[Vigilanteman]

I always thought that grazing land for cattle was about the same as land used to grow wheat and corn.

Ever visit large parts of Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and the western Dakotas where livestock grazing thrives but growing wheat and corn would not be commercially viable?

[Sawdring]

Ever visit large parts of Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and the western Dakotas where livestock grazing thrives but growing wheat and corn would not be commercially viable?

I just drove through Montana on Highway 2 and US 94. Montana has never looked so lush and green in the middle of July. Every section of land seemed to be growing nicely with wheat.

[Hodar]

Maybe you know this already. But various segments of land have a cattle/acre rating while others have acres/cow rating. This is primarily dictated by annual rainfall.

In many places (eastern Dakota, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska) the rainfall is sufficient that 0.5-1.2 cattle/acre are possible. However, when the rainfall is this good; it’s usually more profitable to raise grain. However, many farmers opt to diversify both cattle and grain in case to reduce the fiscal risk.