Central Sierra Livestock & Natural Resources

An ecological calendar combines ranch-specific ecological and climate conditions with production and economic considerations.

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Flexibility

January 6th, 2025

By Daniel K Macon

Since the millennial drought of 2012-2016, I've developed a habit of periodically checking the U.S. Drought Monitor, especially during our normal rainy season.

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Hello (Again), Central Sierra!

October 2nd, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

As I write this blog post, I'm wrapping up my first official day as the Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor for the UC Cooperative Extension Central Sierra office, based in San Andreas! While I'm new to this office, I feel a bit like I'm coming home again I grew up just to the south outside of...

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Dan Macon standing in front of a flock of sheep.

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Headed South on Highway 49

September 17th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

Writing my last blog post as the Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor for Placer, Nevada, Sutter, and Yuba Counties is bittersweet. When I became the advisor in 2017 (filling Roger Ingram's enormous shoes), I assumed I would stay in this job until I retired. Life had other plans for me.

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A livestock guardian dog watching over a ewe and her lambs.

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The Genetics of Livestock Guardian Dogs (Past and Present)

July 29th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

Folks new to the world of working livestock guardian dogs (LGDs), whether they are producers or dog aficionados, often ask, What's the best breed? or What breed is your dog?

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Accidental Drought

April 9th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

As of this writing, we're on track for a "normal" rainfall year here in Auburn. Even if the rainy season ended with last week's storm, we'll finish the year at 90 percent of our long term annual average.

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Spring 2024 Workshops!

March 25th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

We have several outstanding workshops coming up in the next three weeks! Contact me at dmacon@ucanr.edu or (530) 889-7385 for more information! Livestock Health & Wildfire Webinar (Thursday, March 28 - 6:00pm-7:30pm) - Virtual: Join Extension Veterinarians Dr. Gaby Maier, Dr. Rosie Busch, and Dr.

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Foothill Precipitation and Forage Update - March 2024

March 8th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

A local rancher called this week, and as usual, our conversation turned to grass and moisture conditions (I don't think ranchers and rangeland geeks like me can have a conversation WITHOUT discussing these topics).

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Changes Ahead

February 21st, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

As some of you know, 2023 was an incredibly difficult year for my family and me. My wife of 33 years, Samia, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer last February.

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2024 NAHMS Sheep Study

January 26th, 2024

By Daniel K Macon

Later this month, the USDA's National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) will kick off its fourth national study of the U.S. sheep industry.

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Lighting a prescribed fire to control barb goatgrass

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Rancher's Fire Academy

December 14th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

There's still time to register for our first-ever Sierra Foothills Rancher's Fire Academy! We'll be covering topics like using prescribed fire to control rangeland weeds, planning your own prescribed fire, fire tool basics, ranching hardening, and managing livestock during wildfire.

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Things We Don't Like to Talk About

November 7th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Some of you probably know what my family has experienced over the last 10 months. I won't rehash it all here - if you're interested, I invite you to check out my personal blog at www.flyingmule.blogspot.com. Needless to say, 2023 has been quite a year.

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Rancher Carol Kramer managing barb goatgrass with prescribed fire. Jul 13, 2023.

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Lighting (Rx) Fires in July

September 14th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Barb goatgrass (Aegilops triuncialis L.) is a winter annual grass native to the Mediterranean region and western Asia. According to a UCANR publication, it was introduced to Sacramento and El Dorado Counties via the importation of cattle from Mexico.

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2023 Nevada-Placer-Yuba Livestock Disaster Pass Registration is Open!

May 8th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Ranchers in Placer, Nevada, and Yuba Counties, along with UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) and the County Agricultural Departments from these three counties, have established a Disaster Livestock Access Program to facilitate livestock and human safety before, during, and after wildfire and other emer...

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Cows grazing on rangeland near Lincoln, CA

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We're STILL in a Drought? Seriously?!

May 4th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Fair warning - you might want to file this blog post under the category, "Aren't Ranchers Ever Happy?!" I'll admit - last year, I was worried about warm temperatures, lack of soil moisture, and dried-up stock ponds here in the Sierra Foothills. We'd had the driest January-March ever recorded.

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Cattle grazing on annual rangeland in Western Placer County - March 20, 2023

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An "Average" Year? What's That?!

March 29th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Looking back at more than 20 years of precipitation data I've collected since my family moved to Auburn, I can't say that we've ever had an average year that is, we've never had exactly 32.68 inches of rain. Some years, like 2016-17, we measure quite a bit more than average (62.

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New livestock producers - learning to manage sheep "in all weathers!"

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Cheerful in All Weathers

March 8th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

Raising Livestock on Rangeland is not an Indoor Sport...

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CALFIRE presentation at the 2022 Disaster Livestock Access Pass Training in Browns Valley, CA

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The 2022 Nevada-Placer-Yuba Disaster Livestock Pass Program - An Update

January 10th, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

The Nevada-Placer-Yuba Disaster Livestock Access Pass Program operated for its second year in 2022. This program, available to commercial livestock producers in the three counties, is the first (and so far, only) multi-county program in California.

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What's this Wet Stuff?!

January 3rd, 2023

By Daniel K Macon

After several multi-year droughts over the last decade, I find myself puzzled by the moisture that's been falling from the sky here in Auburn this winter! I find myself even more puzzled by the saturated state of our foothill soils! Over the last several weeks, as I've driven Highway 49 between Aubu...

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Getting Nervous... Again!

October 28th, 2022

By Daniel K Macon

I suppose my obsession with the weather apps on my smartphone started during the 2013-2014 drought. I've always been a weather geek, but during that dry spell, I found myself constantly checking multiple apps to see if one held more hope for moisture than another.

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After the Fire: Resources for Landowners and Land Managers Impacted by the Mosquito Fire

October 25th, 2022

By Daniel K Macon

With full containment of the Mosquito Fire last weekend, residents of Placer and El Dorado Counties have largely returned home and are beginning the difficult process of recovery.

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Livestock and Natural Resources

Welcome to the Central Sierra Livestock and Natural Resources Home Page! Click on the buttons above and below for specific information.

Dan Macon, Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor: I serve as the Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor for the Central Sierra Office (serving El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, and Tuolumne Counties). Previously, I served in the same role for Placer, Nevada, Sutter, and Yuba Counties, and I was an associate specialist in rangeland science and management at UC Davis. My research and extension activities are focused on ranch economics and business management, drought resilience, predator-livestock coexistence, and prescribed grazing. I have a master’s degree in integrated resource management from Colorado State University and a bachelor’s degree in agricultural and managerial economics from UC Davis.

We hold a variety of hands-on, production focused workshops and activities throughout the year. Check out the calendar of events to the right for upcoming events.

Be sure to check out my blog at

http://ucanr.edu/blogs/RanchingintheFoothills/.

You can also follow me on Twitter at @flyingmulefarm or on the UCCE Foothill Sustainable Ranching Facebook page at www.facebook.com/FoothillSustainableRanching/.

To schedule a ranch visit, please call me at (209) 454-8472 or email me at dmacon@ucanr.edu.

To access Roger Ingram's archived newsletters, click on this link.

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