Help needed for a TOTAL numpty to plan improvements for my field

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Dexter

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Ok, so I have offically given up on livery yards after the latest YO turned into a raving lunatic today! I am very, VERY lucky to have 13 acres to do with as I please. The 3 youngsters are currently out there, and my mare and the foal (not hers) are following suit very shortly. I've found it very hard to come to terms with my riding horse being out 24/7 but today has convinced me its the way to go!

So anyway, I have 13 acres, well 13 acres as measured on the google maps thingy, so probably more than that as it slopes up and down. There is untold amounts of shelter from HUGE, stable, and protected trees, and its surrounded on all sides by thick trees, so I'd be wasting my time putting in a field shelter wouldn't I?? Its always bizarrely a couple of degrees warmer at the field than a couple hundred yards either way! Its generally warmer there than at my house :D

There is one area, probably 60m x 60ms that would be flat enough for a school with minimal work, and its really free draining due to its location. Whats the cheapest way to put a surface down on very free draining land? It would have minimal use, just my mare and potentially one other, once or twice a week.

Also I'd like to make 3 corral areas, just to tie up, feed, tack up etc. i was thinking about putting these at the highest point of the field nearish to the gate, and using post and rails on 3 sides as fencing, but what to use as flooring? It wont get much use, an hour a day ABSOLUTE max, but in reality much less.

We dont get a lot of mud with such a small number of horse out on that acreage, plus it gently slopes down on both sides to the middle, where is gets wet,but they dont spend alot of time there so it doesnt get churned up etc.

It is pretty rutted alongthe fence line, the last person had 20+ horses out and fed them there. Whats the best way to deal with this? Roller behind a quad??

And is it feasible to have 5 out there and still cut hay from it??
 
Just to add, I can get a tractor down to the gate no issues, but would struggle with 20 ton lorries, and my farmer has confirmed that it is possible to top it/cut hay etc with a tractor it would be a PITA so recommended a quad and roller etc
 
Moving sounds like the right choice!

The only way to get decent hard standing is to remove the topsoil and add hardcore, anything else is likely to get washed away and turned into a mud pit again in a short period of time. The same is true of the arena, if you need one and riding on grass isn't working out, you need to do a proper job, i.e. top soil off and graded, membrane, drainage and hardcore, membrane, surface.
 
Agree with booboos, if you are going to do an arena then do it properly, saves on tears ferther down the line, and don't forget about planning permision!!
As for the coral area, if it wont get to much use why not try chipped bark/wood, cheaper to put down and replace as needed.
 
We have always used road scalpings for our hardstanding areas, our horsebox is parked on it, and our access track is constructed of it, think that is likely cheaper than hardcore?

We have 5 horses on 12 acres, and would struggle to cut hay from it (aside from it being on a substantial hill!). If we did, we would have to work the ground very hard, and apply fertilisers each year I would imagine. As it is, there are many different grass species, and meadowherbs and the horses always do well on it - the longer grasses are good for keeping teeth clean apparently.

We try to get ours harrowed and rolled each year, and only poo pick in the summer when they are electric fenced into smaller paddocks to stop them getting obese. Last year we hired a power scythe to cut the large patches of thistles and nettles down which worked really well, will be doing that again this year. I think we'll also fertilise it this year as haven't done for a while - likely use chicken poo I think :)
 
I wouldn't put shelters up as all that will happen is that area will get poached etc. I've heard of people just scrapping off the top soil and edging in scaffold boards and filling with sand. Not sure how good it would be but got to be better than riding on grass over winter etc
 
I wouldn't bother trying to put any kind of surface down for your schooling area. If you've got free draining flat ground and that amount of space then turf is the ideal thing to school on.

I'd just fence it off to allow the grass to grow a bit so it's a bit more spongey in the summer and mud-free in the winter.

Same with your corals. If there's not going to be too much running about on them, then they'll be fine as they are, or chuck some wood chip on top.
 
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