Muddy Gates - advice needed!

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ShouldHaveBoughtAGoldfish

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Our gateways are bloomin atrocious, which is pretty normal at some points each winter but this winter has been something else!

They have not been properly maintained by the yard owners for years and now the gateways (and water troughs) are the lowest point of each field - some by well over a foot.

Every gate is currently knee-deep liquid mud, which is now entering the gloopy phase with the dreaded sucky, claggy phase that pulls both horse and human shoes alike still to come.

What, in your experience is the best thing to add to gateways to build them up, offer some longevity and not give the horses bruised soles and big stones stuck in their feet.

Thanks in advance and I really appreciate the advice...
 
ShouldHaveBoughtAGoldfish said:
Our gateways are bloomin atrocious, which is pretty normal at some points each winter but this winter has been something else!

They have not been properly maintained by the yard owners for years and now the gateways (and water troughs) are the lowest point of each field - some by well over a foot.

Every gate is currently knee-deep liquid mud, which is now entering the gloopy phase with the dreaded sucky, claggy phase that pulls both horse and human shoes alike still to come.

What, in your experience is the best thing to add to gateways to build them up, offer some longevity and not give the horses bruised soles and big stones stuck in their feet.

Thanks in advance and I really appreciate the advice...
Click to expand...
The best? Really you want to excavate them out, a diverting land drain, and graded aggregate to reconstruct a better level, but best check what you’re allowed to do with the landowner
 
Short-term or long-term solution? Short-term I have been chucking all our waste hay onto the gateways this winter and it has really helped. It's given the mud some 'tread' and stopped the horses (and me!) sinking into it. It doesn't last long as the hay mulches into the mud but my hay supply has been a bit crap this year so I've been lobbing quite a lot on their twice a week. It also won't damage the ground as it mulches into nothing basically.

If the mud is drying up now though it won't be ideal, it's best when it's really wet to allow the hay to mulch into the ground and rot down properly by spring. I've stopped putting hay down on the mud this week as it's getting drier so will leave the gateways to dry out on their own.

Long-term your best solution without digging drainage in would be chucking a load of hardcore down and mud mats on top. Don't be tempted to use woodchip, it will rot down and just create an even bigger mess before too long.
 
For immediate, cheap and temporary I found the awful porous mats (like the playground rubber crumb) sold as stable mats work well. Floats on the top until it gets wet but then sinks just enough to give decent footing.
 
On your own land, subject to having the finances, then really it’s a case of digging out, getting advice on installing drainage, then backfilling the mud prone areas with stone/planings (+/- top mats). That doesn’t come cheap.

As a livery, not much you can do right now.
If you have your own allocated paddock then once dried slightly and rolled you could ask permission from YO to lay mud control mats.
 
I have mud control slabs in the gateway. They were laid in autumn 4 years ago and this year one of the 40 has moved out of place - was clicked back in with no problem. They are the very best thing to have in winter to give a bit of hardstanding when the rains come in.
 
Mud control mats. If necessary lay a 2 width path rather than 2 the whole gateway- my horses queue up on mine. If the ground has sunk by a huge amount then some bags of hardcore / stones or even barrows of well rotted muck will bring the level up to that of the surrounding land so you can lay the mats on top
 
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