[caz]

When we bought our field it was described as temporary pasture, now we dont know much about farming and grass but our local farmer fertileses it every year then cuts it for haylage and in turn we get cheap haylage off him. But after it is cut its you see how the grass is sort of planted in rows with sparse bits in between, is this something to do with it being temporary ? and how do we get it from temporary to permanent and have thicker grass, ?

[Fergie]

Maybe graze sheep on it for a couple of years?

Long grass tends to be sparse, while it thickens up if cut frequently.  Frequent mowing would thicken it up, but is a waste of good grass, so use it as grazing for a period.  In spite of the added fertiliser, I suspect that continuous removal of haylage is depleting the nutrients as well, so a rest would do it good.  Grazing with sheep adds manure while also keeping the grass short.

John

[Rosemary]

Rolling and grazing / mowing short encourages the grass to reproduce by tillering ie sending out side shoots rather than by producing seed, which helps to thicken up the sward. Sheep do both functions s well as fertilising as they go. Wonderful things, sheep

[old ploughman]

Temporary refers to the intended life span of the grasses planted for instance 2-3 year, 3-4 year or permanent. It is in rows because it has been drilled and I would guess that your ley is probably a 3-4 year ley comprising Italian and perenial rygrasses. Even with the sheep grazing it you will proably find that it will struggle to tiller enough to fill the 4" gap between the drills. What you could try is either asking the farmer to make hay of it next year or make a second, late cut of haylage this year - just make sure the grasses are well out in head. then when the grass is tedded about the seed will shed and about 4 weeks later you will have a mass of grass seedlings shooting up between the drills. It is basically a cheap reseed and will extend the lifespan of the ley. We reguarly do this to renew a good ley without the major cost of a full cultivated reseed.

If you use the sheep to graze it be careful not to let them graze it too hard as they will quickly open up bare patches.

If the farmer is fertilising the ground he would probably be using a compound containing Potassium and potash so wouldn't think your fertility would necessarily be dropping, but grazing the sheep on there can only do it good.

regards

[caz]

ok thanks for the advice, not sure what to do now as i was intending to graze my horses on it after it was cut as its costing me too much in livery fees! Maybe will graze one half then get a late cut off the other half and vice versa next year.

[old ploughman]

If you are grazing a horse on it you will need a reseed fairly soon anyway You can then lay it down to a permanent type ley which will give you a good tight carpet of cover