Horse properties can last a long time. Some even outlast their owners’ lifetimes, thus being passed from generation to generation. If you take care of your horse property well enough, it can be a part of you and your family’s legacy.
To help you reach that goal, here are five maintenance tips that will add years and years to your horse property’s lifespan.
- Manage the paddocks well
- Learn how to identify weeds and eliminate them as early as possible
- Constantly check for accumulated water
- Repair fences as needed
- Keep horses away from riparian areas
Paddocks (also known as pastures) are essential to horse keeping and horse properties. They can be subject to overgrazing. Poor ground conditions can also prevent grass from growing back abundantly.
To make sure your paddocks remain healthy, practice rotational grazing. It is the method where you move your horses and other livestock back and forth between paddocks as needed. By doing so, the pasture can recover.
Start out by dividing the paddocks into smaller fields. Then, pick a paddock with grass about six inches high and bring the horses in. Once the grass in that paddock has been cut down by two to three inches, bring the horses to another field to feed.
Weed infestation can present a lot of problems to your horse property. It can be terribly expensive to get rid of it. Your pasture’s yield might also be affected and, at worst, you may be unknowingly poisoning your horses and other livestock.
There are many ways to prevent weed growth for the long-term. But first, you need to be able to distinguish them from other plants. Learn about the common types of weed that grow in your area. From there, you can introduce other methods, such as controlled grazing practices (see rotational grazing).
Stagnant water collecting in different parts of your horse property can lead to bug infestation and even problems with manure collection. Make sure to check the property regularly for accumulated water and, if you found any, drain them accordingly.
To prevent water from flowing anywhere near the manure storage, install rain gutters and catchment areas. This will help divert water flow. Just remember to clean them regularly to prevent run-off material from building up.
Fences serve as barriers that prevent your horses from running off and becoming a danger to themselves and others. You must always make sure the fences are in tip-top shape.
Fence maintenance depends on the material you used. Fencing such as PVC and flex require minimal maintenance, while wood fencing needs a lot of care as they can break, chip, and crack.
A water feature in your horse property, such as a pond or a stream, not only brings aesthetic value. The soil around the area would be healthy, thus encouraging lush plant growth. You will not want to have this area trampled on.
If you have a pond or stream in your horse property, make sure to fence it off. Do note, however, that you can still let horses graze near the area but only for a short period of time.
Make your horse property last
Sarah Boyd and Company’s blog is a treasure trove of resources you can use to maintain your horse property. Feel free to browse and find other related topics, such as how to find horse ranches for sale in Texas. For more information, do not hesitate to call Sarah and her team.