Field management-help!!

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SarahRicoh

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Iv just moved my 3 horses into a 3-4 acre field. Ones come from a livery being stabled every night,other 2 been in a field 24/7.
Theres a shelter big enough for them all & storage. No running water or elec but rain water is collected & tap a minute away. Field is fenced/hedged all way around but i will fence it in thirds so i can rotate it.

Problem: Surrounding the shelter & gate its very overgrown with weeds(nettles/thistles/docks) and scattered throughout the field are patches of docks/nettles.
We're working on.clearing it(tractor cant cut it as on a slope) & strimmer didnt work so cutting it with hand shears :/ however dont know what to do with all the cut weeds. And as we cant get completely down to roots its going to grow back. Any ideas? Also cant do this throughout the field as theres docks everywhere so dont know how to get rid of them in actual field(clearing shelter at the mo).
Also the grass is knee high so sectioned them into a small part so they dont balloon. However the grass is all trampled down & someone said they dont really eat it...
Any ideas on how to sort it all out?
Itl be really good once iv sorted the grazing out :)
ps. Its cheap for this reason
Sorry for the essay... Bbq food in the rain to anyone who can help :-D
 
I would do as you plan and section it into 3. I would tackle one section at a time. You need to poison the weeds if they have really taken over. Do you have access to a brush cutter like a strimmer but with blades as that will help you top them in the other sections without it being horribly difficult and without everything going to seed before you get a chance to tackle what is there by poison. As docks and nettles are not poisonous I would not worry too much about clearing them as they will die back
 
I had a field like this once. Digging when the ground is soft is really the best cure, weed killer is poisonous, strimming leaves the roots, which grow back, ploughing and reseeding works too, but it takes two or more years for the grass to mature enough for it to withstand horses hooves!!!!

Www.ponygalaxy.com is a blog packed with horsey advice!
 
I moved to a rented field with a shelter also this spring, with knee high grass!! I have a cob and an old pony . Iv basically sectioned off about a third or a quarter for the summer which theyve eaten down. Let the old pony out on the long grass when I ride the cob, if im not riding I let them both out but muzzle the cob. In the winter planning on letting them have whole field during the day then in a small paddock with shelter at night time. Hopefully the grass will last all winter that way and I won't need to fuss with hay too much :)
 
I wouldnt be too bothered about nettles and thistles mine loves them. The docks are a pain though and will take up valuable grazing. Can you divide the field and grazon spray them? That will kill them ie spot spray them. I did this over a couple of years and the docks are under control with odd one popping up. You could do a section at a time and it doesnt kill the grass or try headland polo.

I cant remember the withdrawal time for grazon but I usualy keep off 3 weeks which is more than is needed and I try to do even longer than that.

The bits you cant graze if you can pick the seed heads off the dock or strim as suggested. Dock is starting to seed now.

Good luck,,grazon 90 is about £57-60 a bottle.
 
If the grass is really long (almost hay like) then in some ways it is better for them as it is high in fibre and lower in sugar than normal short grass so less risk of laminitis. Though sometimes there can still be quite lush grass growing under it so be carefull of this! I think your idea of sectioning the field up and just keeping an eye on them is a good one. Docks are a bit of a nightmare as roots go quite deep so good luck trying to get rid of them! The nettles and thistles I wouldn't worry so much about. Sounds like it will be a good project but should be worth it in the end!
 
As Indie999 and amandaco have said. Section the field, and use Grazon to smack the docks. I only keep my horses off for a week after using Grazon, particularly if it has rained in the interim (I spot spray). Personally, for this year I would just cut the thistles and the nettles with any sort of hand cutter. But catch the thistles before they flower whatever you do. Nettles are fine to just cut and leave, as horses love them wilted or dead, so long as there aren't too many of them (your horses could get iodine poisoning - it happened to one of ours).

Like you, I have a very hilly 4 acres onto which so sensible farmer will bring equpment, as it's also stony. so a lot of the work is me in my Marigolds! But after a year or two it was wonderful to see it come round!. Good luck.
 
I have a think called an Abby Pro Weed Slasher, which I use for cutting nettles and docks, I just don't like chemicals.

Long grass is quite safe for horses.

I'd fence it in sections as you suggest then feed as foggage through the winter.
 
As a last resort, I'd let that long grass die off at the end of the summer and do a controlled burn. Use a knap sack sprayer filled with water to control the burn. Also, is that water supply close enough so you could pipe it to a self fill trough? Alkathene is cheap enough and it won't burst if it freezes so you can leave it on the surface until you can bury it. That would save a lot of work! Otherwise, all the previous posts offer good advice.
 
Paint it Lucky said:
If the grass is really long (almost hay like) then in some ways it is better for them as it is high in fibre and lower in sugar than normal short grass so less risk of laminitis. Though sometimes there can still be quite lush grass growing under it so be carefull of this! I think your idea of sectioning the field up and just keeping an eye on them is a good one. Docks are a bit of a nightmare as roots go quite deep so good luck trying to get rid of them! The nettles and thistles I wouldn't worry so much about. Sounds like it will be a good project but should be worth it in the end!
Click to expand...

The other thing you can do is let your horses eat around the weeds as mine has with my tons of buttercups. Then spray as the weeds will be all alone! But docks are about to seed and they do overnight!!

Good luck. Grazon 90 I think is being discontinued this autumn?? I am switching to Headland polo when I run out(the info is on internet as to what it tackles). A bottle might last you about 3 years or more on 3 acres. Its well worth it. I leave the stingers and thistles..mine masterfully munches those..ouch. I did mine via knapsack and also sat on back of quad whilst my son drove me up and down and did it that way to save effort!! But what a difference. I like Grazon but doesnt work on buttercups!
 
We have the same issue with the field we have just moved too, except its around 10 acres, managed to section a bare area for the welshy and will have to cut by hand just now as it is stopping the fencing from working.
 
Thanks guys so much helpful advice!! Now i know long grass isnt that awful i might give them a bigger bit and start spraying the docks etc. Then just clear the weeds right by shelter as i want to see where concrete base ends!
Quite excited to see how it turns out :)
 
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