Is the grass still growing?

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zangels

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Now it's October do you think the grass is still growing?
I'm not sure if it's still worth rotating the grazing or if I should let them have the full field if growing has stopped?
 
yes it is, I moved my boys onto the hay field a few weeks ago after the second cut and the grass is growing back in the main turnout field
 
Yes, definitely still growing. Here it's at least 15 degrees most of the day. I moved mine of the grazed bit last week and it's def looking bright green again already.
 
I will keep on rotating then, is it usual for it to keep growing until temperatures drop to below 6 degrees?
Although last winter the field held up well and we also got a cut of haylage from it in June, I felt we could of managed it better by letting them graze the the winter field down a bit after it grew back from cutting and then putting them back on the summer side for a few weeks so it can rest again before winter. Thus is what I am trailing this year, I am hoping to now leave them on the summer side for October the in November put them back to the winter field until March.
How do others who cut the grazing for haylage manage the fields? Is there any maintenance jobs I should be doing at this time of year?
 
zangels said:
Now it's October do you think the grass is still growing?
I'm not sure if it's still worth rotating the grazing or if I should let them have the full field if growing has stopped?
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It is in the West MIdlands!

We had a mild past two days with rainfall, and last night my horse was colicky again. He always gets tummy ache when the weather conditions are like this. He stood at the back of his stable, barely looked up (I was over an hour late arriving and normally he'd shout at me really loudly) and he had pooh stains all over his flank - a sure sign of lots of lying down. A quick walk on the walker for 40 mins and he was fine and stuffing his face happily by the time I left the yard last night at 8pm!

He really suffers from the grass on our yard as it used to be a dairy farm so the grass is very rich. Although I've reduced the size of his paddock and adjusted his hours to gradually increase them after his splenic entrapment colic he obviously stuffed himself yesterday.

Just to point out the vets have told me to take the action of putting him on the walker and/or giving him bute when he is like this as this is a reoccurring scenario which have reduced from once a week initially to approx once every month in the summer.
 
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One of mine still muzzled at night & in by day on soaked hay as grass still growing & lush. Still only using about 1/2 of their field, so lots if standing hay. Hoping hay bill will be really low this year.
 
applecart14 said:
It is in the West MIdlands!

We had a mild past two days with rainfall, and last night my horse was colicky again. He always gets tummy ache when the weather conditions are like this. He stood at the back of his stable, barely looked up (I was over an hour late arriving and normally he'd shout at me really loudly) and he had pooh stains all over his flank - a sure sign of lots of lying down. A quick walk on the walker for 40 mins and he was fine and stuffing his face happily by the time I left the yard last night at 8pm!

He really suffers from the grass on our yard as it used to be a dairy farm so the grass is very rich. Although I've reduced the size of his paddock and adjusted his hours to gradually increase them after his splenic entrapment colic he obviously stuffed himself yesterday.

Just to point out the vets have told me to take the action of putting him on the walker and/or giving him bute when he is like this as this is a reoccurring scenario which have reduced from once a week initially to approx once every month in the summer.
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My sisters pony is just the same with the grass at her yard, any more than a hours turn out and he starts with a tummy ache. She is currently having bloods done and then looking into scoping if nothing shows on the bloods. Must be awful to be watching them like a hawk all the time.
 
Ours is and after this spell of rain our area is due a week plus of dry and warmish weather. The starvation paddock has had no horses in it for just a week, but has greened up well already.

Unless it gets suddenly cold, the grass usually will continue to grow through october, gradually slowing by the end of this month.
 
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This all sounds good news then, hopefully the winter field will grow during the next 4 weeks and will be reasonably long for winter. I am also hoping the summer field will come back quicker next spring due to having a long rest between end of August and now.
We have had the horses on the land for just over a year and I am trying to find the best way to manage it.
 
Certainly growing here. The paddock that took the biggest hammering last winter in the floods is growing before our eyes. We topped, harrowed and reseeded the bare patches last week and will now leave til spring.
 
I'm in a different country, but our grass is growing an insane amount right now. We are running at around mid 20s through the day and then down to around 8 or 9c over night. I've had to move lots of horses around to try to keep up with the growth in some of the fields. I want it eaten down before the snow flies.
 
Some years it barely stops, although it does slow down significantly. Take care though - it still photosynthesises even when it isn't growing, so it is storing sugar and when it does grow a little it is loaded with the stuff! Does anyone know about protein levels in late/early season grass? I have horse who need the sort of summer levels, they have plenty of the green stuff but I do wonder about whether they are getting all they need.
 
zangels said:
How long will you leave the reseeded paddock before being grazed again?
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Until at least April. There were some bald patches round the gates and where the ground was poached - we reseeded as anything bald gets covered in buttercups and we've waged a war on these this summer!
 
Well I'm having to cut the back lawn twice a week at the moment! And strip grazing the mares as they are definitely "well covered"
 
I think we may need some kind of grass growing expert to come and look and test ours then, I asked is it still growing as ours isn't noticeably growing.
 
I've still got mine on restricted grazing and will keep them like this until the grass in the overgrown bit has turned slightly brown.
The grass in my garden is still growing like mad so the field will be no different.
 
Yes mine are out 24/7. We have my horse and daughters pony on 5 acres. I think I need to start saving a bit away each month to pay for re seeding, harrowing etc.
Does any one have the muck heap spread on the land once it's rotted down?
 
zangels said:
Yes mine are out 24/7. We have my horse and daughters pony on 5 acres. I think I need to start saving a bit away each month to pay for re seeding, harrowing etc.
Does any one have the muck heap spread on the land once it's rotted down?
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I have got 3 big horses on about the same as you, it is growing but they do an excellent ongoing job of topping it. I never fertilise mine, and you shouldn't really need to with only two on it. Maybe agrivating would help?
 
Yup its still growing , i dont think the grass knows it's October ;) If its above 6 degrees in January it will grow.
Crazy isnt it! But we shouldnt complain after last year. My mini is still muzzled and Ive heard of a couple of cases of laminitis :(
 
I moved mine onto another paddock a couple of days ago to stop them over grazing the paddock they were in. However, they have now got huge grass bellies, and Mini Red has a dodgy tum. I am going to have strip graze, or put them back on the other paddock and sacrifice it. We have just over seven acres, split into seven paddocks. We have only recently moved on, and the intention was to use a paddock a month, but think we will have too much grass to do that without them getting fat(ter) or ill.

The last paddock, despite the horses only being moved off a few days ago, already has new grass growing through, so it is most definitely growing.
 
I've got shedloads - moved them back into my summer field a week ago, after a couple of weeks in the autumn field, and that short break from grazing was enough for the summer field to be growing like mad again. Moving them back to the autumn field tomorrow so that I can harrow the first one, and I reckon there's enough grass there to occupy them til Christmas. Went for a walk round the winter fields this morning, and was knee deep in lush green grass. I may not need to feed hay at all!

I've also got a spare 3 acre paddock that I'm not planning to use at all because its very rutted, but it's there as an option once the ground gets soft.
 
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