Five years ago, I had the absolute dream of having my own acreage, but this has honestly been the biggest learning curve, relearning so much about how to better look after our horses and what the land requires. Hopefully, I can give some insight into things I have learnt, mostly by trial and error and lots of mistakes.
Mulching!
A word I never knew and now could not be without. Mulching is when you put organic material on bare, compacted, often low-fertility and over-grazed earth. It really is as simple as getting your hay sweepings from your stable or under your nets and placing them over the bare patches of soil, allowing them to rest for a season (approximately 10-12 weeks) and waiting for the magic to happen.
No matter how well my field looks, I can always walk around and find those patches where the grass refuses to grow.
In summer mulching is done to prevent evaporation of moisture from the soil, and soil erosion, which is so useful in a drought. It also has the added bonus of stopping weed seeds settling in, because we all hate the backbreaking task of weeding.
In autumn and winter it is done again, when horses come off the land. However, this time, with the wetter conditions, the aim is different. The soil life will develop and start to break down all the organic material, causing it to rot into rich nutrients that will feed healthy grass. If you mulch with hay sweepings from your barn, chances are there will be a lot of seeds which will germinate too and fill in the bare bits.
I never mulch directly on grass as it prevents sunlight reaching the plant and photosynthesis will not take place. However, if you mulch on weeds, then hopefully some daylight will be blocked out, preventing photosynthesis occurring so the weeds don’t thrive. I have had huge success with thistles and stinging nettles doing this, and even buttercups.
Added bonus – not only is it free, but in the long term the mulching feeds and creates nutrient-rich soil in which your grass will thrive, making it more difficult for those pesky weeds to take hold!
After having a long wait and some lunch at the onsite café, it was time to get ready for the Joan Wolfe Overall Supreme Shetland Pony Championship. I got changed out of my usual showing outfit into black trousers and a maroon top with white spots, as you are expected to be a bit more “bling” in the evening.
We were all set to go for our next outing, and were super excited. That was until I heard the dreaded clunk of a loose shoe! I checked it over, praying it wasn’t too loose, but, nope, it was going to need a refit.
This show almost passed me by as I was unaware of the show organisation. Luckily, the schedule was posted on one of the Shetland pony Facebook groups that I am a member of. The show was being held at Onley Grounds Equestrian Complex, which is where I should have gone to a show a month or so earlier, but was ill and unable to take Diva (Melland Queen of Scots).
Since the show, Bob’s been enjoying a bit of a rest with a few lunge sessions and being lightly ridden, but I’m gearing him up hopefully for a show either this weekend or next. Wish us luck, and the poor arena pole pickers too, as he does like to send some sailing!