October 4 @ 10:00 am – 12:30 pm
Forage Only-Organic Dairy Farm Pasture Walk: Explore Innovative Grazing at Grazing Acres Farm
The Northwest Wisconsin Graziers Network, GrassWorks, Organic Valley, River Country RC&D, and UW-Extension invite you to a unique grass based Dairy Pasture Walk on Saturday, October 4, 2025 hosted by the Cheyenne and Katy Christianson Family. Farm tour and introductions will start at 10:30 AM. Grazing Acres Farm spans over 300 acres of slightly rolling pastures and hay fields and is home to Cheyenne and Katy Christianson’s 80 head of Holstein cows. Through well managed rotational grazing practices, they have cultivated healthy soils and productive pastures and fields that enable their herd to flourish on an exclusively forage diet.
This pasture walk is perfect for both new and experienced graziers. Topics will include:
● Fall Annual Forages: See pastures of oats and a mix of other legumes and cover crop forages
for fall grazing that are compatible with forage only milk production and yield.
● Winter Forage: Balage is fed throughout winter months to all cows and youngstock. An in-line
bale wrapper is used to get high quality grass based fermented forage. Baler/chopper is used.
● Milk Harvested with Flat Barn Milking Parlor: Eight stall, dry flat floor system is used.
● Replacement Heifer Management: Learn about noval approach for rearing replacement heifers.
Calves stay with their mothers in milking group for 2-4 weeks, then are transfered to a nurse cow
pen for another 3-4 months. Calves get no starter grain and grow well on a forage-only diet.
● Winter Housing: Two large cover-all hoop buildings provide manure pack resting area and bunk
feeding with large feeder wagons.
● Emphasis on Soil Health: Livestock manure and organic soil amendments used stategically.
● Family Labor: Farm work force is primarily provided by family members with 5 of 11 children still
living at home.
For more information, contact:
● Cheyenne or Katy: 715-458-2835
● Nicole Muschinske, GrassWorks: 314-917-9352
● Lynn Johnson, NW Graziers Network: 715-225-9882