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From: root@hasler.uucp Subject: Re: Pastures vs hay (was Grain and Attitude) Organization: Dancing Horse Hill Date: Sun, 20 Mar 1994 16:31:15 GMT I'm not a nutritionest but I am a farmer: I run 25 horses on 30 acres of pasture which I plant and maintain. I also make my own hay: some from my pastures, some from my hay fields. There is no advantage to mixed grass in a hay field. The grasses all have similar yields and compositions, and besides, after a few years one predominates no matter how many you planted. Legumes are desireable in hay fields because they offer _much_ higher yield than grass. I have a bluegrass-alfalfa mix (the grass is gaining). Red clover makes LOUSY hay. The thick stems dry very slowly, often leaving one with the choice of baling it wet and getting moldy hay, or letting the hay get rained on. Red clover hay is always dusty. Grasses do peak at different times, but they all become somewhat dormant in mid-summer. Legumes are very helpful here, as they do well in heat, and have deep roots to get water in dry weather. Red clover suffers from toxic molds which cause slobbers and photosensitivity. Fortunately, it dies out after about two years. Alfalfa does not tolerate grazing well. Birdsfoot trefoil is hardy, tolerates grazing, makes good hay, etc etc. It has only one problem. Horses don't like it. They do eat some of it, but they don't like it. I'm trying to get rid of mine. White clover is about the only choice left. Go to your county extension office, get a soil map, and figure out what your soil type is. Get soil tests done, and fertilize as recommended. Seed with a grass-legume mixture appropriate to your climate and soil type. The extension office will have lots of helpful bulletins on pasture and hay, but don't expect the extension officer to know much about horses. Mow your pastures at least twice a year no matter how short they are, and rotate them. Mowing is the most effective weed control method I know of. Rotation allows the grass to recover from grazing: two ten acre pastures can carry more animals than one twenty acre pasture. References: Forages: The Science of Grassland Agriculture (4th ed.) Maurice E. Heath et al Iowa State Univ. Press 1985 Horse Nutrition: A Practical Guide Harold Hintz Arco Publishing 1983 Facts and Figures for Farmers Doane Publishing 1984 Manual of the Grasses of the United States A. S. Hitchcock, 2nd edition revised by Agnes Chase Dover Publications 1971 Numerous Extension Service bulletins. Your county extension service will have many on display at their office, and will order others for you John Hasler uunet!hasler!root Dancing Horse Hill Elmwood, WI 54740 |
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