Miguel S. Castillo, Associate Professor, Crop and Soil Sciences Department, North Carolina State University, North Carolina

Liliane Severino da Silva, Assistant Professor, Animal and Veterinary Science Department, Clemson, South Carolina

A community of practice is defined as a group of people who share a common concern, a set of problems, or an interest in a topic and who come together to fulfill both individual and group goals. With the support of the North Carolina Cattlemen’s Association and the extension systems from both Carolinas (North and South), five producers and two extension agents from North Carolina teamed up and traveled to meet with counterparts in South Carolina during late August 2024. Both groups are part of two different climate-smart projects in each state. The main goal of the visit was to learn from each other and discuss management practices in pasture-based livestock systems.

A summary written by the North Carolina Extension Agents follows:

Our first stop was at Yon Angus in Ridge Spring, SC, where Kevin Yon showed us fields planted to annual forages grazed under irrigation. These diverse pastures were rotationally stocked with yearling heifers. Kevin also shared a neat approach to develop pastures, or silvopastures. Their approach consisted of thinning tree stands by removing pine trees mostly while leaving a decent amount of good deciduous trees to provide shade for the grazing livestock. Then, they would go in and forestry mulch the stumps and clean up the ground. After that, they used a three-season annual rotation before seeding a perennial forage. It was a very practical and conservative way to keep topsoil in place and develop high quality pastures.

Our next stop was at Don Jackson’s farm, Pompey’s Rest, in Ware Shoals, SC. Don shared with us his paddock system and information on how to decide to move cattle from paddock to paddock. He also showed us some forest areas that he was converting to silvopasture. Don’s way was a little different. He was leaving the stumps in place and letting the cattle and a small herd of goats manage the brush and turn it into a pasture without any “back-breaking work”. He plans to stump some areas so he can see the difference. Don plans to add legumes to his pastures, plant native grasses, and add more fencing infrastructure for better management of livestock and grazing. Don lent our group a wealth of knowledge on the process of being a regenerative farmer along with the challenges he faced as well as rewards along the way.

Our final stop was at Reed Edwards’ FoxPipe Farm in Laurens, SC. Reed has a successful hay operation where he grows alfalfa-novel endophyte fescue hay and sericea lespedeza hay. Reed is also an avid grazier and manages cattle and horses which graze together. This practice is known as cograzing. Reed shared with us his extensive knowledge of lespedeza and alfalfa hay production and how to manage them for high productivity while maintaining high nutritive value. Reed walked us through one of the pastures where he manages a diverse annual rotation of forages while sharing the difference in plant selection and why he chooses some species over others. Reed also showed us areas where gypsum and biochar were applied as field amendments and shared with us the differences he has observed in the soil analysis and plant responses.

“Overall, it was a great trip with great people. We often forget that this type of fellowship is what we are craving until we get out there and experience it. I am grateful that I was able to attend, and I know that I will look forward to another opportunity to attend such an event.”

Guilford County livestock and field crop farmer Don York traveled with Cole Maness, livestock agent in Guilford. Feedback from Don, as shared by Cole, was that this experience was extremely valuable to him. Don is a very progressive farmer and he is always looking for another way to gain an edge. Don said that he enjoyed seeing the different styles and methods and plans to take several new methods he learned to try at home. Franklin County Agent, Martha Mobley, traveled with four producers, Max Jones, Mario Delgado, Ray Miller, and Justin Johnson. All learned many new practices and were reminded of several grazing practices, and habits, that appear common among the farms visited. For example, keeping the Southern Forages book beside their bedside tables. Area Livestock and Forages Extension agent Reid Miller from Clemson met and guided the group upon arrival in South Carolina. Maggie Miller, Extension Associate from Clemson also joined the group at Mr. Reed Edwards farm.

Developing and maintaining a community of practice is not an easy task. No doubt, however, it can be a very rewarding experience for the participants. We look forward to new opportunities to engage and provide “boots on the ground” learning experiences for land and livestock managers who can learn from each other. Financial support is critical for this type of educational programs. We are grateful to the North Carolina Cattlemen’s Association for providing financial support and to the South Carolina farmers and extension personnel that served as hosts. We look forward to new opportunities to learn from each other, wherever the community meets next time.