So there's a field...

PapaverFollis

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It's 4 acres. A gently sloping oblong ditches down each long side and along the bottom short edge. Gate/access at the top short edge. It's solid underfoot at the moment but possibly quite wet at times. There's sedge grass growing. And horse tails and a few docks and buttercups. Mostly lost in thigh high grasses... I don't know when it was last grazed by anything never mind horses.

2 questions really.

What would be some steps to preparing and improving this land for horses?

Do you think, with management, it could serve as grazing land for 4 horses (2 larger horses and 2 native type ponies, 1 Shetland and 1 large native say)?

I appreciate it might not be possible to say but as always thoughts are appreciated. I have been looking for larger, drier patches of land that could be grazed 24/7 year round but the location of this one would make management compromise worth it.

There was some evidence of rabbits in the lower part of the field so am assuming from that that it isn't so terribly wet.

3rd question... how would you plan to manage it?

Basically trying to figure out if buying this property is feasible. Horses are all hypothetical bar one at the moment. Lol. I haven't suddenly acquired a herd.
 
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TheMule

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I think you'd have to aim to put in a hard standing area on the driest part to feed hay through the wetter months and possibly a sand paddock or similar as it sounds like you may need to restrict their access onto the fields.
Probably do-able but wouldn't be ideal if you want horses out grazing year round
 
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SEL

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If they are good doers then you can rest a large part of the field post winter - which helps if it's been muddy.

I would definitely need some hard standing put in.

In terms of preparing ground if there's nothing toxic out there then you could just let the horses eat their way through it. A friend has just leased a large paddock and is doing exactly that.

Has it got water to the site?
 

MotherOfChickens

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I've only seen horsetail grow on pretty wet soil-I have it in my summer meadow and thats not usable in the winter.

I would just get it grazed down in the first instance -use it as standing hay. My two go out onto their summer meadow in August and its thigh deep-lasts until end of December generally (5 acres, two ponies)
 

PapaverFollis

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There appeared to be water to a trough but it's with a house/house site anyway.

I don't know how to figure out if it's too wet to manage or not.
 

HeyMich

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Sounds a lot like the land we have with our new house. Wet areas, sloping ground, about 4 acres, docks, buttercups, rabbits etc. We've managed the first winter ok, with the horses (only 2 of them at that point) grazing one side from Dec-March. That side has now been rested fully, and the sedge/rushes topped regularly. We've had a shelter built, and a fair bit of hardstanding put down at the top of the slope, with the idea that I can hay them there over winter and that should keep the rest of the field drier. They are in the summer side just now, and I'm hoping to keep them there as long as possible, then let that rest over winter. That's the plan anyway... I'll let you know how it goes!

Good luck - I must say that having the horses on our own land is hard work, but amazing!
 

splashgirl45

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could you ask any neighbours if there are puddles in the bottom half during winter, also can you do a search for any google maps which show the satellite view.. i think some time ago someone was querying a border and could look up where they were at a certain date. may be worth seeing if you can find anything for the wettest winters ....
 

The Fuzzy Furry

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PF, I have rabbits currently dashing around on my front paddocks, particularly on one side paddock - this is THE wettest paddock in the winter, I've even had ducks take up residence in that one, one winter!

Def dont rely on visuals at this time of the year, but ask locals x
 

PapaverFollis

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I think it's a no anyway given that horsetail has got started. And there's not enough land to have any really boggy or taken over my horsetail really. Maybe if we just had one horse and a companion pony but given that ideally we want 2 riding horses it quickly turns to at least 3 preferably 4. It's a back to the drawing board despite the location and hacking. Which is gutting.
 

blitznbobs

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If you are buying the land horsetail can be killed with a weed killer but you would need to do this before you. Put horses on the land - if it’s a rental
I wouldn’t bother - but 4 acres of not fabulous land really isn’t enough for 4 horses - it will become sick and over grazed unless you have good stabling and restrict grazing for at least part of the year
 
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PapaverFollis

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If we did get it I would manage it and stable overnight in winter. Put in hard standing/all weather surface and do an equicentric type arrangement AND stable over night. I said I *was* looking for something I wouldn't have to restrict winter turnout on *but* the location of this would mean I was prepared to compromise to manage. I have never had 24/7 turnout in winter anywhere so am entirely used to stabling over winter I would like to not have to but if I did it's not the end of the world. However I think the presence of horsetail tips the balance of factors a bit too far.
 

MotherOfChickens

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horsetail is a funny thing-I know of areas where its really taken over and others, such as my summer field, where I just get it in one corner and its not spread in 6 years. I can't worry about it as its not my field and its not a field you can get machines into so not much to be done about it.Ponies don't bother with it much either. but yes, bit of a gamble to actually buy it-its a cool plant, just not one you want.
 

Fransurrey

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I used to have horsetail in one corner of my field that I rented. It never spread in the 13 years I was there. It was sandy soil, too, definitely not boggy as it was the top of the field.
 

GoldenWillow

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We had some horsetail in one corner of a field we rented, greedy cob mare who would eat anything left it alone and the area never spread in the 4 years we were there. I had phases where I'd worry about it and take the lawn mower over it, collecting the cuttings.

Is sedge grass the same as reeds/seives and is it mainly in one place or all over? Again we have some of those in the wet bottom bit of our field, if just in one place that will be the wettest bit. Some fields near us have field full of them, some just about manage through the winter others would be too wet to use (Cumbria, you know how wet we are!)

If you are happy to stable overnight in winter and have hard standing areas I would think 4 acres of mainly useable land is doable managed correctly. I could easily manage 2 horses on our 2 acres of land, some of which is wet. With current horses I have too much grass from May to Oct and they mainly live out over winter.

Access to good hacking I would find very important and whilst you can manage and sort out a lot of the problems with fields (although it can take time and money) you can't make bad hacking good.
 

Britestar

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Apparently the only way to get rid of it is to dig it up, roots and all, which can be up to 3 metres deep!

That is from a company who produce weed killer, so they are well informed.
 

chaps89

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As has been posted above, you can't change location and improve hacking, but you can improve drainage and grazing.
However it's costly and not quick so would depend on your budget, inclination and how many otherwise suitable alternatives are likely to be about!
It would definitely be worth talking to current owners/neighbours/using Google maps etc to see if you can find out just how bad it might get.
 

PapaverFollis

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There was just a bit but scattered through the grass. I'd have to go back and pay closer attention to see how bad it really was. My concern is that there are already ditches and it might be that the land is drier than it was and still wet... plus the house itself is a time and money job... I'm not sure we can manage both!

Current owners have owned for 17 years at least but have never been up in winter! We chatted to a neighbour who described the field as "it gets quite wet" but I've been told the same about the field my horse is currently in and that field has been frankly dry as a bone compared to Cumbria! But evidence in this one points towards actually genuinely quite wet.
 

scruffyponies

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I have horsetail throughout my water meadow in among the grass. It never got out of hand until the flooding of 2013 when my charming neighbour opened a sluice and poured the river into my land for 6mths. It is with relief that I notice that last year's drought seems to have got it back to its historic levels.

The horses don't go out of their way to eat it, but I guess they must end up eating some by accident. Has never caused a problem. Perhaps they compensate with all the vitB they get from the nettles :D
 
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