[permaculture-oceania] feeding pigs and nutrient runnoff

[kdawborn]

Hi Robyn, 

 

Thanks for your suggestions about pig fodder - good ideas to take on board.
We are in a cool temperate climate - in the Yarra Ranges, Victoria. Mulberry
sounds a possibility, along with tagasaste, and am wondering about other
tree crops or high protein plants. Am also wondering if anyone out there has
fed comfrey to pigs if anyone has anything to say about that. 

 

Also am wondering about meat quality outcomes if a lot of fruit or high-carb
root vegies are fed..

 

Cheers,

 

Kerry Dawborn 

 

  _____  

From: permaculture-oceania-bounces at lists.cat.org.au
[mailto:permaculture-oceania-bounces at lists.cat.org.au] On Behalf Of Robyn
Francis
Sent: Monday, 12 June 2006 11:25 AM
To: permaculture-oceania
Subject: Re: [permaculture-oceania] feeding pigs and nutrient runnoff

 

Hi Kerry

Some excellent fodder crops for pigs include Jerusalem artichoke, Qld
arrowroot (leaves & roots), sweet potato, potato, pumpkin, melons. They
pretty well love all fruit and root crops - any chance of connecting with
fruit & veg producers in the area to collect damaged or rejected produce?
The pigs can plough areas for their own crops - could also design a self
harvest system for some things - nothing they love more than rooting up some
delicious tubers. 
They also love mulberry leaves which are high in digestible protein - can
coppice them regularly through spring-summer-early autumn.

what climate are you planning for.
Ciao
Robyn


On 10/6/06 11:16 PM, "kdawborn" <kdawborn at bigpond.com> wrote:

Hi All,



A couple or so questions regarding livestock (pigs) on a property interested
in using a more permaculture approach:



1)       from anyone out there raising free-range pigs for meat, what kinds
of fodder crops can be grown to reduce or eliminate the need for
supplementary grain feeding? In our case we're talking commercial free-range
pork production. We're aware that pigs can pretty much eat what humans can
eat; these pigs are currently on pasture and grain, and while we realise
that pig-tractoring in systems growing human food crops as well could have a
lot of benefits, what we're looking for right now is fodder crops which
would have sufficient protein (and other necessary nutrient?) content to
ensure growth and meat production - in other words to replace the grain.
We've been thinking tree lucerne as a start, which could probably be grown
in marginal areas with ready access to where pigs are pastured, but are
wondering about other plants, especially those with high food for meat value
that could either be grazed or coppiced for fodder. 

2)       Any other suggestions regarding sustainable feeding of pigs -
reducing or eliminating the need to bring in food from outside.

3)       Nutrient runoff from paddocks into creek: we are concerned about
the nutrient load going into our creek from animal manure. It seems likely
that the most sensible way to view this is that really, the nutrients are
something we want to keep and use rather than allow to pollute the creek, so
perhaps the thing to do is grow more stuff that can soak it up. Any
suggestions re useful fodder (especially) or human food plants or other
plants, and ways to lay things out in order to best catch the runoff? As I
write I'm thinking swale-type arrangements with appropriate plantings could
work, but we are talking paddocks with pigs so for stock management and
other reasons, am not sure whether this might create problems.



Anyway, any thoughts and suggestions would be most welcome..



Cheers All,



Kerry Dawborn

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