The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Other => Topic started by: Pikeman on March 29, 2013, 05:02:47 pm
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Hi we have 1.5 acres but its poor grass, all around looks green and lush but ours always looks a bit yellow except during early summer. How do we improve it?
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You might be better looking at the land management section.
Also, I suppose it depends what you want to do with it.
We want to improve ours for grazing sheep so the simple advice was to do a soil test for PH and spread some lime if needed.
Drainage might need improving too.
Other than that you can plough, harrow, reseed but those are big expensive jobs
J xxxx
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We have lime green fields all around us as cattle baron likes his fertiliser....
But altho still the uncut ungrazed fields are still yellow, those that have been topped or cut for hay tend to green up quickly in the spring, and those used for the sheep or geese never go yellow.
We probably should lime our undoubtedly acidic fields, but they make lovely hay without anything and the sheep do a good job and money isnt abundant so they havent had any yet!
Even after liming if neighbours use artificial fertilisers and you dont their fields will always be brighter green (until the oil runs out to make the fertiliser and run the tractors :-))))
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As L&M says. Often all that's needed is a couple of years of close-cropping by sheep, plus their generous donations of muck. The close-cropping causes tillering of the grass ie lots of stalks grow from each plant, rather than the few which grow if the grass gets too long without grazing or rolling. Artificial fertilisers tend to prevent clover from growing/thriving - this is a natural adder of nitrogen, so you might find benefit to your overall pasture quality of seeding any bare or mossy patches with white clover seed. Clover takes a couple of years to establish itself but doesn't seem to mind being grazed during this time.
Ploughing and re-seeding, as well as being expensive and leaving you nowhere to run your stock while the grass establishes itself, will destroy any native and deep rooted plants which help bring minerals to the surface roots of grass from deep below. These plants also make much better grazing for many stock than the quick-grown, fertiliser supported monograsses. To mimic this natural variety of plants in your grazing you would need to use some very expensive seed.
On such a small acreage, hand weeding of thistles, nettles, dockens etc is not too much work and saves using weedkillers.
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speak to people close by and see if there is a local agrologist
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Thank you all, we already have some sheep so it is being topped. It's just poor quality. How do I ph test it? Is there a kit?