Can you "engineer" a pasture?

[ArnaudForestier]

Sort of related to another thread on terroir, but I do think it has its own life, so thought I'd put it here. 

May seem like an odd query, guys.  I do have an end in mind.  Putting aside the question of why one would want to do it in the first place - do you think it's possible to in essence "engineer" a pasture, with chosen flora, in an attempt to get certain sensory qualities in milk, and therefore finished cheeses? Or is such a thing ultimately doomed to failure, or perhaps an endless fight, because a given pasture will eventually find its equilibrium, given natural endowments?

Interestingly, as some may know, against my accepted presumptions, one French study I re-read recently found that the higher mountain pastures of Beaufort iwere actually less diverse than lower pastures, and had a strong leader-dominance of two species.  Yet it was the lower pastures, with a much more varied flora count, that had a lower score on "assertive," "piquant," "earthy," "animal" sensory aspects of the cheeses made from the respective milks.  Accepted wisdom is that the more diverse, the better. So this study is very surprising, to say the least.

It's a leading question, obviously. The more I read, the more I realize how unique in flora the French high mountain meadows are relative to the valley meadows - and along with the bovine breeds, this flora makes a significant difference in the finished cheese (most know, Abondance form, Beaufort character is my model style). 

Also, the more I read, the more I truly believe it all starts with grass. If you don't have pasture management down, and animal husbandry down, you don't have milk down. And absent that (or having access to good milk), you have nothing, as a cheesemaker.

Anyway, wondering what your thoughts are here, on whether one can truly design a pasture?  Most especially, a pasture using species from a biome very different from one's own pasture?

[WovenMeadows]

I would venture a definite "yes", but it would depend on how much you want to put into it. Working within a given soil time and climate, there are many species of grass, legumes, and forbes able to grow, but not all will flourish as readily as some.

From my readings in organic agriculture and pasture/grazing based livestock production, minerals play a great role in flavor of the end product (meat or milk). Highly mineralized soils produce more mineral-rich plants. I've read alpine soils are just this, compared to say many of our American soils here. So, increasing the minerals of your pasture soil is one way to "engineer" the pasture and products. This could happen through simply broadcasting mineral/rock amendments, or feeding these as supplements to your animals who send it back out the back end, and by fostering a vibrant community of soil microflora (fungi for instance) which make minerals more readily available to plant uptake.

Then of course you can seed your pastures with selected types of plants. As above though, merely planting them doesn't mean they will take off or be competitive enough with other species. You might need to try to tinker with the soil pH (e.g. lime), irrigate, fertilize, etc.

And then grazing behavior and management is a big factor too. Are pastures being grazed high or short? Each method will, down the road, foster different types of plant growth. As pastures being given the right amount rest between grazings? Some species are more resilient to continue grazing, while some need a very long time to recover. The same goes if a desired species is an annual which needs time to go to seed before being grazed.

So that said, yes, some "equilibrium" are probably more natural and readily created than others, not to say certain balances are impossible, just more different to create and maintain. But secondly, I suspect overall quality of the forage - rather than particular type - may be more important, so shoot for that first. And quality forage comes from quality soil.

[elkato]

Like you Paul I have come to the conclusion that one of the most important aspect of my cheese making endeavour is my ability (or lack of) as a grass grower.
And that I will be learning all I can about the soil, its microbiology, and the actual species of grasses legumes and Forbs that can be grown in my area in hopes of finally translating a particular flavour to my aged cheeses.
My pastures are irrigated farmland, so my terroir is what I make of it, for good or for bad.
best regards
Luis.

[ArnaudForestier]

Thanks, Woven and Luis, great thoughts.  Woven, 3 key considerations, thanks so much.  The minerals is a really interesting idea - I've read a lot of the "Greener Pastures on Your Side of the Fence" type literature and I have to admit, I've always been thinking of minerals in terms of correcting deficiencies, not to select for desired traits, great idea.  This notion only occurred to me the other day and I've started really enjoying reading up on alpine botany and ecology.  Everything you wrote makes great sense.  I think ultimately, I realize it's a fruitless exercise to try and emulate a biome from a radically different place as the Alps to midwestern pastoral land.  And though my reductionist brain would love to say, "pasture mix A, yielding Beaufort character B," I know that's ridiculous.  I guess I'm hopeful of finding a way to sort of nurture things along, guiding but not determining my final ecology by all the things you mention. 

One thing from another forum that I found really interesting, and useful - I'd like to print it here in its entirety, as I thought it was great:

What an awesome question. I should mention that although i am a fifth generation rancher, i do have a masters degree in grassland ecology and a bs in botany. The answer to you first question as to whether or not you could engineer a pasture to contain a multitude of flora in order to produce more biodiversity is a resounding yes. In fact many many many wildlife and fisheries agencies do just that, taking pastures that after years and years of broadleaf herbicide use have become a monotonous see of grass, most of which is non native, and restoring them to their native status full of hundreds of species to create a much more beautiful, viable, and natural land area.

But. As far as introducing non native species goes, there is no clear cut answer. If a given species does not belong, there are two primary outcomes. Outcome number one is invasion. without any natural control vectors to manage populations and keep the species in question in check it starts to take over, and out compete native and extremely beneficial species. The dandelion, musk thistle, and leafy spurge are all perfect examples. The second is that they are incompatible against the existing flora, and without constant management and aid on your part would inevitably be pushed out. virtually all ornamentals and garden vegetables fall into this category. They can not compete with the existing species on their own, and voila, hoes and herbicides were born (im not knocking them, believe me, ive got many an hour behind a hoe or with sprayer in hand).

you are not the first to seek this goal however, and there is a partial solution. Generally speaking most species that one would find in a french paddock, while being incompatible in your area, do have an american counterpart, very similar, genetically nearly alike, and with a chemical breakdown close enough to their foreign cousins that one could assume would impart a very similar if not identical effect on the milk and there in the cheese. it will take some serious homework, and alot of botanical reading and researching, but if you really want to do it, it is possible

and

One more thing. There is a company in brookings south dakota that could be exactly what your looking for. They make the seed blends for creating natural habitats and send them all around the world. Virtually every species of grass and forb that would belong or could exist in a pasture they have, and they will custom blend you what your looking for based on your average temp, rainfall, species you want, and anything else you want considered. Great people that do a great job, name is Millborn seeds

Looked the company up, and definitely going to be working with them.  A fantastic help, hope others find it interesting.

Luis, it would be great to hear of things as you progress - I'd love to hear any experiments you're doing, and results as they come in.  Sounds like you've got a wonderful lab to practice in!

[Back 2 The Frotture]

Why not try to discover what terroir you have under your own feet?  "Engineering" could work if you let your pastures go to grain, allowing them to reseed.  Not very practical, but if you have enough land, could be feasible with an appropriate rotation.  The swiss have taken this question seriously ( suisse melange fourragers)  and have a few things on the market.
Another point is that the soil up in beaufort is not very deep, employing tough growing root systems which can not be emulated in prairie situations.  Snow cover allows for short growing seasons up there as well.

[ArnaudForestier]

Frotture, thanks.  Definitely in mind.  I'm just stricken by how vastly different finished Beaufort is from any other gruyere I've tried.  And I've read now, at least two rigorous studies discussing the unique breed used in Beaufort and its apparent effect on finished cheese sensory qualities; and the apparent uniqueness of high mountain v. low valley alpine pastures, and how the high pastures consistently resulted in a cheese more "spicy," earthy, strong, animal, etc.  It's this aggressiveness, I'd call it, along these descriptors precisely, that I'm seeking to obtain in my particular alpine, an Abondance form with Beaufort-esque character.

I know it can't be duplicated.  But I also know nothing we do when grazing is natural, right?  We're not allowing a field to simply go to climax species naturally.  We nurture things along.  So that perhaps there's some intriguing things that can be done by overseeding, and environmental controls along the lines suggested by WovenMeadows.  I'm very interested in the work that Millborn seeds does - I'd encourage any grazer to check their site out.  Forage is just one part of what they do; they also consult and work with prairie and other restoration people, other lines of expertise.  Quite an outfit, it seems to me.

Thanks for your thoughts, Frotture.  I've the honor of giving a first cheese to you!

[Alpkäserei]

Intensive grazers engineer their pasture all the time, there is a grass fed beef farmer near me that as part of his cycle tills up the soil regularly and re-seeds it, to keep his pasture how he wants it. Hay growers sometimes do this also, to get a better hay mix (less grass)

We also are good to have our soil tested, not just for pH but also mineral content. Just like row crop farmers, we can do good to supplement our soil -lime, gypsum, magnesium, manganese all are things we commonly have to add to our soil in Indiana. Spreading animal manure helps a lot with mineral content as well. But we have to be aware, if we are grazing our land to capacity manure alone is not enough to maintain the soil.

It was common in previous eras to drag a pasture -not really till it, but tear it up so it will take seed. Then you could sew better plants in it.

And also, like I said on another thread, one of the best things you can do is keep your pasture cut. If you have more land than is needed for your herd, cut it. This keeps the more delicate -more desirable plants- able to compete.

[ArnaudForestier]

Thanks, Alp.  Appropos to this subject, you guys might find this interesting: 

Raw milk flora affects composition and quality of Bergkäse. 1. Microbiology and fermentation compounds

Raw milk flora affects composition and quality of Bergkäse. 2. Chemical composition



Another one I found again - these names are like "28sd6a8g534," and I have a lot of files - Changes in pasture and cow milk compositions during a summer transhumance in the western Italian Alps

[ArnaudForestier]

Why not try to discover what terroir you have under your own feet?  "Engineering" could work if you let your pastures go to grain, allowing them to reseed.  Not very practical, but if you have enough land, could be feasible with an appropriate rotation.  The swiss have taken this question seriously ( suisse melange fourragers)  and have a few things on the market.
Another point is that the soil up in beaufort is not very deep, employing tough growing root systems which can not be emulated in prairie situations.  Snow cover allows for short growing seasons up there as well.

I've a couple PM's and posts I want to reply to (Bear - that's some awesome cheese, man - congrats, such a beautiful, perfect knit...), but wanted to post the following, while it's fresh, and if it's interesting to others.  In a word, Frotture, of course you're right.  Nature can't be bested, and terroir is the best cheesemaker. 

Triple tasting of Uplands's Pleasant Ridge Reserve, a Beaufort d'été, and an Abondance.

I don't know if it's the seasonality or what, but the Uplands absolutely bowled me over.  Extraordinary.  Lanolin, earth, tongue-tip zing of acid and nice tyrosine crunch.  It was missing some grassiness I like, but I do wonder if this was really late summer or so. I don't know I've enjoyed this fine cheese, as much as tonight.

Abondance was light and pretty, I'd say.  What a delightful, delicate cheese, like the faintest whiff of grass and crushed violets.

The Beaufort has this immediate, green-oil character that zinged me, and it's driving me mad to know what that is.  Like aromatics from herbs, or something in tandem with sweet nut oils.  But very strong, and evanescent, fills the palate large and roundly.  This, with a stronger gruyere funk, not in any way delicate, more assertive but entirely in balance with this green quality.  It's so fleeting, these descriptors, wish I could better pin down.

I tell you, I'd be proud to own either the Uplands or this Beaufort's quality.  Two very close cousins, with clear but nothing earth shattering, differences.  That green oil quality of the beaufort does send me, along with it's pate - don't like the Uplands or Abondance pate as much, too snappy - a very pliant plant in the beaufort, and really creamy.  Makes me think on floc multipliers and acid...wondering if 3.5x might be something to try.

Which raises the final point....Frotture, of course you're right.  I think it's probably lunacy for me to study alpine species, understand they lend a character to the sensory quality of the highland Beauforts v. valley wheels, and in reductionist fashion take it to management of my own eventual pastures.  I'd love to get this green-oil quality, if I can, but bluntly, it's lunacy, I think, to work for anything but seeing what nature - what forages and my breeds - will give me, and by using whey cultures and made-rennet, doing what I can, truly (not just talk) to get out of the way and let the terroir express itself.  I'm very curious if a colored breed - Normande, Tarentaise, Abondance - will evince these differences.  As well, my little micro-biome, on my paddocks.

Just an experience, guys, hope it's interesting.

[Alpkäserei]

Manipulting nature is possible, and good to strive for.

Controlling nature is not.

You must approach this from the standpoint that you are partners in this endeavor, not the master. Otherwise it is a strife without end.
It is a very good idea to test the real thing and try and figure out what you can do to get that quality. I've been working for 2 years to come up with solutions to those problems. It is very good to go after those things, as long as you keep an open mind while doing so. For me, this has led to discovery and innovations. I am glad I did it. Going after a goal that you know from the start is not possible can do this.

SO keep trying, Paul, you have no idea what great discovery you might make along the way.

For me, my discoveries led me in the direction of an herbal brine and cider wash. I have a very complex brine, which I think gives me a very spicy and earthy, layered flavor (I will test the final results of this experiment soon) and the wash gives me a subtle fruitiness.

But also it has led me in the direction that certain things should be more targeted -pasture should be mostly clover, for example, and infusions into the cheese should be simple, and any herb rub should be 1 or 2 mild herbs, like parsley.

[ArnaudForestier]

Whatever I end up doing as a management program, I find the issue of forage botanicals, presence or absence of aromatic compounds for good or ill, and sensory cheese characteristics immensely fascinating. 

One thing I've found in my studies of the French materials, is that overall, the higher-alpine meadows (>1550 m. and above) are higher in umbellifers (carrot, parsley, celery family.  Tiny flowers, aromatic) or legumes, with more biodiversity than lower alpine meadows, which tend to be higher in grass.  The explanation given on the lowland pastures is the impact of management practice - dosing with organic fertilizers, more frequent harvests by either mowing/haymaking and/or grazing rotations, and getting in early - all tend to augment the proportion of grasses relative to legumes and umbellifers.  Whether by pasture management or micro-ecology, the French studies showed the tendency to an inverse relationship between grass percentages on the one hand, and on the other, dicotyledons - aromatic umbelliferae (e.g., varieties of cow parsley), plantaginacae (think plantains), and legumes. 

The highland meadows were higher in terpenes - though another study concludes that it can't be shown whether terpenes add any distinguishable sensory effect in finished cheeses.  One highland meadow, in the Abondance area and at approximate altitude of 1700-1750 m., is characterized again by a lot of umbellifers and a strong concentration of terpenes, sesquiterpenes, and esters.  That's some good stuff.

It has to be said, though, that altitude was not always a perfect indicator of biodiversity, and/or the presence of aromatic compounds among the pasture flora.  One valley, "VX2", in Abondance and at roughly 1020 m., was also fairly diverse and contained many species of legumes, ombellifers and other aromatic plants.  It's diversity "indicator" is 4.4, with the other valleys holding a much lower 3.7, 2.7 and 3.6.  It approaches the highland valley diversity indicators 4.2-4.7.

This, I think, raises some questions. 

The first, for me, is that were one to try and incorporate more of the aromatic plants of the umbelliferae, legumes, plantaginacae groups, just how palatable are these plant species to cows, with their absence of an upper row of teeth?  These are far tougher than grasses, generally.  Are they eaten free choice, on the alps?  Can they be incorporated well in a managed intensive grazing system? 

If a pasture is relatively low in grasses and high in these aromatic plants, can a cow get adequate energy, protein and mineral levels if a pasture tends to be relatively higher in these aromatic plants? 

Can you grow these chosen alpine species in a pastoral setting (like mine - Wisconsin, a very Normandy-style ecology)?

Assuming one could incorporate these plants in a pasture mix, will they retain the aromatic compounds as they are found in the alps, or would the different ecology significantly alter the chemistry of these compounds?

Are the aromatic components one finds in these milks due more to direct contribution from microbes, plant species themselves, or some pasture management practice?

How about indirect contribution - the ruminant action upon plants, the cow's physiology - in forming aromatic compounds found in milk?

Finally, do these components - the monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, esters, ketones - translate into the milk - and the cheese?

Again, whatever else, I find these questions very interesting.  I hope others do as well.

[ArnaudForestier]

Wow, a sheep farming friend from another site turned me on to this outfit - BEHAVE, out of Utah State University.  Research in foraging patterns based on the interactions between forage plant species, chemical components, foraging physiology and behavior in ruminant animals.  Right up the alley of the above query, thought other grazing farmers here might find their research interesting as well.  Seems very strong in rangeland sheep and goat research.

[Alpkäserei]

In the Berner Oberland the valley pastures are not supposed to be cut before a certain date -I think it is July the 7th, maybe the 14th. The reason for this is to maintain diversity in the mountain flora -keep grass from taking over by giving the other plants enough time to reestablish their roots before trimming them. 

[ArnaudForestier]

Why not try to discover what terroir you have under your own feet?  "Engineering" could work if you let your pastures go to grain, allowing them to reseed.  Not very practical, but if you have enough land, could be feasible with an appropriate rotation.  The swiss have taken this question seriously ( suisse melange fourragers)  and have a few things on the market.
Another point is that the soil up in beaufort is not very deep, employing tough growing root systems which can not be emulated in prairie situations.  Snow cover allows for short growing seasons up there as well.

Back, you've piqued me by your comment on my Abondance thread.  I know this is an uphill battle.  Out here, with intensive management, it's almost entirely a mix of grasses and legumes - umbellifers and other species are actually discouraged, where found.  Much the same, actually, as what I found in looking at lowland meadows in the Beaufortain - and a lot of that was due to practice, and not biome "fix."  Intensive management, early grazing, etc. - as here, lending a less diverse range of species. 

So if wanting to capture the terpenes, sesquiterpenes, ketones, esters of these more "exotic" alpine species, and this is something I'd like to try, it will definitely be a game.  I've a summary I've put together of my research so far, into the topic by looking among the French materials.  I'll send you my e-mail in PM, let me know if you'd like to see the materials.

[ArnaudForestier]

Why not try to discover what terroir you have under your own feet?  "Engineering" could work if you let your pastures go to grain, allowing them to reseed.  Not very practical, but if you have enough land, could be feasible with an appropriate rotation.  The swiss have taken this question seriously ( suisse melange fourragers)  and have a few things on the market.
Another point is that the soil up in beaufort is not very deep, employing tough growing root systems which can not be emulated in prairie situations.  Snow cover allows for short growing seasons up there as well.

You know, I'm doing a lot of soul searching.  Some helpful thoughts from Jim Wallace of New England Cheesemaking Company, Pav, and my recent exchanges with the people from Meadowcreek Dairy, VA.  It all boils down to:

Our goal ... has always been to develop a cheese that showcased our milk, milk from a herd developed to fit our farm’s mountainous terrain, rather than picking a benchmark cheese and struggling to match the farm to it.

In spite of all the work I've done researching alpine flora and adaptability to lowland meadows, etc., I don't think there's probably a truer sentiment.  As difficult to accept as I've found that to be.