Barnes called his local NRCS extension agent to see if his idea would work, and a short time after planning with NRCS, his brainstorming turned into a new pond.“ I had the idea, called NRCS to see if it could be done, and now the field I took the soil from looks untouched and I have the pond,” he said.
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Barnes’ ponds feed into concrete troughs, so all he needs to do to water his cows is turn a valve. He has even built a pond that will stay thawed all winter, so his cattle never have to go without a drink. Another project Barnes is currently working on through NRCS is a water tank that will help him better utilize the water he catches from rooftops on his buildings, which could be used to water his cattle or his hay.
In addition to tank-captured water, a unique way Barnes waters and fertilizes his hay is by the use of trout emulsion. Barnes takes several tanks, each of which holds 275 gallons, to a nearby trout farm. The employees at the trout farm fill his tanks, and he hauls the fertilized water home to spread on the land.“ To date I have hauled more than 24,000 gallons( of trout emulsion), and it works beautifully for my hay,” said Barnes. He sells the hay to folks in his community, who benefit from his stewardship and conservation practices.
At one time Barnes raised anywhere from 100 to 200 head of cattle, but today he keeps only enough to ensure his pastures stay clean. Although he has fewer cattle than he once did, Barnes relies on internal fences for rotational grazing.
NRCS provided the technical assistance for a portion of the inner fences on Barnes’ farm, so his cattle graze in the same area until they have
NRCS is easy to work with. They are good to help you engineer your ideas.
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completely utilized the forage. Once they have eaten everything possible in one area, the fence can be easily moved to rotate the cows into a new area. The practice of rotational grazing maximizes forage
Photos: Opposite page: Some of the picturesque ponds on Barnes’ property. This page, above: Several cattle graze in front of one of the barns on the property. Bottom right: A pond under construction.
West Virginia Farm Bureau News 17