Poo pick or spread it about?

kellybee

kellybee

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Basically, I have three summer paddocks (just under an acre each) and a two acre winter trash paddock. We've been rotating every 3(ish) weeks til the rain set in, and will probably do the same all summer.

My dad keeps asking me why I bother poo-picking when he can just hook an attachment to the quad and spread it, but I'm wondering is there any benefit to doing this? I know people spread rotted manure, but what if it's not rotted? The paddocks all get 9 weeks rest but I wonder if he has a point?

Does anyone else spread instead of poo picking? And if you do, is it worth it when I only have two horses and a shettie on the land (betwen them they don't produce huge amounts of poo!)
 
If it is manageable to poo pick (which with your horse numbers it would be) then that is far preferable. The temperatures in most of the UK are rarely high enough for long enough to reliably be relied on to kill all the worms and parasites. Some get away with it but they may have lots of land or horses that are reasonably resistant (horses do vary).

Another reason for picking up is that it avoid rank patches of weeds and tough grass developing in the period before the muck is spread - which horses will avoid and which then reduces the available good grazing area (its why farmers think horses ruin the land!)

Also if your horses are fed hay then it avoids spreading weed seeds all over the land by spreading freshish dung.

By poo picking the poo can go on a muck heap to rot down properly away from the horses and for a proper period (should be a year or so ideally), rather than the rather short period of weeks.

Finally its much more environmentally friendly to poo pick by hand than trundle up and down on the quad fuel wise and cheaper too!

And I personally like to see my field looking clean and healthy for horses (if you want to add fertility on top of respreading the dung once composted you can get a few sheep, I did but seem to have 18 sheep now :-DD)
 
I poo picked up to the point where I decided to move the ponies to a different part of the land so there was just under three weeks where I didnt poo pick

I've moved my sheep to the vacated paddock, I have poo picked the stuff on the thick mud and plan to harrow in the rest. The land should get about 4 months rest after the sheep *cough* 'move away' later this month

I couldnt tell you if this was the right thing to do mind!
 
Poo pick. Spreading is not a good idea in my opinion. Although manure is a good fertiliser it has to be rotted as the acid is too strong in fresh poo. Also I was always taught not to fertilise horse grazing with horse poo - happy to be told I'm wrong on this! There are many reasons why poo should be taken out of grazing... Seems to defeat the point if its just spread around the field for ponies to pick around... Having said all this I know the yard next door spreads their manure across the field all year round... Their grazing is incredibly poor though.
 
Thanks for your help! I know the horses won't graze where there's been poo but I wasn't sure if that was because the grass is bitter/too rich or instinct of some description. I don't think I could stand the sight of three horses' worth on one acre til it was spread anyway. It's my saturday morning job and usually takes a couple of hours. I'll keep poo picking and get him to do it with the trailer next year then :)

I think the idea of whizzing round on the new quad is appealing to him. Maybe I'll poo pick and get him to harrow it/overseed in spring, then everyone's happy. He can spread it when it's rotted down :)
 
What I use to do was poo pick 90% of time but if I went on holiday I would come back to hell! So I would move them off the over poo'd bit to fresh grazing and then chain harrow the over poo field and leave it to rot itself. Rotting can take ie 9months + to get rid of the poos. and yes the poo does make the grass bitter and eventually it will cause acid conditions and more weeds(the grazing does become poor). It is better to keep picking it up for worm burden too. I do know people who do chain harrow but they have plenty of fields to leave it to clear etc. Most horses are quite clean in the field as you tend to find they poo in preferred areas. I am guessing by spreading it you mess their WC system up?

I have quad too and can understand the appeal your dad has to use this! Get him a roller that will keep him busy and is satisfying to get rid of the rutted bits.

Mine always seem to poo in the nice lush grass leaving the worse bits clean(in my eyes).
 
Hiya we poo pick during thespring summer and all the time it is dry enough in early winter. As soon as it is too wet or we move them onto long grass then it gets left until the first dry day in spring and then harrowed . We provide all our own haylage and keep 4 ponies on about 5 acres year round. we fertilise every few years but thats it. we also bring some sheep in during lambing so it helps keep things clear
 
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