five keys to better pastures - sccd.org · five keys to better pastures how to create lush, green...

Content Copyright ©2005 by Alayne Renée Blickle, Horses for Clean Water. Design and Layout Copyright©2005 by Elizabeth Clark, Rockin’ Circle C, LLC.Reproduction prohibited except by permission.

Five Keys to Better PasturesHow to create lush, green pastures

and say goodbye to weeds!

Picture your horse farm in summer: Your horses are out enjoying the lush green grass and you andyour neighbors take pleasure in this beautiful scene. You’re pleased, not just because your horses andneighbors are happy, but because you know your horses are benefiting from healthy forage and you’resaving money with reduced hay bills. In this scenario the environment wins also; the abundant grassabsorbs nutrients from manure and grass roots hold soil in place, preventing erosion. That’s your farmin summer, right? Or maybe the grass isn’t quite so lush and there are a few more weeds in thepicture? And maybe your neighbors aren’t so happy about the dust coming from your place? If yourpastures could be a bit more ideal than they are now, here are five steps you can take to improve yourpastures, no matter how many acres you have.

1 Create a Sacrifice AreaIt is crucial to keep horses off pastures during the winterwhen grass plants are dormant (not growing) and the groundis wet and soggy. Allowing horses to graze year round candestroy pastures. There are two main reasons for this:

● First, if horses continue to graze during the winter whengrass is not growing, they will inevitably graze at leastsome areas to the point where the grass is very short,often down to the ground. Like all plants, grass plantsneed their leavesto gather energyfrom the sun inorder to grow andmake food (storedin the roots). Youcan think of thebottom threeinches of the grassblade as theenergy collector.When horsesgraze to the pointthat the grass isleft shorter thanthree inches, the grass plant can no longer make its own food and instead takes food from itsreserves – the roots. Eventually the grass plant will run out of the stored reserves in its rootsand die. Remember the Golden Rule of Grazing: Keep grass at least three inches tall!

Five Keys to Better PasturesHow to create lush, green pastures and say goodbye to weeds!


● Maybe you’re thinking: “What if I manage grazing duringthe winter and make sure the grass is at least three inchestall, I can still let my horses graze, right?” Well, there’s asecond reason for keeping horses off pastures during thewinter. During the winter, the ground is wet and soggyfrom the rain. When horses step continually on soggyground, the soil is compacted, squeezing out the pocketsof air in the soil. Plants need air in the soil so their rootscan breathe and grow. They also need these pockets of airso water has a place to soak into the soil and reach theroots. When the soil doesn’t have space for air and water,grass plants have a hard time growing. In the summer,the ground is much harder and drier. When your horsesteps on dry pastures, the soil doesn’t squish together likeit does in the winter when the ground is wet.

To protect pastures during the winter and early spring, keephorses in a sacrifice area. A sacrifice area is a small enclo-sure, such as a corral, paddock, run, or pen that is your horse’s outdoor living quarters during thewinter. It is called a sacrifice area because you are giving up the use of that small portion of landas a grassy area to benefit the rest of your pastures. Your horses should be confined to the sacri-fice area during the winter and early spring when grass plants are dormant and soils are wet. Inthe summer you can also use the sacrifice area to keep your pastures from becoming overgrazed(never below 3 or 4 inches) and to keep your horses for becoming overweight. (For more informa-tion, purchase Creating the Sacrifice Area Tip Sheet from the Horses For Clean Water web site athttp://www.horsesforcleanwater.com/.)

2 Use Rotational GrazingIf you look around your pastures, you’ll probably find thatthere are sections where your horses have grazed the grassdown close to the ground and other sections where the grassis very tall. Horses are picky eaters—they like to eat the shortgrass because it is much sweeter and more tender than thetall grass. If you let horses out onto a pasture to graze, theywill often eat the short, tender grass all the way down to theground and as soon as it re-grows, they will go back and eatit again. As we discussed in the last section, grass needs achance to grow and collect energy in order to survive. Ifhorses keep returning to that short grass and eating it downto the ground, the grass will eventually die.

Rotational grazing is a technique you can use to keep yourhorses from overgrazing these sections of pasture. Rotationalgrazing just means that you take a pasture, divide it intosections, and rotate the areas your horses use for grazing. To



use a rotational grazing system, start by dividing your pasture intoseveral smaller areas, or maybe just in half. Temporary fencing is espe-cially useful for accomplishing this. The easiest, least expensive andsafest type of temporary fencing is the electric poly tape (or a similarproduct). This plastic tape has aluminum fibers woven through it so itwill conduct electricity. Use this along with some type of step-in post –three or four feet tall plastic or fiberglass posts easily inserted in theground. Both the tape and the step-in posts can be purchased at mostfeed stores or from farm supply catalogues. To electrify the temporaryfence simply connect it to your existing hot wire system or use a water-proof battery fence charger (also sold at feed stores or through cata-logues). For a small pasture you might divide it in half orthirds, for larger pastures try breaking it into four to sixsections. When most of the grass in the first area hasbeen grazed down to about threeinches, move your horses on to thenext section of pasture. Once thegrass in the first area has re-grownto at least six inches (this usuallytakes two to six weeks during thespring, summer and fall) you can letyour horses begin grazing that area again.

By rotating horses off one section of pasture and onto anothergives the grass in each section time to re-grow. Think of rota-tional grazing as giving your grass a rest period. Giving grass plantsthis rest period allows them the time they need to collect energyand store food in their roots.

Here’s a simple scenario for a pasture that has been divided inhalf:

● Put your horse in Pasture 1 (where the grass is at least six inchestall). Allow your horse to graze in this pasture until most of thegrass is about three inches tall.

● Move your horse into Pasture 2. Again, let your horse grazein this pasture until most of the grass is about threeinches tall.

● Once the grass in Pasture 2 has been grazed down tothree inches, check Pasture 1 to see if the grass hasre-grown to at least six inches. (This usually takes twoto six weeks during the spring, summer and fall.) If it has,you can move your horse back into Pasture 1. If it hasn’t,keep your horse in your sacrifice area until the grass hashad a chance to re-grow.



Another important part of rotational grazing is determining how long to graze your horses eachday. How much time you put them out depends on the following variables: how much land youhave, how many horses you have, their age, weight, breed, and if they are already adjusted toeating pasture. For most folks, once horses are accustomed to pasture, you can let them graze fortwo to four hours once or twice a day. If you are fortunate enough to have productive pastures or alow stocking rate (horses per acre) you may be able to workup to six hours of grazing time. Be very careful to not allowyour horse to become overweight or to eat too much grasswhen they are not accustomed to it. Always begin springgrazing time gradually. Too much time in a pasture duringthe spring when grasses are especially rich can causeserious health problems. If you have any questions onthis consult your veterinarian for his or her recommen-dations on the amount of grazing time recommendedfor your horse.

For my horses I have observed that it takes about 2 hours for them to consume a “meal” so I usethat as a guideline. Here is a sample of the grazing routine I use on our farm. At the beginning ofthe grazing season (about mid-April) I gradually begin pasture-grazing time with my horses. I startwith about an hour of grazing time and over a period of a month or more I work up to 2-3 hoursper horse. By mid-June I usually have all horses grazing 2 times a day (morning and late after-noon) for about 3 hours each time. They still get a third (but smaller) feeding of hay in the lateevening. Modify your own grazing routine to fit your horses, farm and schedule. You can choose toput them out once or twice a day, before or after work, or whenever it’s convenient for you.

3 Mow PasturesOnce an area has been grazed down to about three inches, it is time for you to get out your lawnor pasture mower. As we’ve mentioned already, horses are selective grazers, eating some plantsclose to the ground and leaving others untouched. Mowing evens the playing field by cutting thetall plants down to a size where they are more palatable. It also encourages grass plants toproduce more leaves, making the plant stand thicker. Also, mowing is a very important weedmanagement technique since most weeds cannot withstand mowing. Set your mower deck at fourto six inches and have at it!



4 Harrow PasturesAfter mowing, harrow (or drag) the pasture area to spreadmanure. Harrowing breaks up manure so plants can use thenutrients and organic materials. To accomplish this you can pull aharrow with your tractor or riding lawn mower. Or, you cansimply take a manure fork and spread manure by hand. A widevariety of harrows can be purchased from farm and tractorsupply stores or catalogs, or you can look in the back of horsemagazines. Harrows with teeth or tines are more aggressive and can beadjusted to have more of a ripping effect on the ground. A basic harrowcan also be simply made – a discarded piece of chain-link fence with twoold tires tied down for weight works well. An old metal bedspring, metalgate or similar item may also work.

A good time to spread seed is after harrowing. If you have any barespots or severely overgrazed areas practice the “green band aid” ap-proach of sprinkling pasture seeds over the area. Bare spots are an openinvitation for weeds—the sooner you can get grass growing in theseareas the less likely it is that you’ll end up with weeds.

5 Soil Testing, Fertilizer and LimeAnother pasture management technique is to have a soil test done for your pastures and applylime and fertilizer accordingly. By following the soil test results you will reduce the chance ofapplying too much. It is a common mistake to use too much fertilizer and the end result is thatyou’ve wasted your money and the excess fertilizer ends up in nearby streams and lakes. Whennutrients from fertilizers end up in our water it increases the growth of aquatic weeds like algae.Algae uses up the oxygen needed by fish and can impact swimming and other water recreation.Remember that just because it’s spring doesn’t mean it’s necessarily time to fertilize. The best wayto find out if your pastures actually need to be fertilized is to get a soil test at least once a year. Byfinding out what your soil needs you will be able choose a fertilizer with the right amount ofnitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. Many fertilizers are high in nitrogen and that may not bewhat your grass plants need. Nitrogen promotes plant growth but in the spring most plants aregoing to grow vigorously on their own. Soil testing is relatively inexpensive and you can get a listof soil testing labs from your local Conservation District (visit http://www.horsesforcleanwater.com/ for a link to find your local CD). Your local Conservation Districtshould also be able to give you some hints on the best way to take a soil sample. If you do findthat you need to fertilize, fertilizing in mid-spring and/or late fall should be plenty.

While using fertilizer may be unnecessary, using lime is often crucial for those of us living in theNorthwest. Most soils in the Northwest are acidic and if the pH is wrong, many of the nutrients inthe soil cannot be used by the plant. In fact, overusing fertilizer can further acidify the soil. Usinglime will do a number of things: it will increase the effectiveness of any fertilizers you apply; itencourages the activity of soil bacteria thus releasing valuable nutrients such as nitrogen, phos-



phorus, and sulfur; and it will supply calcium and magnesium. After you spread lime, it may looklike you just fertilized because you’ve suddenly made the nitrogen and other nutrients available toyour grass plants.

By utilizing these pasture management techniques you will be creating healthier, more productivepastures, which means less money spent on supplemental feed. Healthy pastures also have the addedbenefit of making happier, healthier horses, a prettier picture for you and your neighbors – and acleaner environment for all.

Good horsekeeping to you!

Horses for Clean Water (HCW) is a program run and supported by horseowners promoting environ-mentally sensitive horsekeeping. HCW offers classes, workshops and farm tours on topics such asmud, manure and pasture management, composting, wildlife enhancement, horse health, preparingyour horse farm for winter, and more! HCW also offers educational materials and products for sale andindividual farm consultations. For more on HCW educational opportunities, or to be added to thelistserv and receive information, including the monthly e-newsletter The Green Horse, about futureeducational events visit the HCW website at http://ww.horsesforcleanwater.com. The Green Horsearchives of past issues are also available on the web site for browsing. Additionally, you will find linksto specific products with various affiliate programs that the HCW staff members recommend. Purchas-ing through those links helps to support HCW programs.

five keys to better pastures - sccd.org · five keys to better pastures how to create lush, green...

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