「小牧場」放牧による和牛生産

Keeping of Japanese Black Haired Cattle, especially for the benefit of getting calves, during the grass-grown season is of two method. One is intensive dry lot feeding and the other is extensive grazing. Recently, in Japan's Chiigoku mountainious district a grazing method, the grazing land is being afforestated remarkably. On the other hand, calves are being required for their more and faster growing.

Now that, corresponding to the above-mentioned trend, KOMAKIBA (grazing on the afforestated land - a new foresd-grassland of the grazing system-) has come to appear. This paper is the first report on the its research. The results are summarized as follows:

1. The cattle are grazed mostly through 2 to 10 years on the afforestated land for a sow timber (red wood or cypress), privatly owned in general.

2. Grazing land is devided into a few blocks by fencing and cattle are grazing rotationally.

3. The cattle are grazing with individual farm severally. Heads of grazing per farm are 4~5, and the stocking rate is 1.2 or 1.0 head per hectare.

4. The degree of intensity of this system is intermediate between the intensive dry lot feeding and the extensive grazing.

5. There is no improvement yet in a grass growth.

6. Advantage
(1) The vegetation-stand on the forest land with young growth is more productive than the treeless land.
(2) Since the cattle willingly feed on weeds and leaves of bush under trees. Necessity for weeding and cutting out are decreased.
(3) Excrements of the grazing cattle make more fertile soil and the soil gives more stimulus to a tree growth.
(4) The possiblity of watch and management of the cattle in grazing is highly expected.

7. Disadvantage
(1) There is some tramplings, but it is smoll.
(2) Since there is no sufficient feed for calves' desire on the afforestated land. Some concentrate feed stuff is demanded additionary.
In short, grazing system by KOMAKIBA makes promote a growth of cattle, saves a forestry works, and faciliates a tree growth. Conseqently, both the cattle and trees on the KOMAKIBA display the effects of supplementality with one another.

8. Some proved points that go deep into the researches.
A. Technique
(1) Behaviors of breeding herd on the KOMAKIBA.
(2) Ecosystemic relationship of the tree crown and vegetation.
(3) Improvement and management of the grass-growth on the afforestated land.
(4) Increasing the efficiency for the management of grazing, and trimming-cut after the annual close of grazing.
(5) Rational partition of the grazing block.
(6) Afforestation planning taking into considerations the cattle grazing.
B. Administration
(1) Production economic relationship between trees and cattle on the afforestated land.
(2) The disclimination of calves being raised for the breeding stock or the fattening.
(3) More superior and more economical method in the production and storage for the roughage feed stuff.
(4) Co-operation or division-labor in the cattle grazing.
(5) Farm accounting and business analysis for the investments into KOMAKIBA.
(6) The long-term schedule for the managerial combination of a forestry with a cattle grazing.
(7) The rational selection and combination for the forest-grass-cultural lands on the cattle farming.
C. Policy
(1) To attach importance to KOMAKIBA system as the powerfull method for the regional development.
(2) Reorganization or revision of existing system of owning and using in the forest and grass land considered for a cattle grazing.
(3) To strengthen the national and individual policies for the development of KOMAKIBA system.