by Bob Strong

The drought in most areas of the central and western United States has definitely shown the need for change. The sources of water and its use have come into question. Don and Peggy Brown of Yuma, Colorado, have developed the equipment and methods to double the pounds of beef harvested from their stocker operation on irrigated forages.

Several years ago, Dr. Tom Parks, their local veterinarian, who once practiced in New Zealand, questioned their winter forage methods. He had observed paddock grazing methods in New Zealand and thought the same system should work in their area. Basically it was dividing pastures, intense grazing and then moving cattle to the next pasture. By restricting the cattle in the area they could graze, they would eat all the forage before moving to the ungrazed area with this method.

The Browns were grazing pivot irrigated forage. The fences were the problem. How could they divide the circles and be able to water without taking out the fences or building H braces at every tower and utilizing ineffective gates.

The old saying necessity is the mother of invention is definitely true in this case. “That’s how we developed the pivotal post. We wanted to separate the paddock but be able to water when we needed without encountering fencing problems,” Brown, the inventor and manufacturer said.

“We needed a way to better utilize our fall and winter forage. Triticale and rye paddock grazing seemed to be the way to do it.” But cattle would step on it and it would freeze down and turn brown. “We thought if we could paddock it, so it would stay fresh, we could get another 60 to 70 days grazing, and we did.

“We have short water irrigation wells in some locations where we don’t have enough water to grow an entire circle of corn, so we split the circle in half. With this fencing system, we raise corn on one side and a lower water and dollar requirement crop on the other side,” explains Brown.

“For instance, we will split the one side in half and grow pearl millet for grazing and sudan sorghums. Plant one part and then in another two weeks plant another part. That makes our grazing rotation about right.” Timing is critical, but you learn how, he explains. Pearl millet only requires about 50 percent of the water corn does and Sudan sorghums probably 60 percent of corn. It allows us to be productive without the terrible expense of corn.

“Also it works well to separate paddocks and to keep cattle from mixing in the same grazing area. We like to keep different groups of cattle isolated for a time because of health reasons. Separating new calves from the ones we have on hand, it makes a difference in health costs.”

The fence goes in fast. You can put it in and take it out, farm it and put it back as you need to, but you don’t have let it down or struggle with it to irrigate. “With our pivotal post, you use one piece of wire, a quarter-mile long. There are no insulated wires running under the wheel tracks, no H braces or short pieces of wire. We use a spring ratchet out on the end and only have to set one big anchor post. The objections or problems people have are limited to just a few things and most of those can be eliminated from the start, such as quality of the wire they use. It should be one piece, or at least with no splices where the tower wheels cross the wire.

The pivotal posts have a spring between the base and the fiberglass post. The base or collar is anchored to the ground by a clamp to a piece of T post, about two feet long, which is driven into the ground.

As the center pivot moves, forward or backwards, the tower wheel catches the fence wire and takes it to the ground. The wire then moves under the tower on a guide rod to the back wheel, under it and back up. As this takes place, the post will bend down when the tower is passed the wire, the post then returns to the upright position it was in.

The wire installs quickly to the post by the use of a cotter pin through the post.

Spring ratchets on the end help the wire return to its original tightness.

It’s an all terrain system, which will work with any sprinkler regardless of the unevenness the ground.
If you have deep wheel tracks you need to run two or three strands of wire to get the wire down low enough so the tire can catch the wire, says Brown.

Vernal Lattimore of Ulysses, Kansas, installed the Pivotal Post fencing system in 2003 said. “It works better than anything I have tried. All summer I’ve had cows and calves on one side and steers on the other side of a circle of grass. The grass is a mixture of brome and three other grasses blended and sold by Sharp Brothers Seed Company. I tried cattle guards, automatic gates and a low wire, which the cattle went over. The pivotal post works best and is more economical.

Don Brown said, “We’re getting a lot of questions on how to drive over these fences with 4-wheelers and pickups. We’ve solved crossing with a 4-wheeler, in fact we have patented the system and we’re close to solving crossing the wires with a pickup.”

The system helps to save water and it is EQIP approved.

For further information, contact Pivotal Fencing Systems at 970-848-5500.