Saturday, 01 August 2009 01:10

(The following article was produced by the Colorado Department of Agriculture with assistance for Paul Aravis an Dr. Anthony Knight)

As a horse owner, you will need to make a decision.  Will your pasture be used for recreation or nutrition?  Answering the following questions can help you make that decision:

How many horses do you have?
What size is your pasture?
Is the pasture irrigated or without irrigation?
How long will you need the pasture?
What months do you want to use this pasture?

Horse Needs for Recreation Pastures

If the stocking rate averages one 1,000 pond horse per acre on irrigated pasture the use of the pasture should be considered recreation.  Grass species for a recreational pasture should be selected based on their ability to withstand wear and tear and not be based on forage quality.  Species such as Kentucky bluegrass, crested wheatgrass. intermediate wheatgrass, and tall fescue (endophyte free) should be considered.

A mature horse should consume 1.5 percent or more of its body weight per day in forage dry matter.  If the major nutrient source is pasture a 1,ooo pound horse will consume and waste approximately 3000 pounds of forage dry matter during a typical 6 month grazing season.  Thus, with average management, it would take about 2-3 acres of good pasture to meet the nutrient needs of a mature horse.

 

Grass Species for Nutrition Pastures

Many of the irrigated pastures along the Front Range of Colorado contain cool-season grasses such as tall fescue, orchardgrass and smooth bromegrass.  These species are highly palatable to horses.  Cool-season grass species have their maximum production during the early spring and early fall.  During the hot summer months, the procution of these species is reduced.  Under irrigated conditions, a horse pasture can be productive for about six months of the growing season.  The key is to be able to determine how much forage your pasture will produce during that six month season.

Horse owners also keep their animals on pastures that are not irrigated.  Under these conditions, forage production can be greatly reduced.  Cool-season grass species found on dry pastures include tall wheatgrass, intermediate wheatgrass pubescent wheatgrass and smooth bromegrass.  These species are most productive in the early spring when we receive most of our annual moisture, and later in the fall when the temperatures begin to cool.  The wheatgrass species will become less palatable as the plants mature.  This may result in selective grazing by horses to more desirable species, and consequently, overgrazing of the more palatable species.

Other dry pastures may be composed of warm-season grass species.  Warm-season grasses begin to grow later in the spring compared to cool-season species.  Grass species such as big bluestem, little blue-stem, switch grass and buffalo grass are examples of warm-season grass species.  Maximum production is usually obtained during the summer months.  Overgrazing easily damages warm-season grasses.

Grazing Management

The timing of grazing can have a long-term impact on your pasture.  Grazing too early in the spring can reduce the potential total yield of your pasture.  Grass should be allowed to grow before a horse is permitted to graze.  This grass growth will vary depending on the grass species.  For example, smooth brome and orchard-grass should be allowed to grow to a height of 6-8 inches before grazing is initiated.  But other grasses may have different recommended height requirement prior to the initiation of grazing.

The phrase “grazing management” is very important.  A horse that is grazing should not remove more than 50% of the available forage.  Simply put, if your horse eats 50% of the grass that was there before he started, remove him and allow the pasture to rest approximately 30 days or until the grass re-grows to the original height.  This approach is called “take half and leave half”.  Divide your pasture into grazing cells to allow for rotational grazing to take place.  After a cell has been grazed, move the animals to a fresh cell while the grazed cell rests and re-grows.  The improved management afforded by rotational grazing can greatly increase forage productivity and pasture health.

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