Field shelter for windy field?

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AmeliaA

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My field has no hedges and is at the top of a hill. It’s very exposed and has no natural shelter which is really not ideal but it’s all I have. Winter is ok as they’re in overnight and are quite happy in the rain with rugs and hay… it’s the summer I’m worried about. My new horse is black and last summer was sweating in his field by 9am :(
I really need to think of a way to give him some relief in the summer. Stables are a no go, they get very hot. We made do last year by hosing him off a couple of times a day - he doesn’t get distressed by it but I don’t like to think of him being too hot!

I was looking at equihut as they seem like they’d hold up in the wind as they’re quite open (and less likely that anyone will get cornered). Does anyone have any better suggestions? Or experience keeping horses cool in exposed fields/with exposed fields?
 
Have you tried a white reflective mesh/breathable fly sheet? My black mare is similar and hides in shade, while the grey can be out in sun without overwhelm. A white very breathable mesh can help reflect sun rays rather than absorb.
We have lots of trees and bushes that give good deep shade so mine have options to shield themselves, but have often thought for my mare how a white light flyrug would suit best if heat was an issue.

I have a pale roof on their shelter which helps inside feel ok in the high heat, as the roof reflects sun light being light coloured, rather than absorb heat and transfer it within the shelter like the dark roof sheds I have.
Cross flow ventilation helps too.
Obviously with such exposure of field, the shelter you have would need anchoring down very well, and be built solidly to withstand the winds you get in your location.

You can plant willow whips this spring (fence horses away from it otherwise they’ll eat it before it’s grown and established!) and you’d be surprised in 3 years how they’ve grown. Plant in the wettest spots for willow to thrive and grow well. 3 years soon flies by. Feels like a longterm plan but the time does zip by and you’re suddenly looking at a good hedge for shade.
If you know anyone with an established willow hedge ask them for large branches to literally just literally stick into wet ground as willow roots really easily from a mere branch plunged into moist soil, than other species.
I did that once for my crop plot and have this gigantic 15 foot willow tree hedge now that needs some serious trimming when I get time!
 
P.s if all the suggestions are too expensive for the field you have, and you’d rather not spend out on improving the field if you don’t own it, and just rent, which is understandable, then maybe even consider looking for more ideal grazing field with less exposure….more trees/hedges.
Sometimes a complete change is required than all the remedial cost/effort of solutions needed for current set-up.
 
Echo trying to establish a hedge if it's your land. Once willow is up and running you could look to plant other things in the shelter of the willow, like maybe Hawthorne etc. there are often grants for hedgerows.

Maybe try to plant a big horse friendly tree or two too for very long term.

You could hopefully get willow whips for free
 
PurBee said:
Have you tried a white reflective mesh/breathable fly sheet? My black mare is similar and hides in shade, while the grey can be out in sun without overwhelm. A white very breathable mesh can help reflect sun rays rather than absorb.
We have lots of trees and bushes that give good deep shade so mine have options to shield themselves, but have often thought for my mare how a white light flyrug would suit best if heat was an issue.

I have a pale roof on their shelter which helps inside feel ok in the high heat, as the roof reflects sun light being light coloured, rather than absorb heat and transfer it within the shelter like the dark roof sheds I have.
Cross flow ventilation helps too.
Obviously with such exposure of field, the shelter you have would need anchoring down very well, and be built solidly to withstand the winds you get in your location.

You can plant willow whips this spring (fence horses away from it otherwise they’ll eat it before it’s grown and established!) and you’d be surprised in 3 years how they’ve grown. Plant in the wettest spots for willow to thrive and grow well. 3 years soon flies by. Feels like a longterm plan but the time does zip by and you’re suddenly looking at a good hedge for shade.
If you know anyone with an established willow hedge ask them for large branches to literally just literally stick into wet ground as willow roots really easily from a mere branch plunged into moist soil, than other species.
I did that once for my crop plot and have this gigantic 15 foot willow tree hedge now that needs some serious trimming when I get time!
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I did think about a mesh fly sheet! And quite selfishly, I’d like to preserve his lovely black colouring too lol. Can I ask which one you use? He’s a big cob so finding rugs that fit is hard
I’m on a DIY yard but my YO is very chilled out so I might ask about planting some willow - annoyingly I had one in my garden a few years ago which has since been removed otherwise I could have taken some clippings
Moving isn’t an option really, where I live seriously lacks any yards and I’m on the only one in the area that has any winter turnout
 
AmeliaA said:
I did think about a mesh fly sheet! And quite selfishly, I’d like to preserve his lovely black colouring too lol. Can I ask which one you use? He’s a big cob so finding rugs that fit is hard
I’m on a DIY yard but my YO is very chilled out so I might ask about planting some willow - annoyingly I had one in my garden a few years ago which has since been removed otherwise I could have taken some clippings
Moving isn’t an option really, where I live seriously lacks any yards and I’m on the only one in the area that has any winter turnout
Click to expand...

I wouldn’t know of best mesh fly sheet brands to be honest, best to start a new thread as plenty will have suggestions on here for your size horse. Good point about helping him remain black too, to prevent sun bleaching.

It’s great your YO is approachable. Maybe you’ll find free willow if you scout about field borders and look for very overgrown willow hedges/bushes, ask the land owner if they would mind you trimming it and having the branches off it.
Cut the stem butt that you push into soil diagonally, makes it easier to push them into soil too. Take fresh green branches rather than inch+ thick branches as thinner cuttings, more green, will likely root easier than older branches. Willow prefers wetter soils. Dry soil won’t produce roots so easily and they could fail.

Another idea, but expensive - if you have a true solid wooden fence line, you could fix some 5-6 foot ‘screening material’ that would then be a shade are if positioned on the right fence during height of summer, allowing for sun position at that time of year.
There’s willow and reed screening fencing rolls you can buy, aswell as polypropylene mesh ‘privacy’ screens.
Even if you had a standard 4.5 foot wooden fencing and attached the poly mesh roll screening/privacy screen to that it would create a shade area for the to lay in during warmer months.
 
If it's windy and not backed by anything screening will last to the first proper wind. I have heard of people parking their trailer in the field to provide a structure
 
Choose very carefully, ours was anchored down in a fairly sheltered area of the field but blew over in the storm that followed Goretti.
 
estela said:
Choose very carefully, ours was anchored down in a fairly sheltered area of the field but blew over in the storm that followed Goretti.
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And they’re so expensive aren’t they! We had some stables at the yard that got picked up by the wind, flipped over a hedge, a road and then ANOTHER hedge 🫣
 
Whilst waiting for the willow to grow you could try constructing a straw bale shelter.Open on 1 side, you could roof it with a tarpaulin tucked into the top bales.
Other temporary shelters I've seen in use are older trailers simply parked and opened up (but stop the tyres perishing by putting a panel of wood or cardboard in front). Also poly tunnels.
 
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