[bigchicken]

Anyone used pigs to plough land. I plan to use a couple of pigs to strip plough a small field anyone got any experience of this method.

[Fleecewife]

I have a lovely vision of a couple of pigs harnessed up with a little plough behind 

We used a couple of Tamworths to sort out a weedy bit of our veggie plot.  It was successful in that they ate the couch grass roots, bramble roots and so on, and turned it all over.  However, we found that when it was wet, their feet sank down into the mud all to the same depth and left a hard pan in the soil about 5-6" below the surface.  This was quite difficult to remove.   Also, not having proper pig wire to electrify we used sheep mesh and they just pushed under it - screaming all the while at the shocks but determined to get under    Cheeky horrors    They did add a good amount of fertility to the veggie garden - to put it politely 

[FiB]

We are doing just that and the results are not quite as I had imagined.  We started in september and we have moved them on to their second strip a couple of weeks ago.  We have a scrubby slopy field, lots of rocks with a fair smattering of thistles and bracken (Did lots of scything and bracken wacking over the summer) and the idea of a fresh start with a beautifully turned over and manured field (as shown in seymour (the complete book of self suffieciency - NOT a book I would recommend other than for the bit before you get your smallholding!! was tempting.  The results so far are interesting - the pigs (4 saddlebacks bought at 10 weeks) do plough the ground sort of - they seem to get their snouts just under the 'turf' and turn over a big flap, eat what ever it is they are after and move on.  They neatly go AROUND thistles!!!!!  Then there is their toiletting area (about a third of the strip)  which they leave untouched and their water trough and house area which is mashed to a hard /soggy (depending on weather) pan as described above.    It may be that if we kept them on the strip longer it would even out?

But what we are left with is a lumpy area with turned over 'divots'.  It all could do with a good harrow before seeding - but guess what this field is too steep and rocky for that (hence its condition probably!).  So I'm hoping the winter will do some of my work and then I will wake up one spring morning with 'the solution' (which wont involve me and a rake!) - I love it when that happens!  Good luck!  In short If your field is accessible for harrowing, I think the pigs will do some good work (but not all of it!).

[bigchicken]

I was thinking of using a rotavator to help churn everythink up before planting grass seed  would that be an idea

[robert waddell]

the rotovator will also pan the soil with the blades

[bigchicken]

Right I get that, is there a way to overcome this. This ground has not been ploughed for a long time.

[robert waddell]

hope for -20 deg frosts         there are a variety of pan busters chisel ploughs etc out there but it all comes down to cultivating the land when the land is suitable        that is the hard part

[Sylvia]

I think you would have to keep your pigs on the land for a fair old time before it was "ploughed" sufficiently and then rotovate it. I tried this with Berkshires and although they turned the bit of ground into a quagmire and you couldn't see a bit of any grass growing, my Goodness!, the plants that came up the year after, ones I'd never seen growing there before. I can only imagine the seeds had been in the soil waiting for the right conditions (pig poo )
I also had a fine crop of tomato plants from their dunging bit

[robert waddell]

nothing digests tomato seeds

[hughesy]

We've found it's a good way to end up with a dense mass of weeds. Dock seeds in particular seem to burst into life as soon as the pigs are removed. They do create a hard layer a few inches down but I spose this will depend on soil type. It certainly isn't as simple as let the pigs in then take em off and hey presto there's your new veg patch.

[MAK]

It may be that if you can let them clear the unused land in strips and move them on before they turn it into a bog and create a hard pan beneath. Mine have reserved a toilet area that I use as a virtual hub when moving the fence to new strips. Soil type must be important as is drainage,depth of soil/sub soil etc. We are lucky with good soil type and I hope to plant in some of the areas "ploughed" by pigs next spring. Sounds odd but I collect their waste from the toilet area and add to the compost heaps. - I guess this spreads the load and maybe in future years other pigs will plough the old toilet area.
Cheers Martin
 

[HappyHippy]

Sounds odd but I collect their waste from the toilet area and add to the compost heaps. - I guess this spreads the load and maybe in future years other pigs will plough the old toilet area.
Cheers Martin

The only thing I've found from doing this is that if you're using wormer treatment on your pigs the earthworms don't touch the dung in the composter  A big pile of their dung covered with plastic would probably heat up and compost far quicker (well, that's what I'm hoping  )
Karen 

[bigchicken]

From the general info it will not be a great idea but I think with a bit of work it might be possible. The pigs will leave it in a mess if not cultivated.