Hi! Thanks for sharing your situation, bringing a pasture back into production can be really rewarding, especially with rotational grazing. You’re right that stocking rates can vary widely depending on soil fertility, pasture species, management, and local climate.

For Ohio-like climates, general guidelines often suggest 1.5–2 cows per acre of well-managed, high-quality pasture for full-season grazing, but this can shift depending on the pasture condition and how aggressively you rotate your paddocks. Some farmers with very fertile pastures and intensive rotational systems can push closer to 2.5–3 cows per acre for short periods, but that requires close monitoring of forage growth, soil health, and animal condition.

Key things to consider:

• Pasture recovery: Allow adequate rest for regrowth; a typical rotational schedule might be 20–30 days per paddock in spring/summer.

• Supplemental feed: If your pasture is still establishing or during low-growth periods, extra forage or TMR may be needed.

• Soil fertility: Soil tests and proper fertilization can dramatically improve stocking capacity.

• Monitoring: Keep an eye on cow condition, pasture height, and ground cover to avoid overgrazing.

For research-based guidance, check out resources from Ohio State University Extension or the University of Kentucky Forage Systems, which include region-specific stocking rate tables and rotational grazing recommendations: Determining the Grazing Intensity and Move Frequency for Your Rotational Grazing System | Ohioline, ID-143: Rotational Grazing, Managing Spring Grass Growth and Selective Grazing | Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter, Forage Focus: The Basics of Pasture Grazing Rotations | Ohio BEEF Cattle Letter, Determining Carrying Capacity and Stocking Rates for Range and Pasture in North Dakota R1810

The research you shared is actually very educational, and I remember frw years back on a business trip I was introduced to the Ohio University's research behind this and it turned out to be one of the best papers regarding the topic. props to that