Forage Production
 |
The Forage Production team works to provide relevant resources and decision tools to support individuals seeking information about forage production considerations for a changing and variable climate. |
The Montana Climate Office (MCO) is leading the development of a cooperative statewide soil moisture and meteorological information system. It is designed to support decision-making in agriculture, range and forested watershed contexts.
This tool was developed and successfully tested in Eastern MT in the 1990s. It is the basis for a proto-type forage forecasting tool that is Montana based. It is based on the principle that forage production depends directly and proportionally on evapotranspiration (ET).
This tool is available now and is coproduced by NRCS & Colorado State University. Grass-Cast is an experimental grassland productivity forecast for livestock producers, NRCS, Extension and other rangeland managers. It is a new way to forecast your county's total biomass production, for the whole growing season, in the Northern Great Plains.