Burning for Greener Pastures

At Stanley Mayfield’s ranch in southern Tom Green County, Texas, you won’t find many cattle roaming the beautiful rolling hills, but you will see Gemsbok Oryx, Wildebeest, Addax antelope, Impalas, and other exotic animals amongst the large oak trees.

You will also see draws and meadows with lots of red berry Juniper and prickly pear cactus. But Mayfield feels there is too much of it in some places, which is why he has decided to take action against the invasive species.

People come from all over the world to Mayfield’s ranch to hunt over 10 species of exotic animals, as well as trophy white tail deer and turkeys. Mayfield’s goal is to create the best possible habitat the ranch can offer.

Seeking some range management advice, he went to the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office in San Angelo where he met with Rangeland Management Specialist George Clendenin.

Clendenin began working with Mayfield to develop an all-encompassing conservation plan for the wildlife ranch. Clendenin conducted an extensive forage inventory and began determining stocking rate for exotics. He enlisted the help of NRCS Wildlife Biologist Steve Nelle to determine the grazing and browsing breakdowns for each of the 10 exotic species on the ranch.

Mayfield’s ultimate goal is to improve rangeland health by balancing forage supply and animal demand. With Clendenin’s help, Mayfield is learning to “read” his land by studying browse and grazing examples all over the ranch.

When Clendenin visited with Mayfield about the idea of conducting a prescribed burn on his land to help achieve his habitat goals, Mayfield was all for it. Mayfield currently serves as president of the Concho Valley Chapter of the Edwards Plateau Prescribed Burning Association, Inc. (EPPBA), based in Sonora, Texas.

A prescribed burn is a method of using controlled fire to improve the ecology of the land; they are designed to create specific results.

Mayfield and Clendenin developed a burn plan for one of his pastures, with the goal of destroying an infestation of prickly pear that had developed in a draw where he had done mechanical removal of red berry juniper.

“I’m hoping we can get a hot enough fire to thin out this cactus and kill some of the junipers that have already grown back up,” Mayfield said. “Then maybe we’ll get a little rain and grow some grass.”

Warm season burns, such as the one on Mayfield’s ranch, are effective in the summer because warm season vegetation is semi-dormant due to limited moisture and high temperatures. Because warm season burns typically have hotter fires, they can be more effective to manage plants such as cactus and juniper, which tend to hold more moisture in the cooler, wetter months.

Cool season burns tend to burn slower and can accomplish other land management objectives, such as improvement of plant production quality and diversity for both livestock and wildlife.

“I have found fire to be the best range management tool we have ever used for controlling brush,” says Lloyd Whitehead, owner of the Rocking Chair Ranch southeast of San Angelo. “It is cost efficient and benefits both livestock and wildlife.”

Whitehead, who has conducted both cool and warm season burns on his land, serves as vice president of the Concho Valley Chapter Prescribed Burn Association.

As good land stewards, these ranchers know fire is only one tool in an overall management plan and rainfall is a key factor in rangeland recovery after a prescribed burn.

Mayfield is especially hopeful as recent rains have fallen on his pastures. The much needed moisture will aid in the re-growth of desired plants.

Contact

Charles Anderson, Zone Range Management Specialist
3872 Houston Harte Expressway
San Angelo, Texas 76901
Phone: 325-944-0147
Fax: 325-944-1705

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