Weeds, horses and spring grass
Article from 'Straight from the Horse's Mouth' - October 2009
Like it or not horses are tough on pasture. Their heavy weight per square inch means paddocks are often quickly pugged, especially in wet weather.
They are typically picky grazers and these two factors alone, if not managed effectively, can give rise to an onslaught of weeds in the spring months. These weeds often seed in autumn and lie dormant until spring when, with the warmer weather, they start to become prevalent. If left unattended they can quickly take hold and soon your pasture is overrun with dock, penny royal and thistles.
Where you have noticed mud patches try replacing with some new grass seed and leave it to come away. New grass typically takes up to six weeks to establish and first grazing should be ideally a smaller animal, or you could try mowing to really allow the pasture to take hold. If you're thinking about regrassing some of your pasture then autumn or spring are good times.
The old saying prevention is better than cure is never truer than when dealing with weeds.
Once weeds get a foothold in pasture, they often expand. This is true in late-spring, when grass plants start developing reproductive stem. The trick is to deal with emerging weeds before they take hold.
A combination of topping (mowing) and selective weed spraying will help manage the emergence and resurgence of weeds. If you are taking on this task yourself then you'll need the right gear. We recommend you talk to one of the team at RD1 about the types of weeds you have and what will work best to eradicate them long term.
If you are undertaking spraying yourself, ensure you spray weeds out before topping. You need to ensure the weed plant has plenty of surface area to take up the weed spray. If you want to identify where you've sprayed, add a marker dye to the spray mix. And if you want maximum effectiveness with your spraying, add an organosilicone product.
Topping or mowing once the weeds are dead has the affect of thickening the grass sward and making it difficult for weeds to come through the grass. The thicker the grass, the harder it is for weeds to pervade the pasture. Plus a mown paddock looks terrific.
If you don't have access to a mower, then it's strongly suggested to cross grass. Remove the horses and run some cows or sheep through the paddock before giving the pasture a break. Remember, weeds can spread by passing through animals faeces, so it is important to co-ordinate stock rotation and your weed elimination plan at the same time.
Talk to the team at your local RD1 store today for your weed control solutions.
Some products may not be available in all stores but can be ordered on request. Disclaimer: Any views and comments expressed in this article are not necessarily the opinions of RD1 Limited nor associated agencies. This content is copyright of RD1 Limited.
