7 acres of thistles. Help!

[spacie1977]

I've just bought a 7 acre field to keep my horses on. The land has been left for years (no grazing or maintenance apart from the occasional cut to stop the grass getting too long). So it's not been looked after in terms of irradicating weeds, and at the moment it's 2/3 thistles.

I've never needed to manage grazing before so have no idea where to start with getting rid of the stuff. What's the most effective and economical way I can turn it all back to healthy grazing?

There's way too much to pull by hand and I'm guessing unless I get the whole root that'll be pointless anyway.
I don't mind spending a day spraying by hand if that's the best option. But wonder how effective it'll be. Should I just get a farmer to plough and reseed it all? No doubt it'll be expensive but the horses won't need to be on it for a few months. Will sheep get rid of it if they graze on it for a few months?

Reading up a bit on sprays, I apparently need a spraying certificate for some if using a knapsack, and some sprays aren't legal to use in a knapsack at all :-(

To complicate things, the field is close to a stream so there's certain chemicals I won't be able to use near that (unless I just spray the top end of the field?)

What should I do?

 

[s4sugar]

get a farmer/contractor to top it.

Thistles actually make good forage so you could have them baled as hay.

If you top a few times they should recuce. Many horses love them once wilted.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Talk to a local farmer about having it sprayed with Headland Polo. They will use a sprayer mounted on the tractor and will keep the correct distance away from the stream. It won't be too expensive, I paid £80 to have 4 1/2 acres sprayed this year and I now have one solitary bit of ragwort growing on the sprayed section, the rest is clear of weeds. This land not only very steep, but has a stream at the bottom and a drainage ditch too. He just left an unsprayed border, which gives me a lot less weeding to do.

Things that you will have to bear in mind though include what time of year to spray so that it is more effective and resting the field for the correct time before putting horses on it.

http://www.progreen.co.uk/Weed-kill...-For-Paddocks/Headland-Polo-10LT/prod_26.html

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I would ask a local farmer/contractor to cut the field and then borrow some sheep to sort it out. They will have your thistles sorted out in no time.

Horses do enjoy nibbling on thistles but I certainly wouldn't want to give them hay made up entirely of them!

To keep your grazing in good condition, it would be useful to borrow the sheep for a few months every year.

 

[Red-1]

When we moved in the field was so bad with buttercups it looked like a waving field of Rape, pretty but not what I wanted, and the thistles were bad enough that they broke the local farmer's topper!

Take heart OP, we topped regularly, sprayed with Grazon (I think- it was a long time ago), with a knapsack sprayer, and now Voilà, no thistles. There are still some buttercups, but topping alone seems to keep them at bay, and we just walk round with a knapsack once a year or so.

 

[crabbymare]

I would get it topped asap so that the seeds do not get to fly everywhere or get ploughed into the soil as they will be about ready to go now. then divide it and have the worst part sprayed while you use the other part and then spray the other part in spring. if you have them ploughed in you have seeds that will just make more and will have to wait for the grass to be seeded and come through to the point where it can be grazed which will be a lot longer until you can use it

 

[be positive]

Thistles will be very much reduced if topped before they flower, I had a large area of one field being taken over by them but getting them cut back before the flowers have seeded has eradicated them almost completely within one year, I have just walked round that area and am surprised that they have not come back, far easier than spraying or pulling, it should be a good time to do it if you get on to it now.

 

[jrp204]

Top the field, allow the thistles to start growing back then hit them Grazon or PastorPro, you may need to do it again in the spring.

 

[cobgoblin]

Top it regularly and the thistles will keep reducing. It's helpful that the horses eat the flower heads before they seed.

 

[3OldPonies]

Thistles will be very much reduced if topped before they flower, I had a large area of one field being taken over by them but getting them cut back before the flowers have seeded has eradicated them almost completely within one year, I have just walked round that area and am surprised that they have not come back, far easier than spraying or pulling, it should be a good time to do it if you get on to it now.

So pleased to hear this bit of news - H has been busy topping the thistles for me, he seems to have a passion for the flowers and I was hoping it might set them back a bit or even kill them!

 

[OWLIE185]

Get them sprayed off initially.
When dead get them cut and collected and removed off site this will avoid the seeds getting in to the ground).
Get the soil analysed to determine what deficiencies there are.
Cultivate the soil. (This can involve ploughing or alternatively just preparing the surface).
Add lime if required by soil analysis.
Sow with grass at the end of August/September.
(Be careful to choose grass that is to your requirements).
Use a grassland specialist and not a farmer).

 

[spacie1977]

Get them sprayed off initially.
When dead get them cut and collected and removed off site this will avoid the seeds getting in to the ground).
Get the soil analysed to determine what deficiencies there are.
Cultivate the soil. (This can involve ploughing or alternatively just preparing the surface).
Add lime if required by soil analysis.
Sow with grass at the end of August/September.
(Be careful to choose grass that is to your requirements).
Use a grassland specialist and not a farmer).

Thanks Owlie I am planning on doing a soil analysis, and already know it tends to be deficient in magnesium in my area. Do you know what the soil deficiencies encourage thistles to grow? Or whether there's anything in particular that makes them really thrive (which I can then try to counteract)?

 

[jrp204]

A low pH will allow weeds to thrive so before reseeding or spending too much on sprays it is worth getting a test done and adding lime or sand to get the pH up. Once the pH is right the grass will stand a better chance of out competing the weeds which will include thistles, buttercups & nettles

 

[charlie76]

Ours was like that when we first moved in, we topped the fields and have had a strict rotation on them and we now have no thistles , just lots and lots of grass.

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

There is a machine for the purpose, its a "thistlebuster", involves whirling chains. I would find a farmer, ask for his assistance, give him free grazing for about ten sheep and two cattle for the summer. Job done.
Do not consider ploughing, unless it has many other problems, even then try the eco friendly approach first, which will also be much cheaper.
It is very likely you will end up with a proper "old pasture" if you manage it my way!
A few thistles are fine, my boy loves them and so do the birds.
Use a farmer, not a grassland specialist . Tell him you want an old meadow, not a ryegrass field for milk production.
If you must spend money, make sure the drainage is maintained. Old ditches can be re-newed for example using a mini digger.
Grass has tolerance of growth in acid conditions, we have a lot of grass in Scotland which is never limed, but if you find yourself short of grass, then check the pH and lime if very acid. Otherwise a fertiliser will do the job. You will not be able to use sand to alter the field conditions unless you happen to own a sand quarry!

 

[suestowford]

We had thistles in a field when we bought it. I put my pony out on it and we don't have them any more because he eats them
I have considered hiring him out!

 

[pottamus]

When I took my field on it was pure shoulder height thistle and dock. I got the farmer to cut and bale it for his cattle. For the first 3 years I sprayed it each spring and that got rid of the majority of them. Each year the field was topped which stopped the spread of seeds and weakened the weeds. I am now left with a field of meadow grass and the docks in existence can be chopped by hand...perhaps a barrow full at most.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Topping and sheep will make a huge difference!

When we moved in here 23 yrs ago now, our 10 acre field had loads of them - and that summer we as a family went out with hand sprayers and blitzed the blighters. Hard work, but worth it.

There's a piece of wisdom which an old farmer (now sadly deceased) shared with me. It is...... (regarding thistles)........ "do 'em in May and they'll stay; do 'em in June and its too soon; do 'em in July and they'll die"...........

The other old saying I've heard is that if you suspect that a thunderstorm or heavy rain is imminent; then that is the best time to top them - because the rain will come down and flood the plant, and it will die as will become waterlogged.

 

[jrp204]

Our sheep will not thistles at any stage, we've topped and grazed since reseeding the field 3 years ago but have had to spray them with Pastor which will be repeated in the spring.

 

[Gloi]

We used to have a field of thistles. We have none now. The ponies loved them and would stamp on them and mash them up before eating them.

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

A few thistles are very attractive, proper Scottish ones anyway.