Plough & reseed - how long before land is back in action for horses?

[soloequestrian]

My main field is bad for buttercups anyway and now after the horrible winter it is poached to perdition too - we're all at risk of turning an ankle walking across it. I'm wondering if the solution is to bite the bullet, plough it up and reseed it. I could really do with having it as grazing in the winter again though and not sure if it would be ready by then. It usually drains well but last winter had standing water, not sure if that's because it's got compacted or just because it was so exceptionally wet. It's on a slope so really gravity should drain it....

 

[Patterdale]

I would plough and reseed it right now, fertilise and take a cut of hay off late on then graze it after.
But DO NOT trash it again in winter however tempting or it will be money down the drain

 

[YourValentine]

If you plough now it will 100% not be ready to graze again in winter, or only very lightly in drier spells.
The grass roots won't have long enough to establish and form a mat that can with stand horse trampling and will become a poached mess very quickly.

I would scatter some grass & herb seed, roll it, then top the butter cups and then let it rest and recover till winter. Don't cut for hay or anything let the grass roots do their work fixing the compaction and damage from this winters poaching.

If on a budget skip the seed.

 

[santas_spotty_pony]

It won’t be suitable for horses for a year or two after ploughing - it would need sheep on it ideally first too to knit the grass seed together.

 

[poiuytrewq]

We rolled and reseeded rather than completely start from scratch. It takes way longer to get it going properly than you’d imagine

 

[Goldenstar]

You can direct drill seed into the ground
You could need to spray out the weeds first and prepare the land by levelling it
It works well it disrupts the soil structure much less and get it back to use much quicker
If you plough up ime it’s three years until it’s a strong sward.

 

[Ceifer]

You can direct drill seed into the ground
You could need to spray out the weeds first and prepare the land by levelling it
It works well it disrupts the soil structure much less and get it back to use much quicker
If you plough up ime it’s three years until it’s a strong sward.

This. A friend made the mistake of ploughing and reseeding the whole of his grazing (8 acres) and it took over 3 years to be able to stand up to grazing.

 

[Patterdale]

Direct drill and roll deffo best way!

 

[PeterNatt]

As it is on a slope and you need to get the horses back on it by Winter I would suggest that you get a specialist contractor in to put in sleeved drainage in to the field so that it can drain the water away.
Then use total kill to kill off all the buttercups and grass.
Direct drill with a grass seed that will take heavy foot fall.
Allow it to grow.
Then once it has grown cut it to dense it up.
Leave horses off it for as long as possible.

 

[Lois Lame]

Ploughing is very bad for soil structure. Ploughing wet soil is even worse for its structure.

 

[SEL]

My neighbour ploughed and reseeded 2 years ago. The field has been a write off since - all the dormant dock seeds jumped to life and he has a fabulous field of docks. It looks like they've been sprayed again so I'm hoping he drills this time

 

[blitznbobs]

Cambridge roller it and it will probably come back

 

[soloequestrian]

Thanks all, really helpful. I've been wary of rolling, thinking it will just compact things more but that's a really good point about the permanent plant roots doing the work of keeping it loose. Pretty sure I have a healthy earthworm population too. I'll look in to spraying but I do have a topper so maybe I just top repeatedly once it's been rolled and see if I can kill off the buttercups that way.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Our heavy clay land was under plough for over 20 years. It had been back down to grass (only a short term lei) for about 4 years when we took it on. It had only been used for summer grazing up to then, cattle and sheep and still hadn't got a decent sward. We found the hard way that it wouldn't tolerate heavy winter grazing and had to cut down on horse and sheep numbers. It now looks pretty good but we still have to manage it carefully and it wouldn't take big horses.

 

[blitznbobs]

Thanks all, really helpful. I've been wary of rolling, thinking it will just compact things more but that's a really good point about the permanent plant roots doing the work of keeping it loose. Pretty sure I have a healthy earthworm population too. I'll look in to spraying but I do have a topper so maybe I just top repeatedly once it's been rolled and see if I can kill off the buttercups that way.

Cambridge rolling doesn’t compact it puts slits into the soil thus allowing air in whilst getting rid of the craters etc

 

[TheMule]

Power harrow the worst bits and reseed, but you’ll need to keep the horses off it for a year. Otherwise, a good heavy Cambridge roller and plenty of normal harrowing should sort the ground out. It’s probably a bit late to spray for buttercups effectively but you can top them and spray in the Autumn

 

[MidChristmasCrisis]

Two years reseeding from scratch..

 

[Trouper]

Liming will also help you with the buttercup problem. Old neighbours always used to lime and the fields were great for their horses. The newbies now there don't have a clue on pasture management and the fields are a sea of yellow just now

 

[NR88]

I was just about to post that a field of buttercups needs lime but Trouper has beaten me to it.

Buttercups grow in acidic soil so it might be worth pH testing the soil. Lime is not fast acting but over a 4 month period, if properly applied, should increase the pH of the soil to a healthier range (6-6.5pH iirc).

I ploughed and reseeded half of my grazing March 2023. Approximately four months later had sheep on it, then added more sheep because they weren't keeping on top of it. Put horses on it September until the beginning of December prior to moving them to winter fields.

It has rained almost constantly since. Farmers around us have had whole fields drowned and crops washed away.

Thankfully I'd already replaced drainage or I'd have been in an even worse position. The grass was damaged by the excessive water rather than horses. I rolled the field then had a contractor aerate it. The grass was very sparse at that point. Since the rain eased up and we have had some warmth the grass has grown and spread.

I follow the rule that grass should be the height of a beer bottle standing upright, and once they've grazed it to the height of a beer bottle on its side they are rotated to a new paddock. The grass then has at least 12 weeks to recover as I continue rotating. I think this is referred to in the Equicentral book about their method.

The horses have been back on the new grazing since the end of April.

The other half of my grazing was due to be ploughed and reseeded in March but the rain put paid to that. I cannot afford for all of that seed to be washed away. The last chance is before June, otherwise waiting until October, which won't work time wise for managing the horses.

 

[soloequestrian]

You learn something every day, it didn't dawn on me that there are different types of roller.... mine is just a flat thing so not Cambridge.

 

[poiuytrewq]

You learn something every day, it didn't dawn on me that there are different types of roller.... mine is just a flat thing so not Cambridge.

Yes! I'd not have a clue but OH is a farmer! He rolled my two fields. One with a huge Cambridge rolls and it did a fantastic job, Its a really massive one though and even folded wouldn't go through my other gateway so that got done flat and its no where near as good.
Lime will sort buttercups but i think it quite ££ There was a guy that used to come round with a huge but weird machine, like a cross between a steam engine and tractor and it was to lime the fields!
My neighbour swears by sheep, apparently her fields were totally yellow but after a few years of rotating sheep the buttercups are gone.