Mike Swidersky
Dufferin County
Been farming since 2001. Farm primarily by myself but supported by my wife Amber who has an on farm cut flower business and 2 teenage children. I grow 100% perennial pasture. I grow no hay or crops. I have a flock of Around 400 ewes which are raised on pasture 12 mounts of the year. They are fed supplemental feed for about 130 days. I also Graze 150 steers or heifers. Our pastures are managed quite intensely. In the fall I collaborate with a neighbour to graze their cover crops. I also manage the local community pasture. Grey Dufferin Community Pasture. For fertility we apply manure and purchased municipal compost.For close to 20 years have been intensively grazing cattle. Over time the rest days have been lengthened from 30 to 60+ days. Leaving more residual and larger root systems resulted in stronger plants and even more plant diversity over time. This has allowed us to weather drought and excess moisture quite easily. When we added sheep our grass and general resilience improved even more. Our animal days/acre have doubled over the years. Soil organic matter has slowly risen as well. Stock is moved every one to 3 days depending on the desired management.