Pasture Management

[Wildsky]

I need to do something with our little bit, more weeds than anything else.

I'm thinking of just getting seeds and tossing em out and hope for the best.

 

[bibliophile birds]

i would heartily second the rotational pasturing. it's something we are working on at the moment, but with 50 horses and 20 cows it's a bit of a headache. for the past several years, our pastures have been completely abused by my extremely short-sighted aunt (by marriage) who couldn't care less when we have to purchase hay in the winter and are starting to have erosion problems (she's runs the equestrian school and has been given a lot of unnecessary free reign in matters she doesn't understand).

what you want to think about with grass is it's optimal growth time (see page three of this article). that will change over the seasons, but in early spring it's around 14 days. ideally then, each blade of grass would be cut (mowed or eaten) every 14 days.

optimal growth:

day 1: the blade of grass is cut. grass balances it blade and it's roots, so the plant kills off most of the roots, which then become food for the organisms in the soil and make GREAT fertilizer.

days 2 & 3: nothing should be allowed on the grass during these days. the grass will immediately begin rebuilding the blade and the roots.

day 4: if you have chickens, you can run them on the grass on this day. the short grass is easier for them to eat than larger blades and they will decimate the horse/cow poop. this will basically rid your paddocks of parasites AND spread the ruminant poop around nicely, fertilizing the field even more and spreading any seeds in it. plus, the chicken poop will help fix nitrogen in the soil.

days 5-13: nothing should be allowed on the grass during these days. the grass will grow rapidly, sending out new roots.

day 14/ day 1: this the the last day of optimal growth. after this day, the blades will begin to get woody (less appetizing and digestible) and the weeds will go to seed. this is the day you want to reintroduce the horses or mow the grass. the cycle will start over and the grass will continually get stronger and the soil will be AMAZING.

as the others were saying, free choice grazing is terrible on paddocks as the good grasses get decimated before they can reach their optimal growth and weeds get left alone to take over.

here's what you could do:

1. invest in some movable electric fencing (you could go with 1 or 2 strands of hotwire probably). depending on your paddock set up and your access to electricity, you might need to splurge on a solar fence charger or just a couple car batteries (these can power a regular fence charger for at least a day and you can recharge them).

2. you want to break the paddock into a rotational grid. you are aiming for sections that are just large enough to be grazed pretty completely in a single day. ideally, you would have 13 sections that they would rotate through in a continual pattern, but that may not work out. it'll take some trial and error to figure out the right size/rotation but it'll be a great big help in the end. you could perhaps divide the field into this management-intensive grazing section and then whatever is left you could do some of the other suggestions about manure spreading.

3. you want to move the horses onto fresh pasture at the end of every day. this way the freshly grazed section is protected from those heavy hooves while it is vulnerable. you simply set up the next section with the electric fencing (which shouldn't take too long), let the horses onto the fresh grass, supply some water, and you're done!

like everything else that is good for us and our land, this is a major chore at first. once you get the right rotations figured out though, it's pretty easy and well worth it.

 

[Buster]

i would heartily second the rotational pasturing. it's something we are working on at the moment, but with 50 horses and 20 cows it's a bit of a headache. for the past several years, our pastures have been completely abused by my extremely short-sighted aunt (by marriage) who couldn't care less when we have to purchase hay in the winter and are starting to have erosion problems (she's runs the equestrian school and has been given a lot of unnecessary free reign in matters she doesn't understand).

what you want to think about with grass is it's optimal growth time (see page three of this article). that will change over the seasons, but in early spring it's around 14 days. ideally then, each blade of grass would be cut (mowed or eaten) every 14 days.

optimal growth:

day 1: the blade of grass is cut. grass balances it blade and it's roots, so the plant kills off most of the roots, which then become food for the organisms in the soil and make GREAT fertilizer.

days 2 & 3: nothing should be allowed on the grass during these days. the grass will immediately begin rebuilding the blade and the roots.

day 4: if you have chickens, you can run them on the grass on this day. the short grass is easier for them to eat than larger blades and they will decimate the horse/cow poop. this will basically rid your paddocks of parasites AND spread the ruminant poop around nicely, fertilizing the field even more and spreading any seeds in it. plus, the chicken poop will help fix nitrogen in the soil.

days 5-13: nothing should be allowed on the grass during these days. the grass will grow rapidly, sending out new roots.

day 14/ day 1: this the the last day of optimal growth. after this day, the blades will begin to get woody (less appetizing and digestible) and the weeds will go to seed. this is the day you want to reintroduce the horses or mow the grass. the cycle will start over and the grass will continually get stronger and the soil will be AMAZING.

as the others were saying, free choice grazing is terrible on paddocks as the good grasses get decimated before they can reach their optimal growth and weeds get left alone to take over.

here's what you could do:

1. invest in some movable electric fencing (you could go with 1 or 2 strands of hotwire probably). depending on your paddock set up and your access to electricity, you might need to splurge on a solar fence charger or just a couple car batteries (these can power a regular fence charger for at least a day and you can recharge them).

2. you want to break the paddock into a rotational grid. you are aiming for sections that are just large enough to be grazed pretty completely in a single day. ideally, you would have 13 sections that they would rotate through in a continual pattern, but that may not work out. it'll take some trial and error to figure out the right size/rotation but it'll be a great big help in the end. you could perhaps divide the field into this management-intensive grazing section and then whatever is left you could do some of the other suggestions about manure spreading.

3. you want to move the horses onto fresh pasture at the end of every day. this way the freshly grazed section is protected from those heavy hooves while it is vulnerable. you simply set up the next section with the electric fencing (which shouldn't take too long), let the horses onto the fresh grass, supply some water, and you're done!

like everything else that is good for us and our land, this is a major chore at first. once you get the right rotations figured out though, it's pretty easy and well worth it.

Excellent post. I agree with everything bib bird said.

 

[Beekissed]

You might also mix your grazing animals...they say that sheep, cattle, geese are great together, as they all eat different species of grass and at different levels.

The pugging you speak of that is done by horses and cows can actually be beneficial during peak grazing times but not so good in the drought or winter time. Pugging breaks up the grass crowns and causes some of the roots to die, returning carbonaceous material to the soil and promotes new root growth. New roots, better nutritional uptake.

Over pugging, however, is NOT so beneficial, as mentioned before. Rotational grazing is perfect to prevent over pugging of grass crowns.

 

[Farmfresh]

Also SOME pugging can be used to your benefit. Overseeding on pugged ground can actually help some kinds of pasture grass seeds germinate better!

 

[Buster]

I guess the only thing I would add is to emphasize that it is important to let overgrazed pasture rest. Ours was terribly overgrazed and I thought I was going to have to work like crazy building it back up.

But, we mostly just let it rest for the last couple of years and it has made a remarkable comeback, all on its own.

I would also recommend using several varieties of native grasses that have evolved to survive in your area rather than imported highly developed stuff. Avoid monocultures at all cost. Mix some legumes in with your grasses, preferably those that are also natives, to build up the nitrogen in your soil.

Go to an auction and buy a good used riding mower and mow instead of graze for a while. I have decided for our 8 acres we don't need a tractor. I realize it will eventually burn up our riding mower, but it will take a lot of them at $400 a pop to equal even a used tractor. When I do mow, it is set at its highest setting.

Something I haven't tried yet but plan to is to get some rotten hay and spread it thickly on the worst areas and let it sheet compost. That was suggested to us at a Sierra Club program and I found it very intriguing. I would again want it to consist of native, untreated grasses. That alone should help to build up the soil.

 

[freemotion]

I read somewhere that you can seed for free by spreading the sweeping under the stacks of hay bales, which will contain a lot of seeds.

You can mow with a scythe best if the grass is wet, unlike using a machine to mow it. An hour of mowing early, when the dew is on the grass, and unless you are mowing a large field, it is quite enjoyable. I really am in touch with my pasture plants and condition in a much more intimate way now. I take a week to get my 2 acres done, working a bit every day so I don't get too sore...and don't have to get up too early to catch the dew.

 

[Buster]

Scythe would be great! I'm not sure I could mow almost 8 acres with it, but it is definitely an idea.

I also want to second the suggestion of running chickens on it. They produce some high nitrogen fertilizer without being too hard on the grass. Perhaps running broilers in some pasture broiler pens (AKA chicken tractors) would be a cheap way to both build up your soil and get some good meat for the table!

 

[Beekissed]

I know folks don't really think fescues are good grass but I've found that, in the fall, my sheep really mowed them down and became quite rotund on them. Earlier in the year they wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole.

I've read that they have a better nutritive value in the cool fall weather....think Salatin said that.

 

[freemotion]

Buster, if you are intensively grazing enough stock on your acreage, you may not need to mow eight acres. Just touch-ups. I am hoping to mow less as my goat herd increases. I did put up some gorgeous hay, but had to drag it into the barn on a tarp. I'd like to build a stack one day, right in the field. Or a shed to stuff the hay into. Maybe a pallet shed....