- Author: Stephanie Larson
Valuable forage for livestock and wildlife is often lost on rangelands after wildfires. What should landowners, affected by recent fires, do to migrate the impacts to their rangelands - oak savannas, chaparrals and woodlands, which have undoubtedly lost grass production from recent fires?
The effect the fire has on the resulting vegetation and production can vary based on the timing and intensity of the fire, and the quality, quantity and type of forage and subsequent rainfall.
Estimating Loss
Estimating the cost of such losses cannot be based on traditional grazing rental rates for livestock because the impact of forage production is more for ranching than the impact of grazing. All residual dry matter (RDM) is removed with fire, and the soil profile is disturbed. In addition to the loss of forage, the next 2 years of forage production could be impacted along with the length of adequate forage-growing periods and species competition.
University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) publication 8446 Estimating the Cost of Replacing Forage Losses on Annual Rangeland can be downloaded free of charge to assist with calculating ranch losses and help reporting to the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA). A UCCE advisor can assist with completing forage loss calculations and reporting requirements to FSA. In addition, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) offers financial assistance in the form of a cost share (EQIP) for reseeding rangeland. This program is valuable because it provides enough financial help to make the practice economical.
When calculating losses most often the equivalent in hay is considered in monetizing the forage loss value (1 ton of forage lost = the cost of a ton of hay). USDA releases a weekly Direct Hay Report that can be used to determine the cost of replacement forage. This is usually the most practical method, but there are other costs to consider.
Assistance from the FSA and NRCS can assist landowners in replacing forage loss, livestock, and fences. Check with our local FSA county office to make sure that all production acreage is on file so that it is covered, and that all applicable programs are signed up for. In many cases, there are deadlines to file for assistance that are put in place once losses occur.
Seeding
A fire, one occurring late summer or early fall, can burn the RDM remaining following the grazing season. With RDM burned, there is a higher chance of erosion after the first rains, especially if early rains are heavy. Erosion control is essential to prevent or control water and soil erosion on lands, especially those with steeper slopes. Effective erosion control techniques will inhibit surface runoff and are important measures to prevent water pollution and soil loss.
The type of seeding depends on your resource goals. If you want to reseed following a fire, contact our UCCE office to assist in designing the most appropriate mix. Site conditions, management, and rainfall vary between properties which can change appropriate seeding recommendations. It is worth getting this part right, otherwise the effort may be wasted. It is generally recommended to use a blend containing a mix of annuals, which will germinate early and assist with holding the soil, along with perennials which are long lived grasses that are productive, but require specific management for success.
Seeding is best be done immediately prior to fall rains as grass fires don't provide enough ash for broadcasted seed to make good seed to soil contact allowing for seed to be adequately covered. No till drilling seed is best or if broadcasting, cover the seed with a harrow after broadcasting. Broadcast seeding too early can results in birds eating the seed prior to germination. Flying seed on with an airplane should be done just prior to rain.
If an establishment of desirable forage species already existed, seeding may not be necessary since grass fires that occur in summer or later should have little effect on mature seed laying on the soil surface. This would negate much of the benefit in seeding; however, production will still be less due to the lack of soil cover, particularly if it's a dry winter. Fires that occurred in higher brush densities can get hot enough to affect seed on the soil surface. Their advantage is that they do provide a nutrient rich seed bed and source of cover for seed to fall into. Reseeding these areas can be successful by dropping seed into the white ash. Because weed competition is usually eliminated by these hot fires, and fertility is high, these seedings have been successful in the past.
Hydro Seeding
Hydro seeding (or hydraulic mulch seeding, hydro-mulching, hydra seeding) is a planting process that uses a slurry of seeds and mulch. It is often used as an erosion control technique on construction sites, as an alternative to the traditional process of broadcasting or sowing dry seed, or on recently burned areas, on sites that have high erosion potential following a fire.
Links
- UCCE Sonoma email: cesonoma@ucanr.edu
- NRCS Petaluma office: (707) 794-1242 ext 107
- FSA Petaluma office: (707) 664-8593
- Author: Karen Giovannini
![Match.GrazeLogo Match.GrazeLogo](http://ucanr.edu/blogs/Rangeland/blogfiles/74319.png)
Matchmaking grazing animals with grass and rangelands
Professional grazing of overgrown rangelands, pastures and parcels is proven to reduce the spread of dangerous and costly wildfires.
Do you have land but no livestock and feel concerned about fire fuels on your property? Or are you a livestock owner that can provide a grazing service and/or need land and forage for your animals? Match.Graze can help.
Match.Graze is a free online platform connecting landowners statewide who want grazing animals to livestock owners with animals that can provide vegetation management services, created by UC Cooperative Extension.
From small semi-rural communities to large open spaces, grazing can provide an affordable solution to the inevitable accumulation of fire fuels. Grazing can be more cost-effective for reducing fuels on landscapes that are too steep, rocky or remote for mowing or chemical treatment, or in the wildland-urban interface where burning is not an option.
“I've noticed on several fires, including extreme fires, the fence lines where the fire just stopped. And the one variable, the one difference, was grazing,” said Marshall Turbeville, CAL FIRE battalion chief.
Cattle, sheep, goats and other grazing animals all have different roles to play in grazing for fire fuel reduction. If you want to use livestock to help reduce fire risk in your area, visit MatchGraze.com.
“Every property is different and requires thoughtful consideration of how it should best be grazed,” said Stephanie Larson, director of UCCE in Sonoma County, UCCE livestock and range management advisor and co-creator of the livestock-land matchmaking service. “UC Cooperative Extension is here to serve, put Match.Graze to work and let's prevent catastrophic fire while helping landowners and agriculture.”
To find a local grazing partner, visit MatchGraze.com,
set up a free account, create a pin on the map and make a match.
![MG-UCCE-Cattle-03 MG-UCCE-Cattle-03](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/74320.jpg)
- Author: Stephanie Larson
- Contributor: Karen Giovannini
Here is a summary of some of the work our office is doing during shelter in place.
Fire & Resiliency
UCCE Sonoma is building on the foundational work of other county departments such as Sonoma Water and Permit Sonoma, by providing outreach to private landowners to address forest health, vegetation management and fire fuel reduction.
Lake Sonoma Decision Support System: Development of an online geo spatial reporting tool to help landowners assess:
Match.Graze: development of an online database that connects land owners and grazers.
- Filmed educational videos
- Creating website
- Current status: roll out in early June.
Good Fire Alliance: partnership with Audubon Canyon Ranch to assist landowners in managing fire fuels through prescribed burning on private and publicly owned lands. The following prescribed fires are in the active planning stage:
- 100+ acre burn unit at Cooley Ranch near Lake Sonoma; late May.
- Sonoma Ecology Center is planning a burn at Van Hoosear Wildflower Preserve; late May - early June.
- Bodega Pastures spanning several weekends in October/November.
Resilient Landscapes: Master Gardener collaborative project to:
- Host Firewise webinars
- Develop materials for Fire Safe Sonoma's Living with Fire brochure and webpage resource.
- Post Fire Survival/Mortality: research project to develop a quick and simple post-fire tree survival reference tool to aid with triage of burned landscapes.
- Working with local fire departments to homogenize fire-resilient landscape standards.
Oak Tree Health: organized, hosted and presented:
- California Oak Workshop with science based oak health information. Over 500 participants.
- Sudden Oak Death Blitz pivoted to online, educating and distributing 93 test kits to the public.
Food Systems & Security
Master Gardeners: ![Grow Grow](http://ucanr.edu/blogs/UCCESonoma/blogfiles/71226.png)
![Grow Grow](http://ucanr.edu/blogs/UCCESonoma/blogfiles/71226.png)
- “Stay Home Grow Food” series has reached over 350 people with videos plus resources via an extensive social media campaign.
- Gardener Sense program delivered by video conference to help homeowners reduce water use.
- Master Gardener's are pivoting their classes to webinars.
Food Distribution
The value of a strong, connected local food system to sustain the resiliency of our communities has never been more clear.
Coordinating with Sonoma County Food System Alliance and strategizing for a series of video conferences on longer term emergency food response planning & strengthening the local food supply chain looking to local production & distribution as part of meeting food need.
- Meeting on March 23 with over 50 emergency food responders to strategize on coronavirus response.
- Chairing the Community Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD) Food group. Continue to collaborate with the group to meet the needs of emergency food organizations.
- Sonoma County Food Recovery Coalition
UCCE used connections to secure donations of over 12,000 wine boxes to
Redwood Empire Food Bank for boxing and distributing food.
Local Meat Supplies: Mobile Slaughter Unit (MSU)
UCCE is working with local livestock producers in Marin/Sonoma to create a business plan for an MSU which can assist local livestock producers with a local, safe option for processing livestock.
- Applying for USDA grant to assist these producers to determine the functionality of keeping it in production.
- Will develop educational and management strategies to ensure economic security for small-scale livestock producers.
Integrated Pest Management
- Collaborating with UC Davis researchers to continue projects that address soil and fungal pests that shorten the lifespan of vineyards.
Critical research on the newly detected invasive Mediterranean oak borer (pictured) found in valley oak in eastern Sonoma County. Collaborators include Cal Fire, US Forest Service, and CDFA.
Youth
4-H youth educational programs have continued to engage youth and adults with online technologies.
- Developed fact sheets to support volunteer educators in delivering online programs available at Youth Development Resources
- Short-term educational programs have been implemented reaching elementary-aged children with science and art content.
- Ongoing programming has been transitioning online focused for teens around college and career readiness (Juntos 4-H) and youth participatory action research.
Annual Sonoma 4-H Open House and ChickenQue transitioned from a full-day chicken BBQ lunch fundraiser to a radiothon.
- Partnered with local radio The Bull 93.7 to do a radiothon.
- The station promoted 4-H with interviews of staff, volunteers, and youth.
- The event also served as a public awareness campaign showcasing the program's legacy helping youth reach their full potential.
Economic Viability
Climate Change
Working with local dairy and livestock producers to apply for grants from CDFA to reduce greenhouse gases:
- Alternative Manure Management Program
- Healthy Solis Program
If funded, these grants would bring over $5 million to reduce GHG by 4,154 MTeCO2
Support Local Producers
- Working with local creameries and FEED Sonoma, to develop a dairy CSA box option.
- Revisit the County Lands for Food Production program initiated by UCCE to increase the availability of county owned land to communities, farmers and ranchers.
- Find Local Food & Aid the Community
Outreach ![Follow us @UCCESonoma Follow us @UCCESonoma](http://ucanr.edu/blogs/UCCESonoma/blogfiles/71220.png)
![Follow us @UCCESonoma Follow us @UCCESonoma](http://ucanr.edu/blogs/UCCESonoma/blogfiles/71220.png)
Providing information and updates.
Coronavirus Resources webpages provides information for agricultural enterprises focusing on financial resources, Ag worker safety and food safety and includes resources for where to find food from local farms and for opportunities to volunteer.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and alerts.
Follow our social media posts about coronavirus grant opportunities, resources, workshops and more on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @UCCESonoma.
/span>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h2>/h2>/h2>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h2>/h2>![SOD Blitz Zoom collage SOD Blitz Zoom collage](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/71222.jpg)
- Author: Stephanie Larson
- Editor: Karen Giovannini
Producers experiencing this damage may be eligible for assistance.
Crane flies, Tipula oleracea, are once again present on Sonoma and Marin County's range, pasture and cultivated lands this season. I have seen their presence only 3 times during my career, but when in large numbers, the done significant damage. The seasonably warm, average 68 degrees, November, followed by a December that lack proper chilling days, resulting in the survival of excessive Crane fly larvae. Weather conditions have led to current infestations on range, pasture and cultivated lands. Larvae are usually killed when a hard frost occurs during the winter season. During this season, we did not experience an adequate frost to kill the larvae; resulting in a large larvae survival.
Larvae winter in the soil, and when the weather warms, they resume feeding (and damaging fields).
Larvae are consuming forage at an alarming rate. During the day larvae mostly stay underground but on damp, warm nights they come to the surface to feed above ground parts of many plants. The larvae vary in size, but at maturity are 1 to 1 ½ inches long. Producers are reporting many areas, completely denuded of forage. In areas affect, there 100% loss. Around mid-May, larvae wriggle to the surface and the adults emerge; there is one generation a year. The larvae are the damaging stage of this pest (Figure 2).
"This is why we need Cooperative Extension; they came out to assess the damage to our silage field and quickly determined the cause of the problem. They provided assistance and support to reduce the impact of our forage losses." Jennifer Beretta, Beretta Family Organic Dairy.
Identify
To determine if these patches are from larvae infestations, dig at the edge of bare ground and grass, 1-2 inches below the surface, larvae will usually be found at the base of the vegetative layer (thatch) or in the soil just beneath the plants. They will be anywhere from ½ to 1 inches in length.
Control
Control options are limited, especially if the land is under organic production. Beneficial nematodes can be spread on the land to reduce the larvae infestations. Unfortunately, this method results in only 50% control. Organic sprays can also be used, but their efficacy has not be researched in California. Discing bare ground might expose larvae to predators such as birds and predaceous ground beetles and other natural causes. The use of chickens might also be effective if they are able to scratch the ground to get the larvae.
Bare patches of ground can be seeded, if done early. Given it is so late in the growing season, reseeding with annual species, to prevent weed infestations or soil erosion, will be the best option. You can graze the silage crop in order to recoup forage losses.
Assistance
All affected producers should contact the Farm Service Agency, Cecilia Medina, ana.medina@usda.gov, 707-644-8593, on programs for forage losses. The Emergency Livestock Assistance Program (ELAP), is available to producers when forage losses can be attributed to weather up to 180 days per year. Weather is the cause for the infestation of Tipula oleracea infestation (see table below). Contact Cecilia as soon as possible; she can assist in filing a notice of loss. Their office is located at 1301 Redwood Way, Petaluma.
January 2020 |
Avg. Temps 58/37| Rainfall total of 1.94 (Santa Rosa, CA) |
December 2019 |
Avg. Temps 57/42 | Rainfall total of 7.01 (Santa Rosa, CA) |
November 2019 |
Avg. Temps 68/36 | Rainfall total of 1.47 (Santa Rosa, CA) Another Frost Warning was issued on Thanksgiving night: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/local/10387442-181/freeze-warning-issued-for-north?sba=AAS |
October 2019 |
On October 30, 2019 a Frost Advisory was issued in Sonoma County; https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/10240107-181/frost-advisory-issued-as-parts?sba=AAS |
If you are under organic certification, contact your local certifier. They need to know that you are experiencing a forage loss emergency.
If you need additional assistance, field visit or support letter of loss from UCCE, please contact me, at slarson@ucanr.edu or Randi Black, rablack@ucanr.edu
Additional Information
UC IPM Crane Fly Fact Sheet
/h3>/table>/h3>/h3>/h3>![Crane fly larvae. Photo by Stephanie Larson. Crane fly larvae. Photo by Stephanie Larson.](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/66101.jpg)
![Crane Fly Adult I-DP-TIPU-AD Crane Fly Adult I-DP-TIPU-AD](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/66105.jpg)
- Author: Steven M. Worker
- Editor: Karen Giovannini
Over 350 people attended the Youth Agriculture and Animal Science Field Day held on February 8, 2020 at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds. The purpose was to provide agricultural education to youth (and their adult leaders, teachers, and mentors) who raise, care, breed, show, and market animals; raise, grow, or farm plants or fibers; and/or care about agriculture.
The event was co-hosted by UC Cooperative Extension and the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds and Event Center. A keynote was provided by Dr. Temple Grandin, Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. Workshops covered a variety of topics including science of wildland fire (Hannah Bird); building and enhancing the client-veterinarian relationship (Randi Black); communicating the value of agriculture and animal science at public exhibitions (Dayna Ghirardelli and Amy Houseman); embracing working landscapes: impacts of agriculture on climate change (Stephanie Larson); basic husbandry and disease prevention in backyard poultry (Maurice Pitesky); enhancing awareness of agricultural career opportunities (Sonoma-Marin Farm Bureau's young farmers and ranchers); There's a horse in the melon patch! The joys and pains of integrating livestock into vegetable cropping systems (Stuart Schroeder, Alda Pires, & Vince Trotter); and supporting positive animal welfare practices (Martin Smith).
Post-event evaluation results were positive!
- 96% agreed they would attend the field day again.
- 96% will recommend the field day to a friend or colleague.
- 97% agreed the field day was an effective learning experience.
- 98% agreed they improved their knowledge of an agricultural-related topic.
- 95% agreed that their educational workshop was valuable in helping them learn about agriculture.
Highlight video: