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Show iWi OF RANGE PROBLEMS MADE Maintenance of Herbage Important to Livestock Industry. National Forest Lands Increased In-creased in Productivity in Recent Years. BY AETHUR W. SAMPSON, 'irector, Great Basiu Experiment Station, Sta-tion, United States Forest service. . The foraf3 crop on approximately 10,000,000 acres of land within the ational forests is available annually o the grazing of livestock. (Some idea f the money value of this crop may ie gained from the fact, that during lie grazing season of 19HJ the lands imported approxlmaliely 11,275,467 attic, sheep, goats and swine, In many localities throughout the est, such as in numerous sections of he intcrmountain region, which in-ludes in-ludes Utah, southern Idaho, eastern nd central Nevada, and northwestern Lrizona, the livestock industry is the ii& source of wealth. Naturally this (idustry is dependent upon a pcrma-cnt pcrma-cnt -rt of good range" forage, and lie maintenance and fullest possible u:o f the herbage are therefore of the rflatesl importance both to the indi-idual indi-idual stockman and to tho stock in-list in-list r . Regulation Necessary. Ideal ranj.,' management is the busi-ess busi-ess of cropping the grazing lands in uch a way as to obtain maximum uti-i.ation uti-i.ation and yet retain the lauds in the iphest possible state of productivity. Ij 80 long as there, was nutrient and lalatalde grass ample to maintain all "he stock grarod it was not necessary 0 bestow any special methods of regu-uting regu-uting the use. of the forage crop. Hut this condition did not last long; lic story of the depletion of the native na-tive rauge lands and the corresponding :.isappcaranco of the more, nutrient forge for-ge plants is well known, and I he vast Iretches of our once superior public do-.Tain do-.Tain pastures arc now in a seriously '-aw state of productivity, j Oxer a epiarter of a century ago lost of these public domain lands were Mopped far beyond capacity, and what :s now national forest land was no ex-eption. ex-eption. 80 badly overgrazed was tho igli, cool summer range, tho greater rart of which is now included within lie national forests, that the grazing inimals were sent to the winter or desert ranges in such poor condition of t'lcsh that heavy winter losses' were liuost annually the rule. -. For years the re- cgetatiou or improvement im-provement in forage production of hew lands was left to chance and nature's na-ture's beneficent but slow processes, laturc having "all the time there is" uid no particular objecls to subserve. A'ith the original supply of forage largely exhausted on the public domain, grazing privilege on a national forest for-est now is looked upon with considerable consider-able envy. Through the adoption of the indivi-ual indivi-ual grazing permit., Whereby Iho anges were cropped at least somewhat 11 proportion to the carrying capacity ill the lands, the national forest ranges niproved appreciably. However, it. 'Vas not until the results from carefully jlaiined scientific studies had been applied ap-plied that tho forest ranges showed narked improvement. niproved Methods Applied. Once the Virtues of the improved ..nanageuient methods developed were ally demonstrated they were widely Lipplied, the result . being that from 903 to 1920 the forest ranges have teen incieased in productivity from 25 .0 10 per cent, all localities considered. This improvement has been brought, -bout chiefly by correct estimation of ho number of stock the ranges would I'upport; improved methods in handling augo stock; grazing at the proper seasons, sea-sons, development of stock watering ...duces, and by rendering the lauds more '.ccessiblo to grazing animals by tho construction of trails, bridges and other 'nngc improvements. There is still 00m for much improvement, but judg- ng from the rate of recovery of the !iange in a decade of regulated grazing .lie restoration of the lands to their Pristine condition is largely a matter pf tiir .lust how many more stock he national forest ranges will support n 1930 than they will carry now- is difficult to predict, but it is estimated . hat an increase of from 1,5 to 20 per "cut may be expected. lixperiments Important. When one stops to consider the enor-nous enor-nous importance oi the livestock in-lustry in-lustry in thiB country; and especially the large proportion of animals maintained main-tained on ranges in the west, it is o i lent, thnt careful experimentation with '1 view to developing improved moth-ids moth-ids of handling livestock aud of uliliz-ng uliliz-ng the forage crop is quite as important import-ant as is experimentation with a view " incre&se yields of field crops or dher agricultural products. The need for thorough going range and pasture experiments was recognized ! y tho forest service as early as 1907, fivhon investignt ions of a somewhat reneral character were initiated, m In 1913 the need for more intensive work han fornierlv was recognized, and hen, for the first lime in tho, history if grazing iu this country, a forest grazing graz-ing experiment station was established. Owing to tho existence of climatic tnd vegetative conditions, transitional is they were, between those of the lorthwest and the southwest, Utah was .he state decided upon for the location if the experiment station, the Manti Rational forest in central Utah being 1 ho locality selected. 'roblems Inve.stigatcd. TIo station, know-n as the Great Bain Ba-in Forest Kxperiment station, is looat-d looat-d at an elevation of 0000 feel, in the leart of thp cattje and sheep industry f Utah. The problems under investigation investi-gation are essentially concerned with ho methods of re-vegetting and of laintaining the productivity of the auge under the various conditions of .Hmate, soil, and grazing practice, the arryiug capacity of tho various forage ypes, including brush or browse areas, ,tc, the principles developed of which 're applicable to the entire west. Stud-, Stud-, .s are also being conducted with a iew of determining the best forest rv s ractice, including various trials in tree lanting and forest management gen "rally. |
