Methods to Determine Utilization
Many methods have been developed to estimate utilization, but few have proven suitable for all situations. Depending on the objectives of the inventory or monitoring program, sampling may concentrate on describing utilization for several key species, or it may aim to describe grazing impacts on the entire forage resource.
The following sections describe several widely adopted approaches to estimate utilization.
- Grazed and Ungrazed Comparisons
- Grazed Class Method
- Grazed Plant Method
- Height-Weight Method
- Utilization Zones
References and Further Reading
Bonham, C.D. 1989. Measurements for terrestrial vegetation. John Wiley Sons, New York, NY. pp. 290-311.
Bureau of Land Management. 1996. Utilization studies and residual measurements. Interagency Technical Reference, BLM/RS/ST-96/004+1730. pp. 23-126.
Cook, C.W., and J. Stubbendieck. (eds.). 1986. Range research: Basic problems and techniques. Society for Range Management, Denver, CO. pp. 121-132.
Risser, P.G. 1984. Methods for inventory and monitoring of vegetation, litter, and soil surface condition. In: National Research Council/National Academy of Sciences. Developing strategies for rangeland management. Westview Press. pp. 667-673.