Short Term Winter Sacrifice Paddock

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Shoei

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Morning,

I may be in the position where I will have limited grazing whilst the new field is growing. I'm planning ahead for next winter.

My plan is to keep them in more but create a sacrifice paddock in a wooded area that doesn't grow grass. This could be used for a bit of turnout when it is wet and horrid.

Because I'm hopeful this would only be used for one winter, I want to a. limit the expense and b. I want the land back to woodland afterwards, I'm thinking of woodchip. I know people have said in turns boggy, but I'm wondering if it would withstand 1 winter of light usage.

Many Thanks
 
I always have a thrash paddock. I make an island of straw out of round or Heston bales and add to it as it gets muddy. I just roll out a couple of bales to start in a rough rectangle. I feed on there so they tend to stand on it rather that wander around in the mud. At the end of winter it just gets harrowed flat.
If its already wet I think wood chip would just mush in unless you have lots of it
 
honetpot said:
I always have a thrash paddock. I make an island of straw out of round or Heston bales and add to it as it gets muddy. I just roll out a couple of bales to start in a rough rectangle. I feed on there so they tend to stand on it rather that wander around in the mud. At the end of winter it just gets harrowed flat.
If its already wet I think wood chip would just mush in unless you have lots of it
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'd never have considered straw and we have a=it in abundance!!! Luckily the ground isn't hugely wet, it just doesn't get much light due to the big trees, but straw sounds great!
 
I am so lucky that my fields are absolutely amazing, but last winter was testing due to the amount of rain so I dedicated one paddock to the wet and horrid days. The tribe would go out in this one, with hay, on bad days or the days following bad days. It allowed my othe paddocks to drain a bit of water before the horses went back on them, it meant my horses still went out everyday for full days, and it still recovered brilliantly because I chose the highest and dryest one so it was less wet anyway.
 
Our yard has a winter field that is currently mud to the top of your wellies. It will be rolled once dry and then gets very weedy over summer - before being trashed again. It saves the rest of the fields and gives me a dry lot in the summer for my grass intolerant horse!
 
I'm always amazed at how well trash paddocks bounce back in the summer, if given the time to rest. Ours always look demolished to the point of no return, but return they do!
 
My friend has put her 3 horses in a roughly acre size wooded area, with a big bale of hay in a feeder.. it's a slightly higher area than her two main fields that have flooded a few weeks ago..the horses like it and are enjoying having a good bum rub on the tree bark !!! There is not much grass there, but something tasty in the hedges as they are mooching about there... it will have to do till her fields dry out...
 
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