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The grass is always greener

Photo

Photo by Al Hoch

Greg and Sarah Osinga’s son, John, 6, visits the family’s calf pen on their farm at 3118 Burdick Road in Janesville township.

JANESVILLE TOWNSHIP — Greg Osinga has tried to create a natural environment for his cows.

In exchange, the cows are happy to help with the workload.

Osinga, 35, and his wife, Sarah, are running an intensive rotational grazing operation at 3118 Burdick Road in Janesville Township.

On a managed, intensive grazing farm, cattle “harvest” most of their feed from a pasture rather than being fed on a lot.

“I think it was a little simpler to get started,” Osinga said. “I didn’t have to buy quite as much equipment, and I like the idea of the cow doing more of the work herself, grazing. It strikes me as a more natural environment.”

Osinga founded the 95-acre farm in 2004 after taking classes in Madison at the School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers.

A three-day bike ride to raise money and awareness for the school will finish at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Krusen Grass Farms, owned by Altfrid and Sue Krusenbaum, W3194 County Road D, Elkhorn.

Osinga is milking 50 crossbred dairy cattle and has 50 heifers and steers. So far, things are going pretty well, he said.

Aside from saving money on equipment—the cow acts as her own combine—Osinga thinks intensive grazing lets cows live longer and be healthier.

“On average, cows have a longer production life with less feet problems than in total confinement systems,” Osinga said.

The challenges come more from starting a dairy farm from scratch than from the non-traditional method of rotational grazing.

“We have some financial struggles,” Osinga said. “But more because by starting up our own dairy operation, we came into it with more debt than was best.”

Osinga puts his cows out on a small piece of pasture after each milking.

“I try to give them an appropriate amount of grass for that time period,” Osinga said. “Not so much that they waste it, but not so little that they go hungry.”

The other trick is to give the pasture time to “rest” between grazings, Osinga said.

Managed, intensive grazing is not common in Rock County, Osinga said. He has joined a network of grazing producers in Dane and Green counties.

Osinga’s cows get about 65 percent of their feed from grazing, he said. He buys grain and pays to have his hay baled.

“What a cow harvests herself is much, much less expensive than what is bought and put in front of her,” Osinga said. “But it’s difficult to be 100 percent grazed for their diet. You have to have some purchased feeds or what you grow yourself.”

Osinga learned about managed grazing at the beginning farmers course, which is part of UW-Madison’s Farm and Industry Short Course program. Osinga, a native of southern Illinois, didn’t grow up on a farm, but he did earn a degree in agriculture at Southern Illinois University in 1997, Osinga said.

In 1998, he moved to Rock County and worked on several local farms.

He’s glad to have the opportunity to work on the farm together with his wife.

“I’m certainly glad I made the decision,” Osinga said. “It hasn’t been the easiest thing to do, but I’m committed to it, and I don’t want to quit.”

IF YOU GO

What: The fifth annual Ride to Farm, a three-day bike ride across Wisconsin.

When: Riders will complete their tour at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Krusen Grass Farms, owned by Altfrid and Sue Krusenbaum, W3194 County D, Elkhorn. The event starts Friday at a farm in Outagamie County, and bikers will ride through Appleton, Kewaskum and Oconomowoc.

Why: The event promotes and raises money for the Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers. Part of the UW-Madison’s Farm and Industry Short Course program, the school teaches business planning and pasture-based farm management.

To learn more: Visit the UW Foundation Web site at www.uwfoundation.wisc.edu or the school’s Web site at www.cias.wisc.edu/dairysch.html. Or call Dick Cates at (608) 558-2836.