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pasture

 
(păs'chər) pronunciation
n.
    1. Grass or other vegetation eaten as food by grazing animals.
    2. Ground on which such vegetation grows, especially that which is set aside for use by domestic grazing animals.
  1. The feeding or grazing of animals.

v., -tured, -tur·ing, -tures.

v.tr.
  1. To herd (animals) into a pasture to graze.
  2. To provide (animals) with pasturage. Used of land.
    1. To graze on (land or vegetation).
    2. To use (land) as pasture.
v.intr.
To graze in a pasture.

idiom:

put out to pasture

  1. To herd (grazing animals) into pasturable land.
  2. InformalTo retire or compel to retire from work or a full workload. To retire or compel to retire from work or a full workload.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin pāstūra, from Latin pāstus, past participle of pāscere, to feed.]

pasturable pas'tur·a·ble adj.
pasturer pas'tur·er n.

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pasture, land used for grazing livestock. Land unsuited for cultivation, e.g., hilly or stony land, may be used as pasture. Tilled land and meadow may be pastured after the crops are removed. Pastures that have been overgrazed and in which such soil-improving practices as liming, fertilizing, and seeding have been neglected lose a part of the feed nutrients required by livestock. Good management of pastures also calls for rotation of animals, because the composition of manure, which affects the nutrients in the soil, varies with the kind of animal being grazed, and also because different animals graze on different species of pasturage plants. Among other requirements are a sufficient water supply, trees to provide shade, and eradication of weeds. Most forage plants seeded in pastures are types of grass or clover. Many are suitable not only for grazing but also for cutting and storage as hay. See also range.


Land with forage plants used for grazing animals.

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pasture

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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: A field of growing grass where horses, cows, and other animals can eat.

pronunciation The animals milled about the pasture instead of staying in the barn.

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The system of management based on the use of pasture as the principal source of dietary energy.

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categories related to 'pasture'

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Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to pasture, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Pasture.

Pasture (from the Latin pastus, past participle of pascere ”to feed”) is land used for grazing.[1] Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs. Pasture is typically grazed throughout the summer, in contrast to meadow which is used for grazing only after being mown to make hay for winter fodder.[2]

Pasture in a wider sense additionally includes rangelands, other unenclosed pastoral systems and land types used by wild animals for grazing or browsing.

Pasture lands in the narrow sense are distinguished from rangelands by being managed through more intensive agricultural practices of seeding, irrigation, and the use of fertilizers, while rangelands grow primarily native vegetation, managed with extensive practices like controlled burning and regulated intensity of grazing.

Soil type, minimum annual temperature, and rainfall are important factors in pasture management.

Prior to the advent of factory farming with its use of "zero-grazing" feeding techniques, pasture was the primary source of food for grazing animals such as cattle and horses. It is still used extensively, particularly in arid regions where pasture land is unsuitable for any other agricultural production. In more humid regions, pasture grazing is exploited extensively for free range and organic farming. It is an important biotic resource.

Grazing cattle on a pasture near Hradec nad Moravicí in Czech Silesia.

Examples of pasture habitats

Sheep out to pasture in arid Snake Valley, near the border of Utah and Nevada

Notes

  1. ^ Merriam-Webster Dictionary pasture
  2. ^ Wikisource-logo.svg "Pasture". New International Encyclopedia. 1905. 

See also



Translations:

Pasture

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - græsning, græsgang
v. tr. - sætte på græs
v. intr. - græsse

idioms:

  • greener pastures    grønnere græsgange
  • pastures new    ny græsgang
  • put out to pasture    sætte på græs

Nederlands (Dutch)
weiland, voeder, grazen, weiden

Français (French)
n. - pré, pâturage, droit de pacage, herbe
v. tr. - faire paître
v. intr. - paître

idioms:

  • greener pastures    changer d'horizons
  • pastures new    changer d'horizons
  • put out to pasture    (lit) mettre au pré ou au pâturage, (fig) mettre à la retraite

Deutsch (German)
n. - Weide(land), Futter
v. - grasen, weiden

idioms:

  • greener pastures    bessere Bedingungen
  • pastures new    etwas Neues
  • put out to pasture    weiden lassen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - βοσκότοπος, λιβάδι, βοσκή
v. - βόσκω

idioms:

  • greener pastures    αιώνιες μονές
  • pastures new    νέες βοσκές, νέα λημέρια
  • put out to pasture    βγάζω για βόσκημα, (μτφ.) αποστρατεύω, συνταξιοδοτώ

Italiano (Italian)
pascolare, pascolo, foraggio

idioms:

  • greener pastures    situazioni migliori
  • pastures new    posizione nuova
  • put out to pasture    pensionare, mandare in pensione

Português (Portuguese)
n. - pastagem (f)
v. - pastorear, pastar

idioms:

  • greener pastures    pastos mais verdes
  • pastures new    situação melhor
  • put out to pasture    levar a pastar

Русский (Russian)
пастись, пастбище, корм

idioms:

  • greener pastures    там, где лучше
  • pastures new    новые горизонты
  • put out to pasture    пасти, отпускать/отправлять на пенсию

Español (Spanish)
n. - prado, dehesa, pasto, forraje, pastura
v. tr. - pastar, pacer, apacentar, pastorear
v. intr. - pastar, pacer, apacentarse

idioms:

  • greener pastures    mejores condiciones, nuevos horizontes
  • pastures new    mejores condiciones, nuevos horizontes
  • put out to pasture    sacar a pastar, echar como a caballo viejo, jubilar, mandar a cuarteles de invierno

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - betesmark
v. - beta

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
牧场, 牧草, 草地, 放牧, 吃草

idioms:

  • greener pastures    好地方, 更好的职位
  • pastures new    好地方, 更好的职位
  • put out to pasture    放牧

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 牧場, 牧草, 草地
v. tr. - 放牧
v. intr. - 吃草

idioms:

  • greener pastures    好地方, 更好的職位
  • pastures new    好地方, 更好的職位
  • put out to pasture    放牧

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 목장, 목초, 야구장(의 외야)
v. tr. - 풀을 뜯기다, 방목하다, 목장으로 쓰다
v. intr. - 풀을 먹다

idioms:

  • put out to pasture    목초지에 내놓다, 처분하다, 은퇴 시키다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 牧草地, 放牧場, 牧草
v. - 放牧する, 食べる

idioms:

  • greener pastures    今より魅力的な場所
  • put out to pasture    引退させる, お払い箱にする

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) مرعى, مرج, رعي (فعل) يرعى, يتخذه مرعى‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮שדה-מרעה, אחו‬
v. tr. - ‮רעה‬
v. intr. - ‮רעה‬


 
 
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American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/ Read more
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