Harrow versus manure spreader..

[Laura]

Talk to me about manure management. Right now we have 4 horses on about an acre lot. In a week or so, the sheep will be gone, and we can put two over on the other acre lot and two on this one, or rotate around and maybe see if we can get something to grow on one of them.

Right now I'm picking out daily and dumping in a compost pile, which has gotten pretty big. Lately I've been just spreading it in a thin layer around the woods and other areas of the property where there are no animals.

DH wants to get a harrow to pull behind his 4-wheeler and just break up the manure in each lot. I contend that it really needs to be removed from there and would like to get a manure spreader instead. That way I could start working on the composted pile also and get that diminished. Ideally, it would be nice to have both, as I can see how a harrow would be useful in the spring when the frozen poop (that couldn't be picked up because it's frozen solid to the ground) starts thawing and things are just a mess out there.

The harrow is about $200, and the mini spreader is about $700. We will have more cash after we get past DD's graduation in a couple of weeks. I think I need the spreader. What do you think? I'd like to hear how you all deal with poop!

[DorothyB]

I'm curious about this as well. When I just had Laara, I didn't "do" manure management. Now with two horses, it has become a "must".

Honestly, I've done nothing in the dry lot area. I have a bit more than 1 1/2 acres of pasture. Maybe 1 3/4 acre. Laara will NOT eat where she has "pooped". It doesn't appear that Shiloh will either. Laara is pretty neat and has several "potty places" in each pasture. Shiloh seems to go almost anywhere. So, my current plan (which I've been following off & on for a few weeks now) is: They go in the east pasture for a few days; pick out the west pasture, mow it, water if it hasn't rained (or as much as I can); move horses to west pasture and repeat pick, mow & water in the vacant pasture.

One of my fence lines has chain link fence which is several inches off the ground. Since that fence is also several inches inside my property line, I'm putting the manure sort of under / against that fence line in a line.

My concern about harrowing or spreading is that then Laara might not eat anywhere in the pasture.

[linda]

There are pros and cons, as mentioned. If you spread fresh manure, then you do spread parasite eggs around the pasture. Some horses do have "bathroom" areas and they choose not to eat there--good planning. (All the nitrogen does make the grass more bitter--I really doubt that the horses have studied up on parasite management.) If you are spreading manure that has been composted for a while, the heat is suppose to have killed the parasite eggs. But, it seems as none of us live in a perfect world.

Do be sure to also spread lime--pelletized domite--along with the manure. Otherwise the field will slowly become more acidic and grass won't grow well. Since your soils out where you live are probably pretty acidic in the first place, lime will be your friend.

I agree that both pieces of equipment would be useful. Are you looking at the "Newer Spreader" that you see advertised on RFD-TV? I hear that it is very nice--and would work well behind that ATV. You could just sprinkle pelletized lime in with each load and spread away.
Linda

[Laura]

Yes, the Newer Spreader -- that's what I was thinking of. Thanks for the hint about the lime, Linda -- I've read that before, but I need to get some! I've heard it's pretty acidic where Ponderosa pines grow, and we have a ton of them on the property.

Thanks, too, Dorothy. As I am shoveling every day, I fondly remember having lots more time to ride when I boarded!

[ben]

I'm not much help on manure management. The sheep & cow eat around the horse poop, the horse eats around their poop, the pastures get mowed and harrowed every fall and left until spring.

What's happening to your sheep? Did you sell them? Lamb-burger?

[Laura]

LOL, Ben! I've sold some, and the rest are for sale, cheap. Shetlands don't make good lamb-burger, I'm afraid!

I have 12 huge bags of fleece, and no time to spin or do anything with it. We are keeping Keevan, our little bottle wether, and one moorit ewe (Alexa's favorite -- and she's tame -- don't have to chase her down to trim hooves or anything). They will just be pets, and I'll have white and brown fleece if I ever get around to learning how to spin.

I really need the area they are in so I can spread our or rotate the horses.

[Trailpal]

we tried the harrowing route to break up what was already in the pasture, but it didn't seem to spread things much. It might be too dry here, the manure either dries up in a ball, or the manure beetles get to it and break it up so good that the wind scatters it. For the "indoor" horses that we pick up daily and pile, or at the end of winter when we can get the deep stuff around the feeders, we use a spreader. (It's a bigger one that goes behind the tractor, we got it at a farm sale.) We have some hay fields and spread it out there or in the winter pasture.

[Yip]

If for no other reason, a spreader is tops because you can reuse all the *fertilizer you have already paid for. Ditto on the the lime.

We don't collect and spread daily, which is what the Newer Spreader is made for. We pick, dupm in huge compost piles, then spread the composted manure so as not to spread parasite eggs around. We can take buckets out for new plantings or to pour on the landscaping. It has lots of uses if you compost it.

If I were going to buy a Newer Spreader and spread what I collect each day, I would be sure to spread it in a different pasture than horses are grazing in. The parasite eggs will be viable until the heat of the sun kills them. The only surefire way to kill them is by composting though, because then you have heat and pressure working on them.

A newer spreader would be a great idea for daily picking and spreading on a pasture that never sees horses grazing. But you can probably work around it with rotational grazing. I really don't think 2 weeks rotation is nearly enough time though.

[Yip]

I forgot to address the harrow issue. First of all, we made our own out of a hunk of chain link fence about 4' wide and 4-5' long. Attached a long heavy chain at the tractor end and a clip to fasten it to the hitch on the 4-wheeler. At the other end, daddio threaded a thick 4' fencepost (made for chain link fence) to hold it on the ground.

Since my girls are now on a 1/2 ac. tops drylot with a RB, they poop ALL the time. There can be 50 piles in 24 hours from just 2 horses. I can't keep up with collecting and composting this much poop, so a lot of it I throw into the pasture where the girls cannot graze anymore. That breaks it up and allows the sun to dry it out before the flies lay eggs in it. Then I go through it every few days with the harrow to break up the dried up poop balls. it works great.

I wouldn't do this (parasite eggs) if I planned on allowing the girls back in that paart of the pasture anytime soon. IF the buttercups die, I can let them back in - if they don't, I can't. It's just a wait and see thing for now.

[Deleted]

OK, lemme tell ya a couple of things I have discovered along the way.

First of all a spreader in ANY form is an awesome little invention. THAT SAID, the Newer Spreader works best for me in my situation. I have three paddocks. All generally small. I do plan on adding a couple more for rotation, but right now it's just seperation I'm looking for. Anyway, I use a Newer Spreader and the reason is this. ...It breaks up the manure, it doesnt just throw the 'balls' out in one piece or clumps. This is the reason I got the newer spreader and I havent figured out how I managed for so long with the regular spreader. Pockets lives inside so he has a stall and a small paddock that gets cleaned daily. The girls come in if the weather is poor or fr doctoring and such. Sometimes when he goes out in the riding pen it will take a few days to get enough manure to fill the Newer Spreader. I just put it in a muck bucket and cover it until the bucket is full unless for some reason I'm running the mower. The NS can also be pulled by an ATV. I dont spread back into my turnouts I spread into my open fields or my yard. It's broke down so well that a rain or running the sprinklers for a little bit will push it into grass.

I wish I had a harrow for my riding pen mostly. I improvised on a piece of equipment that works for me for now.

So...Instead of harrowing turnouts I have a home made drag. It's made out of a piece of hog panel and I bent the last pieces down a bit to catch the ground a bit better. All it needs to do is pull the maure enough to break it apart. Doesnt have to be fancy or cost a lot of money.

This is what works for us. I have flies like everyone else but I dont have a manure pile and I dont have to shovel more then once. The NS had made me a happy horsemom. The kids have even pulled it around the field after it was full a couple of time for "the work out" lol it's very light and managable.

[Laura]

Thanks, Lildot! It's always good to hear a good report about something that you have to order and ship -- such a pain to return that kinda stuff!

[Yip]

We were seriously thinking about buying the Newer Spreader. After thinking it all out, it just wasn't quite right for our pasture situation. But I would have loved to have one because you only have to shovel poo once and it's done.

Thankfully Daddio seems to enjoy working out his aggressions by shoveling bushels of compost them spreading it. The regular spreader does crumble up composted manure, but I'm sure it wouldn't do so well with fresh.

[Melanie]

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