For many grassland managers brush management is the costliest of all the management options. Those operators that have a substantial outside income are, as a rule, the only ones that can afford to ‘Control the Brush’, without the help of various government ‘help’ programs. Regardless of the source of money, understanding why the brush is an ever-increasing problem, despite the long-term efforts of ‘controlling’ it, is essential to developing a viable program of brush management. Long term continuous-sometimes heavy grazing, loss of the fire regime and perhaps the ever-changing climate are all factors in creating the brush issues many face on rangeland. Perhaps the combination of these ‘causes’ creates a multiplying factor to the brush issue.

The first thing a rangeland manager can do to change this paradigm is to be certain he has adapted an effective graze-rest program so the plants can survive and flourish after the brush management plan is initiated. The importance of creating this grazing management process PRIOR to the brush management practice cannot be over emphasized. The results of such a program have been shown to be dramatic.

Stay tuned as in the following weeks we will discuss several brush management issues both good and perhaps not so good.

The photo below shows even with heavy cover of brush, some grass plants are established. When a good grazing program is established prior to removing brush those grass plants are given the opportunity to flourish. Making the brush removal effort effective in grassland improvement.

THE BETTER IT GETS THE FASTER IT GETS BETTER