# Will Bushhogging or just cutting with lawnmower help



## maura (Nov 21, 2009)

Yes. 

In wet weather when the good grasses are growing I mow once a week.


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

maura said:


> Yes.
> 
> In wet weather when the good grasses are growing I mow once a week.


i always see those guys with big pretty pastures and wonder how they stay looking nice and trim and neat and i was always under the impression that the horses kept it ate down lol. As to people saying a horse needs acres and acres to graze on . Thought mine would have my pasture nice and ate down too lol.


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

You only have to brushhog it if it's really tall and thick. Otherwise, just mow it often.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

^^^^ once a week here, too, if possible, and no longer than 2 weeks.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

nyg052003 said:


> i always see those guys with big pretty pastures and wonder how they stay looking nice and trim and neat and i was always under the impression that the horses kept it ate down lol. As to people saying a horse needs acres and acres to graze on . Thought mine would have my pasture nice and ate down too lol.


The more land you give them, the more they have to choose from. They'll go back and forth eating from mort to least palatable, and there is stuff that looks like very nice grass (to me) that they won't touch at all. If you want to clean up the rest, add some goats.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

equiniphile said:


> You only have to brushhog it if it's really tall and thick. Otherwise, just mow it often.


so mowing it is definitely a must? Darn darn lol i have enough yard to cut as it is lol. I even cleaned up a front pasture for him, letting that grow up right now. I guess my dad needs to get that 2nd horse afterall lol. I only have one now


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## maura (Nov 21, 2009)

Horses are selective grazers. They don't keep anything eaten down nice and even. They will ONLY eat certain things in the pasture mix and ignore others, and when given enough land, the will make manure in one area and let everything in that area grow and get long, and graze another area down to nubs. 

Mowing and/or bushogging regularly is one part of good pasture management. It encourages the good grasses to grow and spread and choke out the weeds, and cuts down the weeds before they have a chance to seed.


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## maura (Nov 21, 2009)

Yes, mowing it is a must, at least if you want decent looking pasture and no, a second horse won't help.


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

maura said:


> Yes, mowing it is a must, at least if you want decent looking pasture and no, a second horse won't help.


**** **** **** lol. I will get goat as long as i won't have to feed him anything else lol. Just give him water and hopefully not have to worm or spend any othe money on him lol


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

*Shoe polish on a back cinch???????*

have any of you guys ever use shoe polish on a back cinch to make it darker and does it last long? A guy at a tack shop only had a light colored one but he said shoe polish would work.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

^^^ They are easier than horses. You should still worm them, but they need very little else. However, you do need a good fence like goat fencing (I.e. not simple hot wire) because goats are escape artists.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

PaintHorseMares said:


> ^^^ They are easier than horses. You should still worm them, but they need very little else. However, you do need a good fence like goat fencing (I.e. not simple hot wire) because goats are escape artists.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


2 strands should hold them lol. But not sure i will ask some neighbors who has them. Darn i thought i had it made with just having a horse. Now that i might have to pay someone to cut it with their tractor or do it myself when my yard is big enuff, man i just dont know lol. if it was a perfect field with no lumps and stuff yeah i could see doing it and i still may just use my old lawnmower and do it.
Actually im using part of my neighbors land for the one side and all of his land in the front to pasturize. He lives in VA and i told him to let me use it and the horse would keep it ate down so he didnt have to pay to get it done lol. ****


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## Delfina (Feb 12, 2010)

nyg052003 said:


> 2 strands should hold them lol.


You obviously do not own a goat! :shock:

Yes, you DO need to feed and care for a goat. They are not a breathing lawnmower that you throw out somewhere and ignore. They need to bed fed in the Winter or when grazing gets slim, they need de-wormer, vaccinations and their hooves trimmed. They also need appropriate shelter for when the weather is icky.

Goats are escape artists, 2 strands of hot wire will keep them in for oh 5 minutes unless something comes along that interests them sooner. I have no climb fencing that is 5ft high and staked down. All the gates are also covered in no-climb and staked as well. Only way I've managed to keep the lil ******s contained and they still escape on a weekly basis.


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

Delfina said:


> You obviously do not own a goat! :shock:
> 
> Yes, you DO need to feed and care for a goat. They are not a breathing lawnmower that you throw out somewhere and ignore. They need to bed fed in the Winter or when grazing gets slim, they need de-wormer, vaccinations and their hooves trimmed. They also need appropriate shelter for when the weather is icky.
> 
> Goats are escape artists, 2 strands of hot wire will keep them in for oh 5 minutes unless something comes along that interests them sooner. I have no climb fencing that is 5ft high and staked down. All the gates are also covered in no-climb and staked as well. Only way I've managed to keep the lil ******s contained and they still escape on a weekly basis.


well i certainly wouldn't be getting any then lol


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

I know an old man down the street, he has had that pasture since i was a kid and that was 30 yrs ago and not sure how long before i was a kid. I know for a fact he doesn't mow or brushhog his and it stays flat. He just now got a few more horses but for the longest it was mainly one to 2 horses. He did have cows for a period also but last few yrs i havent seen any cows


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## Rancher6 (May 9, 2012)

maura said:


> Mowing and/or bushogging regularly is one part of good pasture management. It encourages the good grasses to grow and spread and choke out the weeds, and cuts down the weeds before they have a chance to seed.


 

x2. Regular mowing is the cheapest and most effective form of weed control.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I cut only the pasture that the horses are on for a few hours a day. And it's cut only once. My pastures are a mixture of grasses and horses will favor some in the spring, others in the summer and again others in the fall. Even certain weeds become delicious morsels at certain times of the year.


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## nyg052003 (Oct 11, 2010)

I cut it the other day after mowing the yard and it looks good. I will only have to mowe it about once a month which aint bad. Also the area up front that's been growing, he hasnt been on it yet so yesterday I just slingbladed some weeds. I will put him on monday in that area and let him eat away.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

NygO the shoe polish may not work either. I've had good luck with oil dye as long as the surface is prepared properly. Unlike a spirit dye which once it touches, that's what you get, it's more of a gradual process and may require a number of applications. It give you a little more control.


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