Best Cattle Farming and Grazing Management Guide 1580-1660 | Modern Livestock Rearing Techniques for Dairy & Beef Production | Ranch & Farm Use

Historical rabbit holes, for those who are inclined.

These slender booklets from Historical Management Associates are the work of an organization dedicated to historical re-enactment in the UK. They are written with a stickler’s attention to historical precision and a conviction that nothing is too arcane to investigate. Some of the books are simple transcriptions of period manuscripts; others represent significant original research, as in Cattle Farming and Grazing Management, which is 52 pages long but cites 36 sources, many of them published in the 17th century.

From the introduction:

“This book endeavours to establish the system of production on the farm of beef and dairy cattle… There was a clear division in the farmer’s mind between the management of the cattle and the processing of the milk in the dairy. Tusser clearly states that the farmer’s role was to provide the cow and the wife’s to run the dairy. Following this division the book does not consider the method of processing dairy products although there is some consideration of yields.”

Chapters include Breeds, Purchase and leasing cattle, Breeding, Use of Cattle Draught, Grazing, Winter Accomodation, Diseases and their Treatment.

Staplebound pamphlet. 52 pages