Winter Pasture Investigations with Beef Calves

In Tennessee the value of winter pasture in the wintering ration for producing slaughter and stocker cattle was unknown. No information was available on the type carcasses that could be produced by a ration involving winter pasture. Other problems which needed investigation were ; cost of producing winter pasture, soil types best suited for winter pasture, size and kind of animals to use, rate of grazing and the effects of varying amounts of moisture and temperature.

Because of the state's wide soil and climatic variation, winter pasture projects were started at four locations of University of Tennessee Agricultural Experiment Stations; namely, Tobacco Experiment Station, Greeneville, Main Experiment Station, Knoxville, Middle Tennessee Experiment Station, Columbia and West Tennessee Experiment Station, Jackson. Projects were started at these stations in the fall of 1949 with the following objectives:

1. To study the use of winter pasture for wintering and finishing calves.

2. To compare the effect of different rations, when fed with winter pasture, to produce slaughter and stocker cattle.

3. To study the reception at Tennessee markets of yearlings carried to a good to choice finish largely on pasture and roughage.

4. To evaluate the market reception and qualities of carcasses from calves fed on silage, hay and concentrates.