Planning For Drought Still Important, Experts Say

Though 2016-17 turned out to be a wet winter, university and industry experts urge ranchers to continue to plan for drought in how they manage their pastures and feed. Knowing when to water and which animals to give the highest-quality supplemental feed could help cow-calf operations through the next drought, University of California Cooperative Extension advisers say. Such measures may include irrigating pasture with limited water in the spring, when the crop demand is greater, rather than the fall, said Larry Forero, a UCCE adviser based in Redding.