Eastern/Interlake Manitoba Grazing Clubs

Welcome to the Eastern/Interlake Manitoba Grazing Club Page

Interested in learning about fencing practices, bale grazing, intensive grazing management, holistic management, etc.? Well, Grazing Clubs are the answer. Attend free meetings throughout the year, learn from the experts, and see the actual activities in practice during ranch tours. Clubs in Manitoba now total 31 with a new club currently developing in Morden, Manitoba (2007).

Read below to see what some Eastern Manitoba clubs have been doing over the past year.

Check out our Upcoming Events page to see if there’s a tour or event you’re interested in attending.

If you would like more information or are interested in joining a Club, please refer to the following table to contact a Grazing Club Coordinator or a MAFRI representative.

Eastern/Interlake Grazing Clubs Contacts

Eastern / Interlake Clubs	Grazing Club Name	Grazing Club Coordinator	MAFRI Contacts
.	.	.	.
Arborg	Arborg Grazing Club	.	Dean Stoyanowski (204) 376-3301 dean.stoyanowski@gov.mb.ca
Beausejour	Aggasiz Grazing Club	.	.
Fisher Branch	Fisher Branch Grazing Club	.	Dan Roche (204) 372-6526 dan.roche@gov.mb.ca
Stonewall	South Interlake Land Management Association	.	Stan Stadnyk (204) 467-4702 stan.stadnyk@gov.mb.ca
Vita	SPADA	.	.
.	Peguis Grazing Club	.	Dan Roche (204) 372-6526 dan.roche@gov.mb.ca

Past Events

2007 Eastman Provincial Pasture Tour

July 25th and 26th, 2007

Many of the Eastern Grazing Club members attended the Eastman Provincial Pasture Tour. Highlights from the stops are contained within the following narrative:

University of Manitoba – La Broquerie Site

Dr. Don Flaten provided a site overview and description of the combined effort required to conduct integrated research investigating the relationships between microorganisms, soil nutrient, plant and animal productivity. Dr. Kim Ominski provided an overview of the forage and animal productivity, and how greenhouse gas emissions were measured over the previous three years of research conducted at the site. Dr. Mario Tenuta gave a brief lecture on soil dynamics, nutrient loading, utilization, carbon sequestration and green house gas net effect. Dr. Denis Krause shared his wealth of microbiological knowledge in regards to the possibilities for cross contamination of modified organisms

from hog manure to grazing animals, contributions to microbial antibiotic resistance and impacts upon ground water sources.

Brush Management – An Aerial Perspective

Ken Kennedy (DOW Agro) and Reg Friesen (Prairie Sky Aviation) showcased an area that had been cleared mechanically and followed up with an aerial application of chemical to control suckering and regrowth. Reg provided some practical tips for producers to consider when contemplating using aerial spraying as a tool for brush management.

Trevor provided an overview of their operation, focusing on minimizing the labor requirement for their 500 cows, and their experience with oats and millet for swath grazing.

During the evening, tour participants were offered the opportunity to take a guided tour of Manitoba Hydro’s Seven Sister’s Generating Station.

In addition, solar powered watering stations were set up at PR Farms where participants could view several different watering systems up close in operation, and several different farm built tools for making fencing easier.

The morning of July 26th, found everyone on the road again, heading for Ile des Chenes and Nyhoff’s Dairy. Albert, John and Henry exposed the group to a generational transfer in process, as evidenced by Albert’s deference to his sons in answering questions about the day to day activities which occur on the 400 cow dairy utilizing perennial ryegrass and alfalfa grass pasture for a substantial component of the summer feeding regime.

The next stop occurred at the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s Tall Grass Prairie Preserve where participants were encouraged to learn traits specific to vegetation present in the Tall grass prairie ecosystem.

The final stop of the tour was Evergreen Land & Cattle Co. where Robert Krentz told the story of his journey from farmer to cow calf producer to management intensive grazing grasser operation.

Trevor & Walter Panych

Robert Krentz, Evergreen Land & Cattle Co.

Nyhoff Dairy