Calling all hobby farmers, small-herd tenders, aspiring graziers, and community-minded producers! Join Grazing School of the West and Quivira Coalition in Cedar Crest, New Mexico for a full-day, hands-on workshop focused on the power of small-scale grazing to regenerate land, foster ecological health, and support resilient neighborhoods. Whether you have a few goats, sheep, or other grazing animals — or are just getting started — this workshop will guide you through best practices for managing small herds in and around your community. Come learn how thoughtful, small-scale prescribed grazing (also known as Tier 1 / Community & Neighborhood Grazing) can improve soil health and plant diversity, reduce wildfire risk and invasive species growth, support sustainable food systems and local self-reliance, and connect neighbors through shared land and animal stewardship! This workshop will give you tools to create healthier land and stronger communities — one small herd at a time.

Participants will leave with a basic understanding of:

  • Prescribed grazing methods tailored to small herds
  • Measuring forage, managing stock and recovery period cycles for soil and plant health
  • Infrastructure and tools needed to start and maintain a small herd 
  • Animal husbandry and the specific health needs of small ruminants
  • Cooperative-based and neighborly collaboration

Workshop schedule

8:30-9:00 – Arrivals and check in
9:00-9:45 – Intro to space and group
9:45-12:30 Classroom session: Principles of grazing for ecological resilience, planning for small herds: species choice and  animal health, stocking density, infrastructure, and tools
12:30–1:30 – Lunch and peer networking (local fare provided by Roots Farm Cafe)
1:30-3:00 – Field demo: grazing in action
3:00-4:00 – Group work: Cooperative grazing, roles, communication, schedules, liability, community agreements.
4:00–4:30 –  Group reflection and closing

 

Questions? Contact Nina Katz at nina.katz@quiviracoalition.org.

This workshop is in-part funded by a USDA NRCS Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative grant.

About Grazing School of the West: Based in Northern California, Grazing School of the West (GSW) offers seasonal educational workshops and vocational and business training opportunities in the field of prescribed grazing. Instructors at GSW are lifelong ranchers and seasoned professionals ready to answer all of your questions, bringing a sense of playfulness, hope, and joy to their work, along with decades of experience dedicated to cultivating the next generation of land stewards.

Their trainers are passionate and skilled practitioners with over a decade of experience under their belts. They are prescribed grazing business owners, ranchers, Ecological Outcome Verifiers from the Savory Institute, and more.

Cole Bush is the founder and owner of Shepherdess Land and Livestock, a prescribed grazing business based in Ojai, California. In 2020, after spending years developing her business, Cole took the plunge and started her dream grazing business: one that provides both vegetation management services AND vocational training to support the next-generation of shepherds as land stewards.

Cole is a practitioner, educator, and consultant in the fields of climate-beneficial agriculture, land stewardship, and prescribed grazing. With over a decade of experience in the field, Cole has developed and managed the treatment of thousands of acres on private and public lands using prescribed grazing with commercial-scale herds of sheep and goats as an ecosystem service for ecological enhancement and fire hazard reduction throughout California. She is passionate about business and is dedicated to training new entrepreneurs and practitioners in the prescribed grazing field, as well as, to providing consultation and technical assistance services for climate-smart agricultural and land stewardship.