Bishopp’s Story

Written by Jill Koehler, NRCS Grazing Land Specialist

After meeting Troy Bishopp at several grazing conferences and hearing his story, I ventured up to Deansboro, NY for a closer look at his operations.

Farm #1: Home of the 59 Devon cross cattle from Wyoming. Last weight check averaged 2.5 #/gain/day (excellent on grass alone). They have a pretty laid back temperament. Troy had 2 lead cows with herd- one Holstein cross, one Hereford origination. The lead cow is one that is familiar with the native range and plants. They are to ‘teach’ the WY cattle how to graze in NY. This land is rented from a neighbor named Joe, for approximately $20/ac. Troy thought this was very high, but had the cattle on the way and needed the land to put them on. [Later conversations revealed the shipping bill was $4200, covered by the supplier. How can that be worth it?] It was a rough and late start. The cows came a month later than anticipated, so grasses were too mature. However, within 2 days of receiving, they were grazing. Troy is familiar with Dr. Fred Provenza’s work (Utah State University- teaches NEDC course “Plant –Herbivore Interactions”) and we talked a bit about adaptation. There is old existing barbed wire fencing. Troy added one strand of electric on fiberglass posts to the inside for subdivisions. With a Fault Finder on his hip, not a 6-shooter, he tested wire during our travels and most fence read 8,000 volts, which “helps him sleep at night”. He adds nothing to his pastures but lime, and he adds that for the calcium content, not so much for the buffering qualities. He likes seeing diversity in forages, including weeds. Plantain is a recognized highly nutritious weed. “It ain’t really glamorous (referring to the pastures), but the cows are glamorous!” Everything Troy is doing as far as pasture maintenance is in preparation for the next 5 years, not just for tomorrow. Joe cannot see the benefit the practices will have for the future years, that’s where they don’t see eye-to-eye.

Troy believes that cattle have the self medicating abilities, that Provenza also has been researching. He observes his cattle eating Willow and other plants that are known to have digestive benefits. He is a strong believer in feeding kelp, and has it available free-choice in every pasture along with mineral.

Infrastructure on the pastures is very minimal with one strand electric outlining the paddocks and surface water as the source for the drinking water supply is the norm. He notes that although forages are really dry this season, the nutrient content is much more concentrated/nutrient dense.

Troy points to a hillside that he began to clip before his tractor broke down. He observes that although it looks more neat, he cannot note a change in quality. Hence, recreational mowing is not one of his favorite past times.

As we move to the next farm, owned by Dick, he hands us a scrapbook of newspaper articles, photos, awards, etc that all highlight his philosophies and successes. On the top of the stack is a book. Troy advises, “If you’re going to read one book on grazing and pastures, this better be the one.” Fertility Pasture and Cover Crops, Conservation Gardening and Farming, by Newman and Turner. After a quick Amazon search back at the office, I discovered the book is out of print and will be a real challenge to add to my reference shelf!

The scrapbook demonstrates his speaking abilities and lobbying efforts for grazing in NY. There are as many more pictures of Troy in farm wear than there are of him in a suit and tie! He and Dick Warner are both very active with GLCI in NY. They recognize the need for support for the grass-based farmer and the importance of grazing to keep agriculture alive in the Northeast.

In the pile was also a copy of Graze (a monthly publication that is a necessity to any successful grazer) with Troy’s picture on the cover! I recommend anyone reading my article to also pick up the article in Graze.

Farm #2: The next farm is operated in quite a different manner. Dick loves his cows and whole-heartedly believes Troy is the Pasture God! Dick also loves wildlife and has dug many ponds for wildlife, and planted Douglas Firs for habitat. As the vet packs up, he is stumped as to why a steer is frothing at the mouth and cannot bit and chew. Troy explains that all vet costs are covered by the cattle supplier, who remains the owner when the cattle are under Troy’s care. Cattle are required to come onto the property with vaccinations already complete. Troy doesn’t want to be bothered with handling the cattle regularly. Occasional weight monitoring is done, but normally he monitors muscling by looking at their rumps, not Body Conditioning Scores. Dick has about 8 head of the finest Red Angus I’ve ever seen. The brood cow leading the herd to Dick’s voice, closely resembles the Folk Art drawings of cattle with only inches of daylight between her belly and the ground. Troy explained that as the owner’s of the property see his progress, and it all looks so easy to them, they then get the itch to raise a herd of their own. Before he can regain control, the owner is running a herd of their own on land he’s paying rent for and reclaimed! Of course, that decreases the animal numbers Troy can graze.

Land owners like Dick are great to work with since they exhibit great enthusiasm, and believe in what Troy is trying to accomplish, but they have their challenges also. Troy tells the story of his suggesting an increase in the bee population to improve pollinations of clovers and other forages. Within days, he had 30 hives smack-dab in the middle of the pasture! “That was pretty stressful for a couple of weeks,” Troy recollects.

Moving on since time is quickly flying by…

Farm #3 has recently had fencing and water installed by NRCS. The kicker is that Troy NEVER had any input into the planning of paddock layout, or design. He would change several things if possible, but is still grateful for what has been done. The 5 strand high tensil electric fence excludes the cattle out of a neighboring stream. The banks and waterway are enrolled in CRP, and Troy is a bit disturbed by the fact that the cows can’t even flash graze it. NRCS paid for 7 troughs and Troy laughs as he explains he only needs one; he moves the cows as one herd through the rotation. The paddocks are not laid out with cattle movement in mind, and they vary in size which doesn’t make a rotation schedule very consistent. All of his paddocks are native species, that with a little lime and TLC, moved in on their own free will. He has never planted a seed anywhere! Predominant species are Orchard grass, clover, fescue, voluntary Birdsfoot Trefoil, and a nice mix of weeds, but several of which Troy does not have a problem with.

“I’ve done some weird things with manure patties” Troy explains as he kicks at a decaying patty. He is very observant of earthworm populations, dung beetles, honey bees, and birds. They all add to the whole nutrient management picture, by pollinating forages and assisting decay of manure. It is not uncommon for Troy to walk his pastures during a rain. This is when he can monitor the number of Earthworms in his pastures.

The take home message I felt will benefit New Jersey farmers, is with very minimal inputs, Troy is producing a product that is in great demand- grass-fed beef. He doesn’t own any of the cattle, and he rents local land that would otherwise be left fallow. The end result is a healthy product and very productive, now-reclaimed pastures. All of the cattle Troy grazes is marketed through the NELA (Northeast Livestock Alliance) and Hardwick Beef.

Troy will be visiting New Jersey on January 27th, at the Rutgers One Day Grazing Conference, to share his vision and grazing experiences. Please make arrangements to join us, you won’t be disappointed!

Photo gallery of the Bishopp Farm

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Last Modified: January 04, 2006