Using multi-species forage ecosystems to enhance production, diversify income and support environmental benefits in operations in South Carolina
The forage-livestock systems program is under Dr. Liliane Silva, Forages Specialist, and focuses on developing management strategies to improve forage production and quality, animal performance, profitability, and resilience of forage-livestock operations in South Carolina. Multidisciplinary efforts are being conducted in collaboration with researchers and educators from SC and the southeast region, including studies on grazing cover crops, improving nutrient cycling and carbon sequestration, developing beef cattle heifers on forage-based systems and silvopasture, among others. Utilizing multi-species forage mixtures enhances forage production and distribution while supporting soil fertility, animal performance, and environmental benefits. By adding forage legumes to pastures, there is organic nitrogen added to the systems, which also reduces the use of inorganic fertilizer. However, this requires proper management practices to be developed and successfully implemented to support the operation’s feasibility. Then, silvopasture is a practice that combines forages, trees and livestock grazing to address land management challenges, animal productivity, and farm income diversification. Although it is not a new practice, it has been gaining interest over the last decades and properly managed silvopasture provides ecosystem services such as soil health improvement, habitat provision, animal welfare, carbon sequestration, water conservation improvement and diversification of producer revenue sources. Additional efforts led by Dr. Silva include research and outreach efforts statewide, besides written and recorded research-based educational materials provided to educators and producers in South Carolina.
