid plans. Stone learned this truth during 2011 — one of the hottest and driest years on record. That’s the year the “Wildcat Fire” swept through, burning more than 159,000 acres in northern Tom Green and southern Coke counties. The fi re consumed everything in its path, at one point moving 400 feet per minute. All of Scrub Oaks was consumed, leaving nothing but dead skeletons of cedar and large oaks, and destroying fences along the way.
Recovery and improving the landscape Stone began working with the NRCS’s Environ- mental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) after the
August 2016 The Cattleman 93
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