Just had to buy in yet more hay!

S

southerncomfort

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 September 2013
Messages
6,243
Visit site
In April!

Literally never had to do this before but the grass just isn't growing at all.

I put mine in one of the summer paddocks as the winter field is bare and what little grass that was there was eaten to the earth in a day.

We managed to roll and harrow everything over the weekend but with temperatures set to stay low all week, I can't see us getting any growth any time soon.

I've heard rumours of a long hot summer but I'm not convinced!
 
Same here, we have a track of sorts and feed haylage all year, just tidied up The centre and it's looking slightly better but not much
Just bought another 34 bales, ???
 
Ditto

Our rested summer paddocks (been off them since last sep/oct) have nothing growing. Sheep went on them for a fortnight, after the horses came off, to clean them up but that's been it. There has been so much rain and then standing water that a lot of the grass has been killed off. Now there is moss and clover.

Drainage is supposed to be getting redone but theres been little movement ? once that's done the fields are being reconfigured into 4 equal paddocks and the two not in use ones will be oversown and possibly fertilised. Then same again when they rotate fields.

The fields had a very light dusting of fertiliser last year but the heavy rains have just killed off anything good trying to grow.

There seems to be an abnormally high rainfall here and the problem is compounded with the blocked drains and councils not clearing roadside ditches.

We've still got about 100 bales left, and are down to two horses for now, but u undoubtedly will need another load in the not too distant future
 
No summer field here until July because of EGS.
The nearest grass has been grazed6ED79F06-4F7F-410E-B583-335F2EB46851.jpeg since Christmas and looks bare until you get close.
The far field has been left since Christmas. It was all foggage. The top part wasn’t grazed down enough. The lower part was bare then but has grown. I reckon the difference is what my pony has eaten and is eating.
He will get some hay until i can see the growth getting away from him.
 
The grass is just about growing here (only obvious on parts of the field that aren't grazed), and I'm about as far south as it's possible to get. I can well imagine that it's not growing at all further north.

And it's likely we will get frosts tonight/tomorrow which won't help.
 
ours is growing, lawn looks bleddy wild and i've noticed the ones that live out are not as keen for hay as normal. but .. desperate for rain. ground is all cracked. Hope we don't have another year where it's too dry in spring so there is nothing to mow for hay. It's in pretty short supply round here, my old YO asked OH for some as his chap had run out, but he doesn't really have enough to help out new customers.
 
We're still putting hay out in the fields at night. The grass is starting to grow but it is very dry here. To be honest, I am stilly trying to slim down two good doers, so I am quite glad that there is not too much grass and it's chilly.
 
it’s working out great for my old girl . Having to give loads of hay/Haylage . But , it’s the first year in ages that she’s looked so well . Crest right down , and looking and feeling fab . No sign of lami, which Is a relief as the past couple of years I feel we are getting closer and closer to an episode.
 
Still using winter field as summer fields haven’t got going well enough yet. Very dry though and ground is starting to crack so think I will have to be patient a while longer. This time last year they were out in summer fields 24/7
 
I must admit that it's nice not to be lying awake at night worrying about my mini shetland. Normally she's in her own pen by this point but she's loving still being free range with the others.
 
Mine are actually doing a few hours a day in their stables at the moment, just to get them out of the field.

We have tiny, pathetic baby grass trying it’s heart out to survive and I’m feeling quite protective of it ?
 
I see grass growing elsewhere when i go for a drive, except in my deer-grazed paddocks.

might be fencing 1000m deer fence this spring aswell as build a house - and here was me thinking this year would be less stressful than last!
 
Our summer field is finally starting to bounce back and also mare is no longer standing at the gate waiting for me so there is definitely grass out there.

Our garden grass is going wild!
 
For the first time in over 25 years I've had a full 3rd delivery of hay. Usually 2 deliveries (c.300 small bales) take me through 12 months including lorry hay. The summer fields are green but just not enough to put them in as after a few days they'd be bare. Am keeping them in winter field which is getting a few sprigs of new growth and haying as well as still bringing in at night. Usually at clock change they go out out for the summer.

Bummer is that my winter field is now ready for rolling/harrowing but no option to move them (although the grass in the garden is growing well so may have to move them into the garden to get the winter field sorted!)
 
  • Like
Reactions: TPO
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top