Read Pigs ‘n Trees from Cornell Small Farms Program for more details. If I had pigs in my wooded area, I would want to know how are the pigs impacting the trees and are you seeing all of the impact immediately or are there down the road consequences that are delayed. ![]() Pigs love the woods, I’m sure, but the real question is do the woods love the pigs? I’d not thought of this before I came across this article. I’m always interested in how folks are raising their pigs. The full podcast is linked below the clip if you are interested in the full version.įorested or woodland pork is a cool idea that is becoming more popular, one we have not tried since we are the vast majority pasture, but I do see and read a lot about it. Here’s a clip of Darby Simpson suggesting 4-6 pigs per wooded acre. If you have a lot of understory growth, you may able to go up to 6 pigs per wooded acre. 4 market hogs can be raised per acre of woods Raise a few pigs, see how it goes and decide what adjustments you plan to make for the next batch. You might be able to go up to 20 finishing pigs per acre or your farm may be more suited to 15.Įxperience is the best teacher here. Once you’ve got pastured pigs figured out for your area, raise the number of pigs to suit your farm. The more pigs you have in a small area, the more on point your management has to be.īy using the lower number of 10 pigs, you build some grace into the system, which you’ll likely need since you are new to pigs. This way you’ll have a bit of wiggle room on your management. If you are just starting out, plan on the lower end of 10 pigs per acre. Is Your Pig Ready To Butcher? shows you ways to tell if your pig is fully finished (well marbled) so you’ll get the wonderful flavor you are hoping for in your pork! Start with fewer pigs per acre the first year If you have great pastures, meaning lots of forage out there and soil that can handle more pig pressure, you can go up to 20 pigs per acre. While this is a conservative number, it’s better to start a bit under stocked, since you are new, than to have too many pigs for your level of management abilities. 10 market hogs can be raised per acre of pastureġ0 market or finisher sized pigs can be raised per acre of pasture. How Many Pounds Of Feed Do Pigs Need? will give you a good estimate of the amount of feed you should plan on buying, if you’d like to know ahead of time. Wetter ground will show more pig impact than ground that does not sit wet and sandy soils will drain better, showing less pig impact, than the more clay type soils. In the chart above, use the lower numbers for areas with poor pasture production and the higher numbers for areas with good forage growth in the pastures.Īlso, consider the soil in the area you plan to pasture the pigs. The size and type (sow, market hog, feeder pig) of pigs you have combined with the forage production capabilities of your land will determine how many pigs you can have per acre or for five acres. Data from GrassWorks Hog Production Guide ![]() If you are not rotating, this is called set stocking and you will need to plan on less pigs per acre than if you rotated the pastures. These figures are for pastures that are being rotated, meaning the pigs are not on the same pasture the entire year. Type of pigįinishing/Market hogs, 100-200+ pounds each (rotated pastures)įinishing/Market hogs, set stocked pasture (no rotation) If you are not rotating the pigs, you can keep 15-20 finishing pigs on 5 acres, which is 3-4 per acre. If the pigs are rotated through the pasture, you can keep 50 finishing/market size pigs on 5 acres, which is 10 pigs per acre, in a good forage production area. To get started raising some pastured pigs, you need to know the basics, like how many pigs can you have on your acreage. The popularity of home raised pastured pork is on the rise and it’s no wonder, pigs are quick to raise and amazing to eat!
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