Clear land with grazing
If you are grazing to clear your land, you need to consider when to do it and the risks involved.
When should I graze?
If your land is pastoral, you may look to graze intensively with livestock before planting. This will reduce grass length and make it easier to plant through.
Your seedlings will start to grow in the spring. You may not need to do any additional clearing if the seedlings have shot up and are competing against the cover.
If your seedlings have not shot up, you may need to do some releasing (applying herbicides or hand weeding) to help get your trees established. Our Agrichemical spraying page has more information on maintenance after planting.
Risks with grazing
There are risks with animal grazing. If you continue grazing after planting, animals may eat, rub on, or trample your seedlings. This approach is possible, but it carries a high chance of damage. It is strongly recommended not to post graze your indigenous or plantation forestry, as you can expect damages. You need to weigh whether the marginal grazing value justifies your ETS, harvest income losses and any compromised tree growth or survival.
To reduce the risk, you need to:
- space planted poplars - ensure plants are established enough to handle grazing pressure
- monitor the level of tree damage daily
- be careful with the stock you use (sheep are usually less damaging than cattle)
If you have sprayed and recently planted, you should wait before putting stock back in. For species like space‑planted poplars, grazing should only resume once the trees are well established. They need to be able to withstand stock pressure.