A question about EVIL ragwort!

[Rudey]

Where I keep my horses, our farmers land is surrounded by 4 different farmers that do not control the ragwort on their land quickly, efficiently or effectively. Unfortunately, as ragwort does, it keeps spreading - more and more onto our farm. Every year our ragwort has gotten progressively worse.

Our farmer has contacted the farmers and politely asked them to deal with their ragwort problems. One farmer has horses on his land and got his liveries to raggy pull and clear their field. Two others topped theirs. The other farmer has refused to touch his as he had some sort of rare wild life nestling in his field and he didn't want to disturb it.

I do appreciate we are within our rights to report the surrounding land owners to DEFRA. However, this isn't the approach our farmer is wanting to take as he would like to remain amicable with his neighbours. But, if the problems persist, and our land keeps being reseeded by their lack of control of ragwort, it may be a course of action our farmer has to no choice but to consider.

We have had a real battle this year keeping ontop of raggy pulling our fields. At one point it appeared that we had won the battle. With all of this recent rain, sunny spells and mild weather; the ragwort has returned with a vegence!! *SCREAMS and pulls hair out!!*

Is there a time of year when ragwort stops growing/spreading seeds/dies off? Or does it grow and flower all year round? It seems never ending this year! xx

 

[PeterNatt]

The only way you will kill the ragwort is by spraying it.
Pulling ragwort only removes the plant and flowers above soil. Unfortunately the roots will re-generate to form new plants (even if only a minute filament of the root remains). Ragwort flowers every second year so in the year it does not flower it will still be there but more difficult to identify.
If your farmer does not wish to take action against the adjoining land owners then you will just have to spray the Ragwort. Ragwort tends to be easiest to spot when it flower between May and September.

 

[Rudey]

Thank you for your response Peter. Previous years the farmer sprayed all of the fields, and we didn't raggy pull until last year and this year. We have invested in raggy forks, so we do our best to get the roots, but I appreciate you don't always manage to get all of the root.

This year where the ragwort was at its thickest, around the surrounding land borders, our farmer has been spraying but has asked us to continue raggy pulling.

We have two fields per herd and rotate them. About three weeks ago we rotated the herd my two are in. The field appeared clear of ragwort. Now the horses have grazed the field down abit, we are coming across it again! Damn stuff. It's flaming awful! I hate it! xx

 

[teasle]

I dont think you ever completely get rid of ragwort,thereis so much about. You may not see it in dec,jan or feb, but it will be back in the spring. You just have to plod on, doing a bit each day as you find it. About 4 years ago we started using a field that was full of ragwort,we sectioned off a bit, cleared it , and then let the horses on it,and as we cleared ,we gave them more field. It was hard work all summer,we cleared it with forks,no chemicals,but clear it we did. The next year was as bad,but clear it we did. Now we will find some ragwort,but so so so much less. However it is in the environment and a nearbye field that never used to have ragwort is now full of it ,so it will continue to be a problem and we will have to continue to work hard clearing it.

 

[Dubsie]

I think the dry weather followed by the damper and mild Autumn has exacerbated the ragwort problem. OH sprays our every year as we abut a (public, council owned) park where they let the grass/ragwort grow round the edges (and never cut or pull or spray it despite an almost annual email requesting they do) as we always grew the grass for hay.

This year we've had some appear in the autumn despite the annual spraying, and our neighbour's field we cut for hay was so dry we couldn't cut anything - yet it flourished a crop of ragwort. .