what needs doing to a field that has ragwort if you want to cut it for hay?

china

Well-Known Member
Joined
24 November 2008
Messages
5,193
Visit site
my mums boss has a 5 acre field sat there doing nothing but it gets a huge amount of ragwort in there during the summer, with the trouble i am having trying to get hold of hay i have asked mum to ask him if i get it sorted and cut if i can keep the cut, He earns a ridicule amount of money so its no loss to him!
 
Well you'll either have to dig up any ragwort you see or could try spraying it but will still have to check that there's no ragwort in there before you cut it.
 
If its the odd plant then just pull it up and burn it, if theres lots then dont do hay graze it with sheep instead. Remember ragwort is biannual, ie it flowers in the second year, in its forst year it is just green rossette type plant nearer to the ground wirh no flowers,so even if you pick and remove the flowering plant you will most probably stil be mowing the unflowered ragwort with the hay crop. I wouldt risk it.
 
it gets a ridiculous amount of ragwort in it, the women who rented it never did anything so it spread more and more each year, there has never been a year that i havnt seen ragwort in there.
 
i would suggest the field is sprayed in the spring, and also grazed off by sheep and cattle. and kept reasonably short by grazing for the rest of the year, repeat this in the second year and you might get reasonably safe hay in the third year. you will also have to pull/spray surrounding areas to limit the worst of reseeding. unfortunately there is no quick way to get rid of the ragwort.
 
If its the odd plant then just pull it up and burn it, if theres lots then dont do hay graze it with sheep instead. Remember ragwort is biannual, ie it flowers in the second year, in its forst year it is just green rossette type plant nearer to the ground wirh no flowers,so even if you pick and remove the flowering plant you will most probably stil be mowing the unflowered ragwort with the hay crop. I wouldt risk it.

You do realise don't you that ragwort is poisonous to sheep as well? They only eat in because they haven't the wit not to.

OP, you will have to apply weedkiller specifically targetted to kill ragwort.
 
Top