Tool 5.5 - Native pasture assessment

Module Index

Module 1 - planning

Module 2 - wool

Module 3 - meat

Module 4 - people

Module 5 - NRM

Module 6 - soil

Module 7 - pasture

Module 8 - grazing

Module 9 - genetics

Module 10 - more lambs

Module 11 - sheep health

Determining the rating

Determine the native pasture health rating that corresponds to the number of ‘true’ scores recorded for each paddock or patch you assessed. Indicate the rating at the bottom of the Native Pasture Assessment Form.

The ratings and the comments below relate to paddocks of native pasture where either:

There are no ‘improvement’ options either because the paddock is not suited to more intensive land use (cropping or improved pastures), or regulations in your state regarding the disturbance of native vegetation prevent options other than retaining the native pasture.

There are other land use options, but you wish to retain the paddock as native pasture for personal, production and/or environmental benefits.

12–16 ‘true’ observations = green

This native pasture is in excellent condition and should continue to provide a consistent contribution to the farm’s feed supply under most circumstances. The pasture is a significant conservation resource and should be quite resilient to climatic and management shocks. There are few weeds or non-native pasture species and the paddock shows very few signs of overgrazing or other degradation. Some possible suggestions for this paddock include:

Celebrate your success! Invite your local landcare group to visit this example of native pastures making a valuable contribution to both production and conservation.

Above all, the primary response must be to keep doing most of what you have been doing because it has resulted in a pasture that is in excellent condition.

Look at any ‘false’ scores and see what can be done to turn them into a ‘true,’ eg, if the paddock is not connected to other areas of native pasture or native bushland, then a vegetation corridor/windbreak might be appropriate.

Continue to monitor the pasture to ensure it does not decline, and above all, avoid overgrazing or major fertiliser inputs as these can rapidly destabilise and degrade the pasture.

7–11 ‘true’ observations = orange

This native pasture is showing some signs of decline and instability and some of the important elements of a healthy native pasture are missing. Because the overall condition of the native pastures is still quite good, the area can still deliver environmental benefits to the farm, but needs some changes to its management to increase these benefits. As the site condition is still good, any management improvements to rehabilitate the pasture should be effective in both the short and longer term.

As over-grazing is the most common cause of ‘decline’ of the native species in native pastures, it is likely that this site is being too heavily grazed. The most appropriate response will depend on the ‘false’ scores and on the balance you seek between the farm’s environmental values (by turning the False scores to True) and the feed supply, eg, if the pasture is a mixture of native species and improved pasture species (grasses and legumes), you might be very happy with paddock’s current condition. If improved environmental outcomes are your main aim, then some general suggestions include:

Look at the ‘false’ scores and see what can be done to turn them into ‘true’, eg, if the site has active erosion, or a significant weed burden, then some control strategy will be needed (see procedure 5.3).

Step 1 is almost always to reduce the grazing pressure. If the paddock is set stocked, either reduce the stocking rate, or move to a rotational grazing system and include some long rests (see procedure 8.3 in Turn Pasture into Product). If the farm’s feed supply is plentiful, rest the paddock completely for a whole season (spring is often best) and then assess it again before contemplating a more significant intervention.

Reduce the grazing pressure when the native species you want to encourage are setting seed,and increase the pressure when any undesirable plants are most susceptible to grazing (see tool 7.5 in Grow More Pasture).

If the paddock fertiliser regime is increasing the number and growth of annual clovers, grasses and exotic weeds, then reducing the fertiliser rate will help stabilise the pasture.

If the paddock is very variable and/or large, consider subdivision (see procedure 8.3 in Turn Pasture into Product) and/or water point placement (see procedure 5.3) to improve pasture utilisation and to increase your grazing management options.

0 - 7 ‘true’ observations = red

This native pasture is showing serious signs of decline and instability and many of the important elements of a healthy native pasture are missing. The area has undergone extensive modification from its original state and may still be in decline, with over-grazing and perhaps over-fertilising being the likely drivers of the pasture decline from an environmental perspective.

If the pasture is a useful mixture of productive introduced and native species, with few true weeds, the rating might be ‘red’ because of the reduced native content, but you might be very happy with the paddock from a production perspective. The most appropriate response will depend on the ‘false’ scores and on the balance you seek between the farm’s environmental values (by turning the False scores to True) and the feed supply. If improved environmental outcomes are your main aim, then some general suggestions include:

As the paddock has a low score from a environmental perspective, it is best to seek local advice before taking any significant action as there might be well established, local ‘recipes’ for this type of pasture in this condition.

Despite the above, the first step is almost always to reduce the grazing pressure because this is a low cost option.

If the paddock is set stocked, then reduce the stocking rate, or move to a rotational grazing system (see procedure 8.3 in Turn Pasture into Product) and include some long rests.

If the paddock is rotationally grazed, then reduce the time sheep spend in the paddock, try to coincide grazing with weak points in the life cycle of the components of the pasture you are seeking to suppress (see tool 7.5 in Grow More Pasture), and/or increase the rest period.

If the paddock is very variable and/or large, consider subdivision and/or water point placement to improve pasture utilisation and to increase your grazing management options.

If the farm feed supply is plentiful, then rest the paddock for a couple of seasons and then assess it again before contemplating a more significant intervention.

The paddock might benefit from seed and some fertiliser if it is dominated by annual weeds and has bare ground in summer. Seek local advice before proceeding with this level of intervention as it is easy to further destabilise the pasture.