Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Thanks everyone...I did forget to add some important information. 
We are located in the midwest in southern IL...about 50 miles from St
Louis.  No pasture irritation.  I currently have 1 horse but
plan on buying 1-2 more.  I'm hoping the pasture can support up to
4 total, bring them in at night to rest the pasture, as well as using
pasture rotation.
Val

On 7/2/06, Truman Prevatt <tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Val Nicoson wrote:
> Our bid was just accepted on a 5 acre piece of property with a house,
> barn & outbuildings...it does include a small pond too in the SE corner.
> Would like to hear from others who also have small acreages as to how
> you manage your properties regarding how many horses you may have,
> maintaining the grass pastures, etc...including how you deal with
> Insecticides/Pesticides leaching into your pastures from adjacent farm
> fields, etc.
> The property is flat but with good drainage from what we can tell.
> TIA for any info/advice, it'll be a couple months for financing &
> closure to happen,
> Val
>
A lot of this depends on where the property is located, the climate in
the area, type of soil (sandy, clay, etc.) if it is irrigated, etc. So
more information would be helpful. One of the big problems with a lot of
horses on small acreage is horses tend to be hard on pasture. There feet
tear up the ground more than a cloven hoof animal. A horse will graze
grass much shorter than cows and this can impact pasture quality.
With a few animals it's easier to rotate and rest some of the land than
it is with a lot of horses. With a lot of horses you will probably be
down to keeping some in the barn during the day and out night with the
others out day and in the barn night.

Truman


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