Being stewards means paying attention to one critical element: the grass! One of the first things I learned from other cattleman when I began as a cattlewoman is that if I wanted to be a good rancher, I’d have to be a good grass farmer. And how right they were. Grass is the lifeblood of maintaining a healthy brood cow. The diet of the typical brood cow is all forage, plus some minerals supplemented if necessary. In less desirable circumstances, the cow will eat the forage in the Florida scrub or swamps.