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[RC] pasture seeding - Mary Orosz

I am in Coeur d’Alene and probably have the same cruddy, nasty, irritating clay soil as you. It is quicksand in the spring and hard as rock in the summer. I planted my 2 acre pasture the summer before last.  The first year I got mostly weeds and gave up and let my horses out to play. I tried to water with a sprinkler, but try to do 2 acres when your well will only let you run 1 sprinkler!  I did notice thought that the when it came in the next year, the area I watered was thicker.   Last year I seeded again in the spring – it did come in from the year before but was sparse - and tried to keep the horses off it.  I ended up feeling sorry for them and let them out again.  This spring I did the same thing, but kept the horses off for a couple months till everything dried out.  Then I would let them out for 2-4 hours a day.  By the time everyone was cutting their hay, I was letting them out 24/7.  The grass came in pretty good this year, although it could be a lot thicker.  The local farmer told me that I should have kept my horses off for 2 years because the roots need time to establish themselves.  When the grass is new and the horses are eating it, the root system is weak and the horses pull the whole grass – roots and all – out when they eat.  I just hate to coop them up with nothing to do, so I decided to just to put down more seed each year until it eventually fills in. Of course I will probably keep them out when the rains come and it is soupy. Hopefully next year will come in even better.  Believe it or not someone told me from a distance how good my pasture looked.  I thought it looked kind of pathetic though.   

 

- Mary