Originally shared on October 23, 2025 on RealAgriculture by Bernard Tobin.
Pasture is king at Riverview Ranch in Melancthon, Ont., where sheep farmer Mike Swidersky and his family run a flock of 650 ewes.
On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Profitable Practices, Swidersky shares how he and neighbouring grain farmers have used the pasture created by late-season cover crops to generate high-quality feed for the sheep. It also enhances the soil health of cash crop land to produce higher-yielding, more resilient crops.
In the video, Swidersky shows host Bernard Tobin how his flock leapfrogs across a 200-acre field of red clover cover crop that has grown rapidly after winter wheat harvest. With help from portable net fencing, Swidersky rotates the flock through the field from September through December to gain up to 120 days of cover crop feeding on high quality forage.
The idea took root about 15 years ago. After a dry year, when forage was short and cash crop yields were poor, Swidersky and a neighbouring farmer struck a deal that would see the flock rotate across fields feeding on a cover crop that would also enhance soil health and organic matter to make cash crop production more resilient and productive. The cover crop also plays a key role in weed control and managing soil erosion.
Swidersky now works with two progressive cash crop neighbours to access high-quality forage that makes his sheep operation more profitable and sustainable. He says his partners are also seeing the benefits of the partnership, with better soil health helping to drive strong crop yields following cover crops on what is often not their best land.
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