Bark under straw?

[spotty_pony]

So we are currently having a lot of trees chopped down at home and are using the bark to resurface outside the stables/on the way to the field and I am going to attempt to put some in the field gateways to hopefully soak up some of the mud as a temporary measure. I am considering using some of it under the straw in the stables to soak up the wet. Has anyone else done this before? I an just concerned about them eating it, but I will make sure the bark comes from the trees which aren't poisonous if I do use it. We are having a lot of Yew chopped down which I know is a big no so am just using that in the walkways but we do have an ash tree being chopped down in a few days time so thinking if using that. Thoughts please.

 

[rabatsa]

It will all churn up to mud/yuk as the bark rots.

 

[spotty_pony]

It will all churn up to mud/yuk as the bark rots.

yes I know, hence it being a temporary measure. I am asking more about the use of it under straw than the gateways.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Please don't use yew bark even in walkways, it remains quite toxic for a long time! It's not just leaves but wood and bark too.
Every piece needs to be carefully removed. You can't risk even a small piece getting into a field or a pony stopping to nibble, even weeks down the line

 

[PurBee]

Ive used bark for outside muddy areas, quite big slices, spruce from forestry dept. - even that rotted within a year and i had more mud than ever!

For under straw, if they’re really thin strips they’ll soak somewhat, but large chips, the pee will just drain through them to the floor, as theyre not very absorbant.
But if you wanted to make a deep longterm bed, you could put 10 bags pellets underneath to expand as they soak pee, then a few inches of bark chip, then straw.

Just as an aside and a heads up just in case its relevant to you : if you’re felling trees on land rather than from your garden a tree felling licence/permission is required for mature trees. Trees with a diameter above 10cm. Just a heads up in case you have neighbours likely to complain! Further info from the forestry dept uk.gov website is available if it applies to you.
Arborists will undertake work without checking with owners that permission is granted by forestry dept. , so owners aren’t aware there’s laws either, and many cases per year get ‘reported’.

 

[cauda equina]

I don't think bark under straw will soak up wet, it's not porous or absorbent
It would probably just be lumpy and slippery

 

[doodle]

I was on a yard for a bit that advertised shavings included in price. It was actually horrible little chips of wood. It was awful. Not absorbent in the slightest. It was always damp and dirty. Just yuk.

 

[Shysmum]

Yew even in walkways is lethal, it should NEVER be around horses ! What are you thinking, and how is bark going to be absorbent in stables ?

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Just as an aside and a heads up just in case its relevant to you : if you’re felling trees on land rather than from your garden a tree felling licence/permission is required for mature trees. Trees with a diameter above 10cm. Just a heads up in case you have neighbours likely to complain! Further info from the forestry dept uk.gov website is available if it applies to you.
Arborists will undertake work without checking with owners that permission is granted by forestry dept. , so owners aren’t aware there’s laws either, and many cases per year get ‘reported’.

This isnt true.
In England you just need to check to see if any tree has a TPO (tree preservation order, not our fellow poster of same initials).

 

[spotty_pony]

Ive used bark for outside muddy areas, quite big slices, spruce from forestry dept. - even that rotted within a year and i had more mud than ever!

For under straw, if they’re really thin strips they’ll soak somewhat, but large chips, the pee will just drain through them to the floor, as theyre not very absorbant.
But if you wanted to make a deep longterm bed, you could put 10 bags pellets underneath to expand as they soak pee, then a few inches of bark chip, then straw.

Just as an aside and a heads up just in case its relevant to you : if you’re felling trees on land rather than from your garden a tree felling licence/permission is required for mature trees. Trees with a diameter above 10cm. Just a heads up in case you have neighbours likely to complain! Further info from the forestry dept uk.gov website is available if it applies to you.
Arborists will undertake work without checking with owners that permission is granted by forestry dept. , so owners aren’t aware there’s laws either, and many cases per year get ‘reported’.

thanks, they are all in the garden. ?

 

[PurBee]

This isnt true.
In England you just need to check to see if any tree has a TPO (tree preservation order, not our fellow poster of same initials).

Unfortunately fuzzy, a lot think that but its not correct. There are a lot of exemption laws from needing a felling license, like an orchard, garden, trees hindering electric line, dangerous trees etc -you can even fell up to 5m cube of wood - but thats the limit in one go. Outside of these exemptions a felling licence is needed.
My brother’s a tree surgeon in the uk, and does a lot of TPO licence assessments aswell as the legal implications regarding jobs requiring large amounts of trees to be felled from landowners to large commercial railway companies and has to apply for permission and license. The restrictions apply to the amount of trees felled In any quarter:

https://assets.publishing.service.g...Getting_Permission_-_office_print_version.pdf

Here’s the entire uk forestry act law if you can stomach plowing through it!:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1967/10/contents



In ireland, the laws are far stricter than the uk due to mass deforestation that took/takes place here. Any tree over 30metres from my home on this farm, and larger than 20cm thick, i have to get permission and licence. Here we’re not even allowed a bulk amount. I’ve thousands of trees, many small, many get blown over by winds, so i am legal to have those as firewood, but the other mature ones im not allowed to touch.
Not a lot of irish farmers comply by the law, which i think is why the laws get stricter and stricter here.
Even the forestry dept, (really a government owned company) growing spruce up and down the country have to obtain a licence (from the government i.e themselves!) to fell their plantations. Alongside these mass clear fellings they also take huge very old mature indigenous species growing along the edges, which the local communities are constantly protesting about. To whom do they protest?... the very government who do the de-forestation ?

Anyway, its a legal mine field IF caught up in it with twitchy neighbours, so its good the OP is felling garden trees and legally safe!

 

[PurBee]

thanks, they are all in the garden. ?

hey, you could sell yew tree chippings in small bags on ebay to the hippy/druid crowd - traditional english yew has magical properties according to ‘druidic law’...you could make a small fortune! ??

 

[Lois Lame]

I think it would be hard to know what it would be like unless you try it. Be very careful, of course, not to get the different bark mixed up and make sure everyone is aware of the importance.

My daughter and her husband put a lot of tanbark down under their 4 hens and I thought such an arrangement would be dreadful. The hens loved it. They spent a lot of time finding all sorts of yummy things to eat. And it didn't seem to pong, either.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

I'm very aware of regs as I work with a very reputable tree surgeons company who do private and national contracting work, as well as my main job in law. Thanks for the thought though
At this point I'm more concerned about the OP putting down any Yew remnants anywhere!

Unfortunately fuzzy, a lot think that but its not correct. There are a lot of exemption laws from needing a felling license, like an orchard, garden, trees hindering electric line, dangerous trees etc -you can even fell up to 5m cube of wood - but thats the limit in one go. Outside of these exemptions a felling licence is needed.
My brother’s a tree surgeon in the uk, and does a lot of TPO licence assessments aswell as the legal implications regarding jobs requiring large amounts of trees to be felled from landowners to large commercial railway companies and has to apply for permission and license. The restrictions apply to the amount of trees felled In any quarter:

https://assets.publishing.service.g...Getting_Permission_-_office_print_version.pdf

Here’s the entire uk forestry act law if you can stomach plowing through it!:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1967/10/contents



In ireland, the laws are far stricter than the uk due to mass deforestation that took/takes place here. Any tree over 30metres from my home on this farm, and larger than 20cm thick, i have to get permission and licence. Here we’re not even allowed a bulk amount. I’ve thousands of trees, many small, many get blown over by winds, so i am legal to have those as firewood, but the other mature ones im not allowed to touch.
Not a lot of irish farmers comply by the law, which i think is why the laws get stricter and stricter here.
Even the forestry dept, (really a government owned company) growing spruce up and down the country have to obtain a licence (from the government i.e themselves!) to fell their plantations. Alongside these mass clear fellings they also take huge very old mature indigenous species growing along the edges, which the local communities are constantly protesting about. To whom do they protest?... the very government who do the de-forestation ?

Anyway, its a legal mine field IF caught up in it with twitchy neighbours, so its good the OP is felling garden trees and legally safe!

 

[RHM]

I was on a yard which put loads of bark in gateways, it worked for all of about two weeks. It then turned into knee deep mess, digging it out was a horrendous job. I personally wouldn’t bother!

 

[Lois Lame]

For under straw, if they’re really thin strips they’ll soak somewhat, but large chips, the pee will just drain through them to the floor, as theyre not very absorbant.

Ah, yes, when I posted here yesterday I forgot that my daughter's chicken's tanbark was on top of soil. Ahgh!

 

[Lois Lame]

For under straw, if they’re really thin strips they’ll soak somewhat, but large chips, the pee will just drain through them to the floor, as theyre not very absorbant.
But if you wanted to make a deep longterm bed, you could put 10 bags pellets underneath to expand as they soak pee, then a few inches of bark chip, then straw.

Or soil? If you found nice nice dry stuff? It would be a ton of work though, hauling it in.

 

[Nudibranch]

I use bark under straw in my chicken run. It's over hardcore and the bark helps with drainage. It's not absorbent.

 

[tiahatti]

I dont think it would work in a stable. I used some down a muddy track and that helped a little for a short time, but it wasnt as effective as I had been hoping.

 

[PurBee]

For the yew wood you have, it might be worth contacting ‘bow makers’ - yew is THE best and preferred wood for them to make bows from, and its normally stupidly expensive for them to buy it because its rare to get hold of.
They’d pay a handsome sum to take it off your hands ?
That’s if you haven’t chipped it all up yet!

 

[spotty_pony]

For the yew wood you have, it might be worth contacting ‘bow makers’ - yew is THE best and preferred wood for them to make bows from, and its normally stupidly expensive for them to buy it because its rare to get hold of.
They’d pay a handsome sum to take it off your hands ?
That’s if you haven’t chipped it all up yet!

Thank you, We have disposed of all of the Yew for now but have more to come down yet. Have a walnut tree coming fown tomorrow - wondering if that will make suitable chippings but reading it can cause Laminitis??

 

[PurBee]

Thank you, We have disposed of all of the Yew for now but have more to come down yet. Have a walnut tree coming fown tomorrow - wondering if that will make suitable chippings but reading it can cause Laminitis??

black walnut tree bedding, mainly in the north usa, is known to cause toxic reactions in horses if stood on or rolled on. But english walnut is a different tree, the leaves are different, the nut different, yet the same ‘family’ - google doesnt bring up anything for me except usa links to black walnut toxicity.

Due to them being very similar id be very cautious and wouldn’t use the walnut anywhere near the horses.

 

[spotty_pony]

black walnut tree bedding, mainly in the north usa, is known to cause toxic reactions in horses if stood on or rolled on. But english walnut is a different tree, the leaves are different, the nut different, yet the same ‘family’ - google doesnt bring up anything for me except usa links to black walnut toxicity.

Due to them being very similar id be very cautious and wouldn’t use the walnut anywhere near the horses.

Thanks, I was going to say I think it is english walnut. I will ask the tree surgeon tomorrow.

 

[cauda equina]

Woodturners love walnut; I'd try selling it before chipping!