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Lori Martin
Member
Username: Lmmartin
Post Number: 20
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, Mar 15, 2006 - 12:08 am: |   |
My husband is planning on going to the local Co-op and picking up a sprayer full of weed-killer and fertilizer and spraying the pastures for spring. Our grass grows but needs some help and we need to get rid of some of the weeds before they get too bad. We are going to make sure what ever the co-op uses is "safe" for horses and we are going to remove the horses for awhile from the pastures.
But what I want to know is if too much fertilizer on the grass can be harmful for the horses, once we return them to the pasture??
Also wondering about hay that has been fertilized, if that is safe for horses?? |
Imogen Bertin
Member
Username: Imogen
Post Number: 751
Registered: 4-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, Mar 15, 2006 - 3:58 am: | |
Hi Lori I don't know where you are based but I know that in the US there are excellent agricultural advice services (I think they are called extension services) in most states.
Here in Ireland it would be normal to use a low nitrogen fertiliser such as 10:10:20 (that's the potassium/phosphorus/nitrogen percentages) for horses because they do not need nitrogen rich fertilised grass (too lush in the spring can cause laminitis and they don't like it that much taste-wise!)
Regarding the spray element you need to find out what weeds you have... if you don't know you may need help. Different weeds need spraying different times of year with different chemicals. Also if you have clover in your pasture that is a "natural" fertiliser so you may not want to kill it off, but then most clover-safe sprays are more expensive.
So I think you need to talk to your local agricultural advice service. Coops are good too but they want to sell you stuff...
Best wishes
Imogen |
Angie
Member
Username: Ajudson1
Post Number: 378
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, Mar 15, 2006 - 8:10 am: | |
Lori,
I agree with Imogen. Also check with the guys at your local feed store/mill. Go where the farmers go, these older guys are full of knowledge.
I have never sprayed the whole pasture for weeds and we don't have any either. We frost seed with clover and timothy every other year (clover is a biannual) and mow after grazing. Any weed killer you use will also kill clover, so you need to know what kind of plants are growing in your pasture.
When you do a frost seeding, the clover works into the ground as the frost is working out. Also the spring rains drive it in the ground. Then you let the horses graze after it is 8" tall...clover grows fast and chokes off less desirable plants. After grazing down to 3", remove the horses and mow. The timothy comes along slower and does better in the hotter months.
I do some spot spraying with Roundup like on a few thistles, or burdocks. Or we dig them up.
As far as fertilizer goes, as long as you don't see it laying on the ground any more, it should be safe to let the horses graze.
Depending on where you live, you may have to change what you seed and when but you should still be able to get by without using chemicals to kill weeds.
BTW, there have been studies that have shown that these "killers" are present in the crops that grow in the soil. I believe it was lettuce grown after Roundup was used to clear the area of weeds and grasses.
So, overseed, fertilize, and mow is what works here. |
Robert N. Oglesby DVM
Moderator
Username: Dro
Post Number: 15071
Registered: 1-1997
| | Posted on Wednesday, Mar 15, 2006 - 10:45 pm: | |
Anything can be overdone Lori and not knowing exactly what cheimcals you are applying makes any specific answer impossible. We have general recommendations at Care for Horses ยป Pastures, Fences, & Buildings. However the above recommendation of getting in touch with your local extension professionals is a good one.
DrO |
