Traditional Pasture and Hay Meadow - Under Rated and Disappearing Habitat

Pasture and hay meadow has a value as farmland, but its biodiversity needs to be taken into account, as that is how the ecosystem remains stable ecologically. A pasture or hay meadow with high biodiversity is resilient after a disaster and provides ecosystem services to humanity. A diversity of pastures and hay meadows can be important in meeting the challenges of climate change and agro-ecological transition.

Sheep grazing in a natural grassland field with access to the woodland edge.

Farmers should not just focus on yield, but they should take into account how semi-natural permanent grasslands with a diverse flora can be more flexibly managed. Grazing animals find such pasture palatable and it is beneficial to the animals health and improves the quality of their milk, cheese and meat. Studies show how a site high in biodiversity functions better in terms of the use of resources such as water, light and minerals. This biodiversity is at the heart of a site's ability to recover from an extreme climate event and is important for farmers in terms of their ability to maintain production.

 

Aubrac cattle, a heritage breed, in traditional bocage pasture. Bocage everywhere is at risk of being drained and ploughed.

Farmers have an enormous influence on local ecosystems by their choices of land management. For example, fertilization favours competitive vigorous and productive species, but discourages species diversity, causing the disappearance of slow growing species or those of small size. Extensive (as opposed to intensive) farm management and husbandry systems favour a diversity of habitats and the presence of species that are not demanding of nutrients, often less productive but allowing for different market opportunities because production peaks at different times. Different types of pasture can complement one another and create opportunities for the farmer.

 

Solognote sheep, a heritage breed, grazing natural grassland as part of the conservation management of a nature reserve.

Pastures are sustainable if there is a good match between the plant community, the environment and the soil. With temporary pastures the challenge is to maintain the balance of species sown for as long as possible so that they are make good grazing for as long as possible. Usually after about 4 or 5 years these sorts of temporary pastures have decreased in quality. For permanent semi-natural grasslands which are managed more extensively, the challenge is to maintain the ecosystem and the highest possible level of biodiversity. 

A small flock of sheep in a semi-natural grassland pasture.

The point of pasture management on a farm is to ensure the quantity and quality of the grass is at its peak at the time the stock needs it. If the farmer concentrates on the nutritive value of a pasture, with low biodiversity, the pasture is often of high nutritional value early in the season, but declines rapidly as the species go to seed. In a biodiverse pasture species will peak at different times so it isn't such a 'feast and famine' in terms of nutritive value over the course of the first cycle of vegetation, from April to June. This gives flexibility to the grazier. A diversity of pastures allows for fluctuations in quality to be managed and the deficiencies in one to be compensated for with elements of another. The farmer can be assured of pasture despite the climate fluctuations. The challenge is to understand each of these pastures and be able to react and anticipate situations to secure the farm forage system, using stocking rates, rotations, and active intervention to keep the grass growing if necessary.

This type of pasture management is complex and in industrial farming models is considered an operational difficulty to be avoided.

Flat open natural herb and flower rich calcareous grassland, mown periodically for hay. This parcel has been ploughed for growing arable crops since I took this photo.

INRAE, the national agronomy research institute is working on supporting and educating farmers so they have the skills to manage their pasture sustainably. They particularly want to encourage the regeneration of pasture by sowing native grass seeds. Part of the skillset is the knowledge to be able to manage a mixture of old and young pastures. Farmers should value their old pasture as a reservoir of heritage species allowing their dispersal throughout a mosaic of mixed pasture and creating pockets of high biodiversity.