The Effect of Range Condition Upon the Production, Nutritive Intake and Digestibility of Desert Range Forage in Southwestern Utah

The 65 million acres of winter range in the Intermountain region furnish forage for about five million sheep and four million cattle each winter for approximately six months. These arid ranges are well suited for winter grazing, and are of paramount importance to the livestock industry. Many of these ranges were fully stocked by 1900 and as livestock continued to increase, many winter ranges were seriously over-grazed (Hutchings and Stewart, 1953). Today many of these ranges remain in a deteriorated condition. Forage production has decreased and desirable plants have been replaced by less desirable species. Little is known about the relative production, palatability, digestibility, and nutrient content of forage plants found on ranges in poor condition compared to ranges in good condition, yet such information is fundamental to good range and livestock management. In order to learn more about the effect of range condition upon the forage intake and nutrient content for sheep a study was conducted on typical winter range in southwestern Utah during the winter grazing seasons of 1957-58