Rake Pasture maintainance with landscape rake??

Bob_S · Apr 6, 2003

I was just about to buy my first landscape rake and my wife caught wind (needless to say, I haven't bought the rake). Anyway, here's my new problem. My wife says her ponies are getting worms because the manure sits where the ponies leave it.
So..... can a landscape rake be used successfully to spread the manure, without tearing up the grass, etc. too much? From reading various posts, I know the chain harrow is probably the best tool to use, but trying to save some money. I don't mind if the rake takes more time. If it has to be one implement or the other..........I know which one its going to be. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

TresCrows · Apr 6, 2003

Chain Harrow is better. They do not tear grass up like landscape rakes seem to. In fact, pulling the harrow over a lawn seems to invigorate it or at least does no permenant damage. I have a nearby neighbor with an arena and such, They pull a drag harrow they found at Atwoods. J

markie61 · Apr 6, 2003

I was looking to use a landscape rake to spread topsoil and th dealer suggested turning it 180 degrees around to distribute and "tickle" it without tearing things up.
Mark

brad_oatley · Apr 6, 2003

markie, could you go into more detail. I have a fuerst flexible harrow. It has 3 positions, tines forward, tines rearward, tines up. What position are you describing and accomplishing what?

markie61 · Apr 6, 2003

My understanding is that the landscape rake has curved tines that "bite" into the direction you are travelling like so:

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If you are going from right to left, you are tearing up the ground more. But if you turn the tines around 180 degrees, you are stirring up but not tearing up, like so:

<o-0<-((((((((((

You can use your top link to make this setup more or less agressive.

Mark

rockyridgefarm · Apr 6, 2003

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( They pull a drag harrow they found at Atwoods )</font>

All the talk of Tractor Supply, etc on this forum, finally a store I know!

It seems Atwods prices are as competetive as any I have heard tell of...

JoeR · Apr 8, 2003

I use free range chickens. They get a hot meal, and we get fresh eggs. They do a great job of spreading the manure into nothing!

theboman · Apr 9, 2003

How about a bigger pasture and some worm medicine.
I grew up with horses nearly my whole life and can't remember them getting worms from standing in a pasture that had horse manure, or standing in the barn. I can't remember any of the stock with worms, except for a dog that got heart worms.
Dad would from time to time give the horses a pack of chew, yep they'd munch it down. Dad called it worm preventer.
As far as manure we would toss it on the garden, flower beds and around the yard.

gerard · Apr 9, 2003

chain harrow would work the best but a landscape rake will work pretty well if you have the guage wheels. You can adjust so the tines are barely touching so they grab the manure without digging into the grass too much. Another inexpensive option is a length of chain link fence. Attach a few cinder blocks to it for weight and to hold the fence tight on the ground and it will help spread out the manure piles pretty well without damaging the grass.

Whiskey · Apr 9, 2003

Bob:

Tell your little wifey "bull" tell her to use wormer, my god thats why they make the stuff. Here in the south we worm every month, yes they can pick up worm larve (sp) from there own poo but it's more common from flies and horses don't tend to graze where they poo....would you? if your pasture is small yes they will graze but given the opertunity they will graze elsewhere.

ON the landscape rake or harrow....harrow is the way to go.

Whiskey

cowboydoc · Apr 9, 2003

Horses are going to get worms no matter how you look at it. Unless you have them on a daily wormer they are going to have worms. Spreading the manure doesn't help alot with the worm problem. Probably makes it worse as you spread them around more. The worms don't actually live in the manure. They hatch or are pooped out and get on blades of grass that the horses eat. The only way to control worms from manure is not by spreading manure but by keeping them off of an area for about 3 weeks and spreading. If you just spread but don't keep your horses from that area they just get infested the same as if you didn't spread the manure. Best scenario is to rotate pastures every 3 weeks. After you take horses off of one area then you drag the pasture and let it sit for three weeks or more.