There is a need of information about global warming potential in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)-based organic and conventional farming systems. We evaluated net global warming potential (NGWP) and greenhouse gas intensity (GHGI) in the organic farming system (OFS) using sheep grazing to control weeds without N application and the conventional farming system (CFS) with herbicide, pesticide, and N applications in three crop phases of a 5-yr crop rotation from 2013-2014 to 2015-2016 in the northern Great Plains. Crop phases were winter wheat after lentil (Lens culinaris L.) (W-L), winter wheat after sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis L.) cover crop (W-C), and lentil after winter wheat (L-W) in a 5-yr rotation of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) and sweet clover cover crop intercrop-sweet clover cover crop-winter wheat-lentil-winter wheat. Carbon sequestration rate at the 0-to-120-cm depth from 2009 to 2015 was greater in OFS with W-C than other treatments. The CO2 equivalent of N2O + CH4 fluxes was greater in OFS with L-Wthan other treatments, except in CFS with L-W in 2014-2015 and 2015-2016. The CO2 equivalent of N fertilization was greater in CFS, but CO2 equivalent of CH4 flux due to enteric fermentation from sheep was greater in OFS. Both NGWP and GHGI were lower in OFS with W-C than other treatments. Organic farming system using sheep grazing to manage weeds in winter wheat following cover crop can reduce NGWP and GHGI compared with CFS with chemical inputs in dryland farming.

Sheep (Ovis aries L.) grazing on weeds and crop residue during the fallow period may enhance soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) through urine and faeces returned to the soil. We compared sheep grazing, tillage, and herbicide application as weed management practices on soil total C (STC), total N (STN), ammonium (NH4+)-N, and nitrate (NO3–)-N contents in a dryland 5-year crop rotation from 2012 to 2015 in the northern Great Plains, USA. The treatments were sheep grazing with no chemical input in organic crop production (GO), minimum tillage with chemical inputs (MT), and conventional tillage with no chemical input in organic crop production (TO). The 5-year crop rotation was safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.)/sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis L.) cover crop–sweet clover cover crop–winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–lentil (Lens culinaris L.)–winter wheat. At the 0–1.20 m depth, STC was 14–20 Mg C ha–1 greater in GO than MT and TO, but STN was 2.1–2.2 Mg N ha–1 greater in TO than GO and MT. The NH4+-N and NO3–-N contents were 5–21 kg N ha–1 greater in MT than GO and TO. While STC and STN tended to increase with year for all treatments, NH4+-N and NO3–-N contents varied with treatments and years. Sheep grazing enhanced soil C storage, but had a variable effect on N storage and residual N compared to tillage and herbicide application for weed control.

A 3 yr experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of diet and feeding location on animal performance, carcass characteristics, whole blood counts, and internal parasite burden of lambs assigned to 1 of 4 treatments: 1) confinement fed 71% alfalfa, 18% barley pellet, 5% molasses, 0.013% Bovatec, 6.1% vitamin/mineral package diet (CALF), 2) confinement fed 60% barley, 26% alfalfa pellet, 4% molasses, 2.5% soybean-hi pro, 0.016% Bovatec, 7.4% vitamin/mineral package diet (CBAR), 3) field fed 71% alfalfa, 18% barley pellet, 5% molasses, 0.013% Bovatec, 6.1% vitamin/mineral package diet (FALF), and 4) field fed 60% barley, 26% alfalfa pellet, 4% molasses, 2.5% soybean-hi pro, 0.016% Bovatec, 7.4% vitamin/mineral package diet (FBAR). A year × location interaction was detected for ending body weight (BW), average daily gain (ADG), and dry matter intake (DMI); therefore results are presented by year. In all years, cost of gain and DMI were greater for CALF and FALF than for CBAR and FBAR feed treatments (p ≤ 0.03). In yr 2 and 3 field treatments had greater ending BW and ADG than confinement treatments. For all years, diet did not affect ending BW or ADG. In yr 1 dressing percent and rib eye area were greater for field finished lambs than confinement finished (p ≤ 0.02) and Warner-Bratzler shear force was greater for CALF and FALF (p = 0.03). In yr 2 lambs in FALF and FBAR treatments had greater leg scores and conformation than CALF and CBAR (p = 0.09). In yr 1, FALF had a greater small intestine total worm count than all other treatments. In yr 1, ending Trichostrongyle type egg counts were greater for FALF (p = 0.05). In yr 2, ending Nematodirus spp. egg counts were greater for FALF and lowest for CBAR (p < 0.01). Abomasum Teladorsagia circumcinta worm burden was greater in CALF than all other treatments (p = 0.07) in yr 2. While field finishing lambs with a grain- or forage-based diet we conclude that it is possible to produce a quality lamb product without adverse effects to animal performance, carcass quality or increasing parasite burdens.

Information on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in organic crop production using sheep (Ovis aries L.) grazing to control weeds is lacking. We examined GHG emissions from May 2013 to April 2016 under wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)-based sequences in organic and conventional crop productions in the northern Great Plains. Organic crop production included sheep grazing to control weeds without N application (OCP) and conventional crop production included herbicides, pesticides, and N applications (CCP). Cropping sequences in a 5-yr rotation of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.)/sweetclover cover crop [Melilotus officinalis (L.) Lam.]-sweetclover cover crop-winter wheat-lentil (Lens culinaris L.)-winter wheat were lentil after winter wheat (L-W), winter wheat after sweetclover cover crop (W-C), and winter wheat after lentil (W-L). The CO2 and N2O fluxes peaked immediately after tillage, planting, fertilization, intense precipitation, and snowmelt, but CH4 uptake increased in the autumn. Cumulative CO2 flux was lower with OCP than CCP for W-C in 2014-2015 and for W-L in 2015-2016. Cumulative N2O flux was also lower with OCP than CCP for W-C in 2014-2015, but was greater with OCP than CCP for L-W in 2015-2016. Treatments did not affect cumulative CH4 flux. The global warming potential (GWP) was lower with OCP than CCP for W-C in 2014-2015 and for W-L in 2015-2016. Organic crop production using sheep grazing with no chemical input reduced GHG emissions under winter wheat following clover cover crop or lentil compared with conventional crop production using chemical inputs under lentil following winter wheat.

Diet composed of smaller particles can improve feed intake, digestibility, and animal growth or health, but in ruminant species can reduce rumination and buffering-the loss of which may inhibit fermentation and digestibility. However, the explicit effect of particle size on the rumen microbiota remains untested, despite their crucial role in digestion. We evaluated the effects of reduced particle size on rumen microbiota by feeding long-stem (loose) alfalfa hay compared to a ground and pelleted version of the same alfalfa in yearling sheep wethers during a two-week experimental period. In situ digestibility of the pelleted diet was greater at 48 h compared with loose hay; however, distribution of residual fecal particle sizes in sheep did not differ between the dietary treatments at any time point (day 7 or 14). Both average daily gain and feed efficiency were greater for the wethers consuming the pelleted diet. Observed bacterial richness was very low at the end of the adaptation period and increased over the course of the study, suggesting the rumen bacterial community was still in flux after two weeks of adaptation. The pelleted-hay diet group had a greater increase in bacterial richness, including common fibrolytic rumen inhabitants. The pelleted diet was positively associated with several Succiniclasticum, a Prevotella, and uncultured taxa in the Rumino-coccaceae and Rickenellaceae families and Bacteroidales order. Pelleting an alfalfa hay diet for sheep does shift the rumen microbiome, though the interplay of diet particle size, retention and gastrointestinal transit time, microbial fermentative and hydrolytic activity, and host growth or health is still largely unexplored.

Organic agricultural production has become a major economic and cultural force. However, in water-limited environments the tools used for weed control and nutrient supply, namely tillage and cover crops, may not be environmentally or economically sustainable as tillage damages soil and cover crops use valuable water. Thus, a major challenge has been finding appropriate ways to minimize tillage and terminate cover crops while still controlling weeds and obtaining cover crop ecosystem services. One approach to achieve this is through the economically viable integration of crop and livestock enterprises to manage weeds and terminate cover crops. In this article we (1) review research needs and knowledge gaps in organic agriculture with special focus on water-limited environments; (2) summarize research aimed at developing no-till and reduced tillage in organic settings; ( 3) assess approaches to integrate crop and livestock production in organic systems; and (4) present initial results from a project assessing the agronomic and weed management challenges of integrated crop-livestock organic systems aimed at reducing tillage intensity in a water-limited environment. The goal of eliminating tillage in water-limited environments remains elusive, and more research is needed to successfully integrate tactics, such as cover crops and livestock grazing to increase organic farm sustainability.

Harvested feed costs, particularly during the winter, are traditionally the highest input associated with a ruminant livestock operation. Although swath grazing has been practiced for over 100 years and literature exists for cattle use of swath grazing, no published results are available on use of swath grazing by sheep. Sixty mature, white-faced ewes were used in a completely randomized design repeated 2 years to evaluate whether feeding method (swath grazed or fed as baled hay in confinement) of intercropped field pea ( Pisum sativum L.) and spring barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) forage affected ewe ADG (average daily gain), forage DMI (dry matter intake), and wastage. The study was conducted at Ft. Ellis Research Station in Bozeman, MT during the summers of 2010 and 2011. Each year, 30 ewes were allocated to 3 confinement pens (10 ewes/pen) and 30 ewes were

Sheep (Ovis aries L.) grazing, a cost-effective method of weed control compared with herbicide application and tillage, may influence soil C fractions by consuming crop residue and weeds and returning C through feces and urine to the soil. We examined the effect of three weed management practices (sheep grazing, herbicide application, and tillage) and two cropping sequences (continuous spring wheat [Triticum aestivum L.] [CSW] and spring wheat-pea [Pisum sativum L.]/barley [Hordeum vulgare L.] mixture hay-fallow [W-P/B-F]) on soil microbial biomass C (MBC), potential C mineralization (PCM), and particulate organic C (POC) in relation to soil organic C (SOC) at the 0- to 30-cm depth from 2009 to 2011 in southwestern Montana. The MBC at 0 to 5 cm was greater with tillage on CSW than tillage on W-P/B-F in 2009 and 2011, but was greater with herbicide application on CSW than tillage on CSW in 2010. The POC at 0 to 5 cm and 15 to 30 cm was greater with sheep grazing than herbicide application on CSW and W-P/B-F, but at 5 to 15 cm was greater with grazing on CSW. The MBC, PCM, and POC at all depths decreased from 2009 to 2011. Crop residue incorporation into the soil increased MBC with tillage on CSW. Lower proportions of labile than nonlabile organic matter through feces and urine probably reduced MBC at the soil surface, but increased POC with sheep grazing compared with herbicide application on CSW and W-P/B-F. Sheep grazing may increase coarse soil organic matter compared with microbial biomass in dryland cropping systems.

SummaryUnderstanding how weed communities assemble as a function of biotic and abiotic filters and transform through time has important implications for the sustainable management of agronomic systems. In a three‐year study, we evaluated weed community responses to lucerne (Medicago sativa, perennial) vs. continuous spring wheat (Triticum aestivum, annual, CSW) and weed management practices where weeds in the CSW system were managed with three contrasting approaches (herbicide, tillage or sheep grazing). Our results indicated no differences in weed diversity between the perennial and annual crops or across the different management practices in CSW. However, there were differences in weed community composition. Lucerne, with the exception of the establishing year, impeded the growth and reproduction of several annual weeds, including Amaranthus retroflexus, Thlaspi arvense, Lamium amplexicaule and Chenopodium album, but favoured perennial broad‐leaved weeds such as Taraxacum officinale and Cirsium arvense. The replacement of herbicide treatments in pre‐plant and post‐harvest in CSW with soil tillage or sheep grazing selected for different weed communities beyond the second year of establishment. The weed species driving the differences in CSW systems were Androsace occidentalis, more common in CSW managed chemically; Asperugo procumbens, more common in CSW managed with tillage; and T. officinale and Lactuca serriola, more common in CSW managed with sheep grazing. Understanding how cropping systems modify weed communities is a necessary step to shift from reactive weed control programmes to predictive management strategies.

Crop diversification and integration of livestock into cropping systems may improve the economic and environmental sustainability of agricultural systems. However, few studies have examined the integration of these practices in the semiarid areas of the Northern Great Plains (NGP). A 3‐yr experiment was conducted near Bozeman, MT, to compare the effects of crop rotation diversity and weed management practices imposed during fallow periods [sheep ( Ovis aries ) grazing, reduced tillage, and conventional tillage] on spring wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) yields and weed pressure. Management treatments were applied to replicated whole plots, within which the split‐plots received crop rotation treatments [continuous spring wheat (CSW) and a 3‐yr rotation of annual forage, fallow, and spring wheat, where each phase was present in each year]. In the initial 2 yr, the realized rotational treatments were wheat–fallow and CSW. In the final year, wheat was grown following all phases of the diversified rotation. Yields were similar among management treatments within the wheat–fallow and CSW rotations. Weed pressure was generally low but perennial weeds were more abundant in grazing‐managed, wheat–fallow systems. The integration of livestock into the annual hay crop–fallow–spring wheat rotation was associated with a nearly 30‐fold increase in weed pressure and a yield reduction of 51.2% compared to conventional management. The results suggest that although targeted sheep grazing is a viable alternative to conventional fallow management in CSW and wheat–fallow rotations, successful integration of livestock in diversified cropping systems requires more effective weed management practices.

Previous research has reported high variation in intake of self-fed protein and/or energy supplements by individual animals, however little is known about variation in consumption of mineral supplements. Sixty mature range ewes (non-pregnant, non-lactating) were used in a completely randomized design repeated 2 years to determine if feeding method of intercropped field pea (Pisum sativum L.) and spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) forage (swath grazed or fed as hay in confinement) affected individual ewe mineral consumption. Thirty ewes were allocated to 3 confinement pens (10 ewes/pen) and 30 ewes were allocated to 3 grazing plots (10 ewes/plot). Ewes had ad libitum access to feed, water, and a mineral supplement containing 1% titanium dioxide as an external marker. Forage dry matter intake (DMI) was calculated using estimates of fecal output, and in vitro 48-h for-age DM digestibility. Ewe supplement intake was determined from fecal and supplement Ti concentrations, and fecal output. Forage and mineral intakes were analyzed using ewe as the experimental unit, and plot or pen as the experimental unit for intake variation. A year x treatment interaction (P<0.01) existed for DM forage and mineral intake. Ewes in confinement consumed more forage DM than grazing ewes in 2010, but less than grazing ewes in 2011. Mean mineral intake was highest (P<0.01) by grazing ewes in 2011 and 2010 (average 69 g/day), intermediate by confinement ewes in 2010 (57 g/day), and lowest by confinement ewes in 2011 (31 g/day). A yearxtreatment interaction (P=0.05) existed for mineral intake CV which was higher (P=0.04) for confinement ewes in 2011 (67 vs. 34%), but was not different (P>0.05) between treatments in 2010. In this study, variation in individual ewe intake of mineral supplement was large in both grazing ewes and ewes fed hay in confinement. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Although a number of common reproductive disorders in livestock involve bacterial infection, very little is known about their normal vaginal microbiota. Therefore, we sought to determine the species composition of sheep and cattle vaginal microbiota. Twenty Rambouillet ewes and twenty crossbred cows varying in age and reproductive status were sampled by ectocervicovaginal lavage. We amplified and sequenced the V3-V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA contents yielding a total of 907,667 high-quality reads. Good's Coverage estimates indicated that we obtained data on 98 +/- 0.01 % of the total microbial genera present in each sample. Cow and ewe vaginal microbiota displayed few differences. Cow microbiota exhibited greater (P ≤ 0.05) α-diversity compared to the ewe microbiota. Both livestock species differed (P ≤ 0.05) from all previously reported vaginal communities. While bacteria were numerically dominant, Archaea were detected in 95% of cow and ewe samples, mainly of the order Desulfurococcales. Both ewes and cows were predominately colonized by the bacterial phyla Bacteroidetes, Fusobacteria, and Proteobacteria. The most abundant genera were Aggregatibacter spp., and Streptobacillus spp. Lactobacillus ssp. were detected in 80% of ewe and 90% of cow samples, but only at very low abundances. Bacteria previously described from culture-based studies as common to the cow and ewe vaginal tract, except for Escherichia, were variably present, and only in low abundance. Ewe and cow pH differed (P ≤ 0.05), with means (+/- standard deviation) of 6.7 +/- 0.38 and 7.3 +/- 0.63, respectively. In conclusion, 16S rRNA sequencing of cow and ewe vaginal ectocervicovaginal lavages showed that cow and ewe vaginal microbiota differ from culture-led results, revealing a microbiota distinct from previously described vaginal ecosystems.

Sheep ( Ovis aries L.) grazing, a cost-effective method of weed control compared to herbicide application and tillage, may influence N cycling by consuming crop residue and weeds and returning N through feces and urine to the soil. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effect of sheep grazing compared to tillage and herbicide application for weed control on soil particulate and active soil N fractions in dryland cropping systems. Our hypothesis was that sheep grazing used for weed control would increase particulate and active soil N fractions compared to tillage and herbicide application. Soil samples collected at the 0–30 cm depth from a Blackmore silt loam were analyzed for particulate organic N (PON), microbial biomass N (MBN), and potential N mineralization (PNM) under dryland cropping systems from 2009 to 2011 in southwestern Montana, USA. Treatments were three weed management practices [sheep grazing (grazing), herbicide application (chemical), and tillage (mechanical)] as the main plot and two cropping sequences [continuous spring wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.; CSW) and spring wheat–pea ( Pisum sativum L.)/barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) mixture hay–fallow; W–P/B–F] as the split-plot factor arranged in randomized complete block with three replications. The PON and MBN at 0–30 cm were greater in the chemical or mechanical than the grazing treatment with CSW. The PNM at 15–30 cm was greater in the chemical or mechanical than the grazing treatment in 2009 and 2011 and at 5–15 cm was greater with W–P/B–F than CSW in 2010. From 2009 to 2011, PON at 0–30 cm and PNM at 15–30 cm reduced from 2 to 580 kg N ha −1 year −1 in the grazing and chemical treatments, but the rate varied from −400 to 2 kg N ha −1 year −1 in the mechanical treatment. Lower amount of labile than nonlabile organic matter returned to the soil through feces and urine probably reduced soil active and coarse organic matter N fractions with sheep grazing compared to herbicide application and tillage for weed control. Reduction in the rate of decline in N fractions from 2009 to 2011 compared to the herbicide application treatment, however, suggests that sheep grazing may stabilize N fractions in the long-term if the intensity of grazing is reduced. Animal grazing may reduce soil N fractions in annual cropping systems in contrast to known increased fractions in perennial cropping systems.

Sweep net sampling of spring and winter wheat (Triticum spp.) was conducted in 2007 and 2008 at the Fort Ellis Research and Extension Center, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT to determine hymenoptera parasitoid family composition, abundance, and diversity in two wheat-fallow cropping systems managed by either tillage, herbicides, or domestic sheep (Ovis aries) grazing. Eleven hymenopteran families classified as parasitoids were captured in 2007 and 16 families in 2008. The mean abundance of parasitoids was greatest (P <= 0.05) in crops where the fallow component of the rotation was managed with sheep grazing, as opposed to tillage and herbicide systems. Family diversity, as indexed by Simpson's D, did not differ between fallow management treatments (P = 0.88) or cropping system (P = 0.74) but did differ between study year (P <= 0.01).

Sheep (Ovis aries L.) grazing is an inexpensive method of weed control in dryland cropping systems, but little is known about its effect on net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. We evaluated the effect of sheep grazing compared with herbicide application for weed control on GHG (CO2, N2O, and CH4) emissions from May to October 2010 and 2011, net global warming potential (GWP), and greenhouse gas intensity (GHGI) in a silt loam under dryland cropping systems in western Montana. Treatments were two fallow management practices (sheep grazing [GRAZ] and herbicide application [CHEM]) and three cropping sequences (continuous alfalfa [Medicago sativa L.] [CA], continuous spring wheat [Triticum aestivum L.] [CSW], and spring wheat–pea [Pisum sativum L.]/barley [Hordeum vulgaris L.] hay–fallow [W‐P/B‐F]). Gas fluxes were measured at 3‐ to 14‐d intervals with a vented, static chamber. Regardless of treatments, GHG fluxes peaked immediately following substantial precipitation (>12 mm) and N fertilization mostly from May to August. Total CO2 flux from May to October was greater under GRAZ with CA, but total N2O flux was greater under CHEM and GRAZ with CSW than other treatments. Total CH4 flux was greater with CA than W‐P/B‐F. Net GWP and GHGI were greater under GRAZ with W‐P/B‐F than most other treatments. Greater CH4 flux due to increased enteric fermentation as a result of longer duration of grazing during fallow, followed by reduced crop residue returned to the soil and/or C sequestration rate probably increased net GHG flux under GRAZ with W‐P/B‐F. Sheep grazing on a cropping sequence containing fallow may not reduce net GHG emissions compared with herbicide application for weed control on continuous crops.

Sheep (Ovis aries L.) grazing, a cost-effective method of controlling weeds compared to herbicide application and tillage, may influence soil C and N levels by consuming plant residue and returning feces and urine to the soil, but little is known about the practice on soil C and N storage under dryland cropping systems in the northern Great Plains, USA. Three weed control practices [sheep grazing (GRAZ), herbicide application (CHEM), and tillage (MECH)] and three cropping sequences [continuous alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) (CA), continuous spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) (CSW), and spring wheat-pea (Pisum sativum L.)/barley (Hordeum vulgaris L.) hay mixture-fallow (W-P/B-F)] were evaluated on a Blackmore silt loam from 2009 to 2011 in southwestern Montana, USA. Crop yields and soil organic C (SOC), total N (STN), NH4-N, and NO3-N contents at the 0–120cm depth were quantified. Annualized spring wheat grain and biomass (stems+leaves) yields and C and N contents were greater with CSW than with W-P/B-F, but hay biomass and C content were similar between CA and W-P/B-F. While C and N in aboveground biomass after spring wheat and hay harvest were removed through haying in CHEM and MECH, sheep grazing removed about 99% of these elements in GRAZ. The SOC and STN at 5–15cm were greater with CSW or W-P/B-F than with CA in GRAZ and MECH, but SOC at 30–60cm was greater with CA than with CSW in MECH. The NH4-N content at most depths varied among treatments and years, but NO3-N content at 5–120cm was greater with CSW and W-P/B-F than with CA. Longer duration of sheep grazing during fallow periods due to increased return of C and N through feces and urine or residue incorporation to a greater depth probably increased soil C and N storage at the surface layer with CSW and W-P/B-F in GRAZ and MECH, but increased root biomass likely increased C storage at the subsurface layer with CA in MECH. Absence of N fertilization and/or greater N uptake probably reduced soil NO3-N level with CA than with other cropping sequences. Regardless of treatments, SOC and STN declined from 2009 to 2011, probably due to residue removal from haying and grazing. Moderate sheep grazing during fallow periods can be used to increase soil C and N storage, obtain farm C credit, and sustain dryland crop yields compared to herbicide application for weed control in the semiarid regions.

The two predominant systems for weed management in summer fallow are tillage with a field cultivator or multiple applications of broad spectrum herbicides with zero tillage. Both systems are based on substantial use of off farm resources. Our objective was to determine if strategic grazing of sheep may allow grain growers to more sustainably manage crop residues, volunteer crop, and other weeds during fallow periods. We conducted a study near Bozeman, Montana, USA, comparing three fallow weed management systems in two crop rotations from 2005 to 2008. Fallow weed management systems were conventional tillage, chemical-fallow (herbicide application), and sheep grazing. The crop rotations were summer fallow–spring wheat and summer fallow–winter wheat. In late fall, chemical-fallow treatment had greater residue cover and soil water content than did tilled- or grazed-fallow. At 0–15-cm depth, soil had lower bulk density in chemical- and tilled-fallow than in grazed fallow. Similarly, soil NO3-N, Ca, SO4-S concentrations and EC were lower following grazed-fallow than tilled-fallow, but Na concentration was higher following grazed-fallow than tilled- or chemical-fallow. Following spring and winter wheat, soil properties were not influenced by treatments. Grain yield was greater in winter wheat than in spring wheat but the trend reversed in protein concentration. Although soil properties varied among treatments, fallow management system had little influence on yield or quality of spring and winter wheat. Sheep grazing during fallow periods had limited impact on subsequent wheat yield and quality, and is a suitable practice for weed and residue management in wheat–fallow systems.