Pasture rule - coupling system:

• Short stocking period and sufficient rest time.
• During the rest phase, the area is consistently not grazed.
• Do not push the pasture too late (10-15 cm growth height) and let it graze well (deeply).
• If possible, bump larger areas in wet weather.  

Table 1: Guidelines for the required number of paddocks depending on the length of grazing in a paddock  

Table 2: Guide values ​​for the required paddock size for 10 animals depending on the grazing time per paddock (ha 10 animals of each category!)

 ¹⁾ roughly corresponds to a mother cow including young cattle in a cow

The deeply grazed paddocks (remaining growth height 3-5 cm) are re-grazed after a consistent resting phase with a new pasture growth height of 10-15 cm or can also be used for mowing (see example in Figure U). Depending on the grass growth, the rest period varies between three and eight weeks. Different numbers of paddocks are therefore required over the course of the year. In spring, it is recommended to overgraze all paddocks and slowly enter the paddock system (sliding transition from short grass to paddock pasture). This is intended to ensure that the grass growth height in the last paddock does not exceed 15 cm when bumped.

Figure 1: Examples of paddock pasture systems over the course of the year (example below: alternation of pasture and mowing)

For 10 dairy cows, a paddock size of around 0.2 hectares is required for a three-day brushing period and hour-long grazing. In this case, 4-6 paddocks are required in the main growth phase and 8-12 paddocks in the autumn. Large amounts of residual feed should be removed after the grazing period with a deep cleaning cut.

Rotational grazing requires at least 6-8 paddocks, which should be as aligned as possible. About 2/3 of the area of ​​the first growth and about 1/3 of the area of ​​the second growth are harvested as winter fodder. During spring overgrazing as well as in late summer and autumn, the entire paddock areas are grazed.

An Excel paddock planner is available to you for preliminary rough planning of the pasture area requirements and the number of paddocks over the course of the grazing season.

Tip: The optimal grass height before entering a new paddock is 10-15 cm. If this is significantly higher, the paddock should be mowed. The grass growth height must be less than 5 cm after leaving the paddock, otherwise more stubble material will build up over the course of the year!

Figure: Optimally used combination of paddock and portion pasture. The arrow marks the entry point into the paddock. By allocating the two opposite portion strips on the 3rd and 4th day of bumping, consistent feed quality is achieved.

Excel feed supply planner available for regular control of the coupling system This allows you to use the weekly growth measurement results of the paddocks to calculate the feed supply ("feed wedge") for paddock grazing and display it as an illustration.

The advantages of paddock pastures lie in the easy controllability of the forage supply by adjusting the size of the plots and the duration of the rotation, or the number of paddocks grazed. When it is dry, paddock pastures are less sensitive (ground shading). Fertilization during the growing season can also be carried out more easily. Especially when the pasture structure is unfavorable (area design, hilly, steep areas), controlled grazing and good distribution of cows on the pasture area is easy to implement. Paddock farming can be easily combined with standard portion grazing.

The disadvantage is the higher risk of kicking injuries and the higher risk of bloating. Stepping damage occurs more easily in paddocks because the number of animals in the area is high. In addition, special attention must be paid to consistent feed quality of the pasture feed. Although this pasture system also has a high frequency of use, the grass is less thickly covered and the scar density is therefore somewhat lower. The material and labor costs (water, fencing, pre-cutting) are higher than with standing pastures.