I hope someone can help me here. I have 3 horses that i cam currently boarding elsewhere. I have fenced in some of my acreage to move them on the property. Issue is that when I had the fenced in area bush hogged, there were small trees that got cut, I would say that they are an inch in diameter or smaller and they stick out of the ground 3-5 inches. I am really concerned about the horses stepping on the stumps that are left. I have been told that there is a piece of machinery that will pull them out sort of like a golf ball picker at a driving range. I am will to cultivate the area in order to make it safe for the winter and then plant the pasture appropriately next spring. I have other pasture that I can use then but it is not fenced. HELP, does anyone have any ideas how to remove the stumps that are left so that I can safely bring my horses home....
Making a Horse Pasture <--Help-->
- Thread starter Therard
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flusher
Super Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2005
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- Tractor
- Getting old. Sold the ranch. Sold the tractors. Moved back to the city.
For those small stumps, I'd get a middle buster plow from Tractor Supply ($150 or so) for your 3pt hitch and just plow them out by the roots.
That's my 2005 Kubota B7510HST (21 hp engine, 17 hp pto, 4WD, hydrostatic tranny) with a middle buster.
jgrreed
Platinum Member
Either lower your bush hog and let 'em
have it, or get out your chainsaw and be prepared to buy a new chain after you accidentally make ground contact a couple times...
-Jer.
have it, or get out your chainsaw and be prepared to buy a new chain after you accidentally make ground contact a couple times...
-Jer.
RPW
Veteran Member
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- Aug 12, 2009
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What assets do you have available to you? Size tractor etc. How big is the pasture? I'd say for a simple method use tractor and boxblade with scarifiers all the way down and tilt boxblade to not collect any dirt. Run this around the pasture most likely in a crosswise pattern. After that you might be able to rake up with a HD york rake or else if there loose enough a bit of walking and plucking. Then you can use the rake to level the pasture and reseed. If using bermuda before seeding run a roller to compress the top, seed and a light raking to cover seed and roll again. I'm with you that if it's in the pasture a horse WILL find it and get hurt.
Good luck.
Good luck.
jcaron2
Silver Member
I've been through the same thing. I ended up borrowing a turning plow from a farmer neighbor. I turned the whole field over into furrows, then ran through it a couple of times with a disc harrow (which I happen to own, but you should also be able to pretty easily find one to borrow), going first in the same direction as the furrows, then across them. That broke up most of the big clods of clay and leveled things out a fair bit. Then I went over it several times in different directions with a drag. I happened to have a 16' section of crane boom that I towed around on a chain, but mostly I've seen people use steel I-beams or logs. Again, if you're friendly with any farmers in the area, they'll usually have something you can borrow for this purpose.
After dragging, the field should be nice and smooth and ready for planting. The small stumps will have mostly been buried to rot away in the future. Any that remain should be lying harmlessly on the surface.
If you do end up tilling the field this way (or having somebody else do it), it's also a very good opportunity to lime. Given that you had to have the field bush-hogged, it's pretty likely that the soil pH is lower than ideal for pasture grasses. It's pretty typical to put down anywhere from 1/2 to 2 tons of lime per acre (in most areas you can buy bulk lime by the ton, and they'll come spread it for free or for a small fee). Since tilling the lime into the soil is much, much more effective than leaving it on the surface, you could lime the field right before turning it (or really any time before you do the last pass with the drag).
Finally, depending on where you live and what the winter weather is like, you may also want to plant something this fall to minimize erosion until you get your real grass planted in the spring. Wheat and barley are two fairly common options.
whistlepig
Elite Member
If you have access to a loader you can shear them off just below ground along with an inch or less of topsoil. I do this all the time. Depends on how many small trees you have. If you have hundreds of them doing them one at a time with a loader or anything else wouldn't be an option.
SuperCobra
Silver Member
I've had good luck popping out stumps/trees this size with the tooth bar on the front end loader. My tooth bar has replaceable teeth and I'm considering replacing the middle tooth with a longer one for just this sort of task (popping out stumps, rocks, etc) to minimize damage to the ground from the other teeth. Anyone else do that (get long in one tooth)? Seems like a good idea.
whistlepig
Elite Member
I saw (I can't remember where) an attachment that bolted to the front of a loader. It was a "V" shaped thingy with serrations on it. The "V" was pushed against the stump until the stump seated in the bottom of the "V". Then they curled the bucket and popped the stump out. Don't know how well this works.
Ranger Rick
Gold Member
Where do you live? Is there any chance of getting the area tilled up and planted now. Fall is the best time to plant grass. You might also want to get some electric fence and fence off some other area to use as pasture until you get the new pasture established. Here is a link to an article on pastures form the Virginia extension service. Virginia's Horse Pastures: Grazing Management - Virginia Cooperative Extension
It will take some time to get it done and ready for the horses. Good luck, Rick
It will take some time to get it done and ready for the horses. Good luck, Rick
whistlepig
Elite Member
If he is going to turn his horses out on pasture this time of year it would probably not be a good time to work the soil. Soupy weather is coming soon and horses tear up enough of a pasture with their feet with out adding the worked ground to it. Perhaps he has alternate pasture to quarantine the horses. What we call a "sacrifice field". A field the horses are hayed during the winter to keep them from destroying the rest of the pasture with their feet.
