Manage Timberland to Protect Soil | |
 | It’s been said, tongue-in-cheek, that cattle would need 20-foot-wide mouths and would have to graze at speeds up to 6 miles per hour to obtain an adequate supply of nutrients when being pastured in a timberland area. In addition, when cattle graze in timberland, you lose the protective cover on the soil surface The bottom line: When you pasture cattle in timberland, your animals and trees suffer and so does the quality of any water running through and alongside the forested area. |
 | If livestock pasture adjoins forested lands, block access with fencing or other physical barriers. If shade and wind protection for livestock are important considerations, scatter shade trees and shelter plantings across the pasture and at least 100 feet from the forest edge or from any streambank. |
 | You can also protect a streamside woodland by carefully managing the zones within it. Zone 1 is undisturbed forest, and tree removal is generally not permitted in this zone. |
 | Zone 2 is managed forest, where periodic harvest of trees is necessary. Harvesting increases vigorous tree growth, maintaining the uptake of nutrients. |
 | Controlled grazing may be permitted in Zone 3 under certain conditions. The three zones are collectively known as the riparian zone-the area alongside streams that requires careful management. |