creekbend
Super Star Member
Thanks.
Making pasture from forest - leaving stumps
- Thread starter farmboyhull
- Start date
vtsnowedin
Elite Member
A few thoughts from another Vermonter:
This is a tractor web site so solutions that don't involve using your tractor seldom come up. Glad to see several non tractor solutions put forward above.
Cutting off the stumps close and turning it out to graze is probably the cheapest option if you are not in a hurry and want pasture as a result not mowing or hay field. Those three, pasture, mowing,& hayfield , are different.
If you turn out stock to graze and want them to prune out all the weeds that spring up you need to build a good fence and over stock it a couple of times a year. By "over stock "I mean more animals then can be fed by the daily growth of good grass each day. Not finding enough they will eat everything down tight except butter cups and Canadian thistle. Once they get it mowed that tight you need to move them out to better pasture unless your into animal cruelty.
When I was growing up we had some dry years and the pastures would not feed the stock we had. We sold some and grain fed others each night to carry them through. hauled water in milk cans for them also.
If you don't have the time to build fence or husband stock then an excavator pops out stumps very fast and they can be piled in some out of the way corner to rot and give up the topsoil held by their roots. Then you need your tractor to plow up or fill in the holes and work up a seed bed. MY $.02
This is a tractor web site so solutions that don't involve using your tractor seldom come up. Glad to see several non tractor solutions put forward above.
Cutting off the stumps close and turning it out to graze is probably the cheapest option if you are not in a hurry and want pasture as a result not mowing or hay field. Those three, pasture, mowing,& hayfield , are different.
If you turn out stock to graze and want them to prune out all the weeds that spring up you need to build a good fence and over stock it a couple of times a year. By "over stock "I mean more animals then can be fed by the daily growth of good grass each day. Not finding enough they will eat everything down tight except butter cups and Canadian thistle. Once they get it mowed that tight you need to move them out to better pasture unless your into animal cruelty.
When I was growing up we had some dry years and the pastures would not feed the stock we had. We sold some and grain fed others each night to carry them through. hauled water in milk cans for them also.
If you don't have the time to build fence or husband stock then an excavator pops out stumps very fast and they can be piled in some out of the way corner to rot and give up the topsoil held by their roots. Then you need your tractor to plow up or fill in the holes and work up a seed bed. MY $.02
If concerned about soil or lack there in dont put in hogs. I tried that and man did they tear it up.. my experience is goats are much friendlier to the soil but I wouldn't put more than 3 at most on 10 acres. they will clear it nicely for you. More than 3 and plan on buying feed and hay. as for the stumps. leave them and burn everything else. If you have to then grind them but dont remove stumpa as the gound will require a lot of backfill for years to come. just one man's opinion aI could be wrong.
Why is that a concern?
Not sure I've ever seen a cow injured on rough ground.
Horses? They'd hurt themselves if your pasture looked like a golf green.
foggy1111
Elite Member
^ Good point(s). I've always heard that concern about livestock and grinding stumps...but I just don't see big issues either.
Maybe with different soils than I have?....or maybe if your cows stampeed on a regular basis.
:confused2: But....I gotta wonder. I dont see any depressions in the ground where I ground out stumps 4 years ago....and I have not found any voids where I ground over 1500 stumps.^ Good point(s). I've always heard that concern about livestock and grinding stumps...but I just don't see big issues either.
Maybe with different soils than I have?....or maybe if your cows stampeed on a regular basis.
Cattle despite their girth are very stable on their feet and do a good job of avoiding things like steep banks, holes, and the like.... only cattle I've seen get "injured" were bulls that got down in their backs working too hard breeding.
But you could have a 300 acre precision leveled field with the best sod known to man and a custom fence...... I guarantee you leave a 5 foot disc in the center of that field and horse would find a way to hurt himself on that durn thing.....
IslandTractor
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2005
- Messages
- 17,101
- Location
- Prudence Island, RI
- Tractor
- 2007 Kioti DK40se HST, Woods BH
Yes, I was referring to the horse issue. Your point is well taken but I assume that those who keep horses still try to avoid things like rotting stumps.
foggy1111
Elite Member
Well....I dont own any livestock....but if a huge 200 point buck stumbles over one of my stump depressions and breaks his neck....I'm gonna put my tag on him. :laughing:
slowzuki
Elite Member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2003
- Messages
- 4,155
- Location
- New Brunswick, Canada
- Tractor
- Kubota L5030 HSTC, MF 5455, Kubota M120, Allis Chalmers 7010
If they are used to the stuff in their paddocks they get along fine. The neighbours had rockpiles, a very deep drainage trench, boulders, etc in with their horses. Only ever had trouble with the horses getting into wire.
