I am planning on growing some feed for animals. Of course I have small acreage to work with. Some of what I plan is: Broom corn, sunflowers, mangels, corn. I also plan to divide my pasture into three sections. By dividing the pasture I hope to grow corn or oats or soybeans and then turn various animals into it for grazing. This way they can feed themselves and also fertilize. I am thinking of growing more than one type of crop there. Maybe Corn underplanted with mangels and beans. Has anyone experimented with this any?

Little Bit Farm

-- Little bit Farm (littlebit@farm.com), November 26, 2001

Answers

Yes, and no. I don't have the acreage to plant fields of crops for my goats and sheep to graze, but I work on a vegetable farm and I bring home a lot sloppy seconds, parts of plants that people don't eat, and excess produce. I have found that some things that fall in the category of "things that people don't eat" shouldn't. Did you know that the ribs in the leaves of cauliflower plants are delicious? They are sweetest near the base. They can be a little tough there, but they are great to chew on in the field. (My goats and sheep agree with my taste as well!) I am planting mangle beets for the first time this year, so I will be experimenting a little on this idea myself. My goats are quite fond of beets, so I think the mangles will go over well. They should store better than regular beets since they are larger (less surface area for moisture loss).

-- Sheryl in Me (radams@sacoriver.net), December 09, 2001.