3-18 IAN Enviro Cheatgrass

 Nevada study says livestock eat dry cheatgrass. That’s good for the environment in many ways. I’m DS. “The notion that animals don’t eat dry cheatgrass is incorrect,” said Barry Perryman, an associate professor of rangeland ecology and member of the BLM’s Northeastern Resource Advisory Council. He continued that “Our experiment showed that once the seeds fell off the plants, the cheatgrass became palatable andthe protein content and energy of cheatgrass in the fall is at least as good, if not better, than perennial grasses.”

But there’s another benefit and that’s environmental. First dry cheatgrass fuels wildfires in the wilderness of the West. If cows eat it, it promotes the growth of native perennial grasses. Many environmental groups oppose ranchers being allowed to graze their cows on public lands and Range Specialist Wally Butler chipped in with this after I mentioned these potential environmental benefits: “No question. There’s plenty of data to contradict the naysayers. There’s lots of opportunities that come with proper grazing.”