I have received a lot of questions o this particular topic, and so thought I would try and address it.
1. Should we apply bagged fertiliser and/or our muckheap onto our pasture in Autumn or is it a waste of money as grass isn’t growing much anyway?
Arguments for:-
Many would say It’s a good time to apply phosphorus, and potassium to our soil as these nutrients will help roots regenerate and grow back strong.
(Just a reminder, before any application of anything, we should soil test first for obvious reasons. This is covered in the popular topics section)
Nitrogen is also a good idea as fertiliser during autumn. (225 kg/ha is an appropriate amount of nitrogen throughout the fertilising seasons - spring, summer and autumn but we shouldn’t apply more than 45 kg/ha during autumn). This is because encouraging growth now means quicker recovery as there’s more leaf for photosynthesis and more daylight before the clocks go back.
Crown rust. If we have had this effect our grass we need to put on fertiliser as it seriously knocks back the rye grass plant. Unless of course you’re celebrating its blight!
Arguments against:-
Many horse grazing fertilisers have relatively higher nitrogen (grass growth up) low P (grass growth down) and K (grass growth all around) levels and they are also slow release.
Is it really worth it? Well, we won’t get as much bang for our buck as if we did it in spring when the grass is actively growing that’s for sure.
A quick look on the Yara website for fertilising for horse grazing shows a graph which starts in March and ends in August, incidentally. Seems obvious what their thoughts are then ....
2. Will our composted muckheap more or less do the same thing anyway?
Yes, but bagged is quicker and can be perfectly matched to our soil profiles. However, there are nitrates in bagged fertiliser which aren’t that great for soil life. (Remember our Elaine Ingham video in the soil fertility section)? Yep, that’s why we should get our compost on anyway.
Bagged fertilisers do not improve soil structure like muck and neither do they build soil. Muck does and we have a plentiful and free supply.
Also how much run off of all these goodies are we going to get with the rainy season?
That’s in the lap of the Gods! However, we must apply some sense about it all. I wouldn’t recommend a November or December application for this reason!
Conclusions
The soil is still relatively warm at the moment so if fertilising now, it will give some increased yield and possibly extend our grazing season as well as strengthen our roots and therefore anchor the plant more firmly into the ground.
This is always a good thing as horses are damn rough with those root systems. Don’t leave them on for long though and undo all the good growing and strengthening work. Better still we can take them off, smug in the knowledge we have prepared a strong sward for next year. Also, if our grass is completely buggered as most are at the tail end of summer, surely it’s well worth it?
So on balance, I would say yes, either in the form of muck or bagged product or both.
Ask a farmer, however, if it’s worth fertilising now and they would say most certainly not. This is because they are looking at maximising yields and profit margins. They have a fair point. My two heavy horses can strip half an acre of ten inch grass in three to four days, while balding some patches. Viewed as a cost exercise, it probably works out the same to spend the money on hay and save myself the labour, given the lower yield this time of year. That, though is not and shouldn’t be on our agenda. On our agenda is strengthening our plants and improving soil structure and grass health for healthy horses.
Should we be doing anything else this time of year?
Hell yes!
1. Right now our soil pH is even more important as if that’s not at optimal levels, the fertiliser will be even more reduced in effectiveness when it comes to grass health. What a waste of application that would be! Soil tests are vital! Soil pH and correction is covered in popular topics section, watch the two videos for more info.
2. Now is the most perfect time for overseeding! This is because in Autumn we have better moisture levels in soil, it’s still relatively warm and there’s still a lot of daylight as the clocks haven’t gone back. Perfect for germination and photosynthesis. Overseed now and we prevent moss, weeds and clover establishing in bare earth springtime as they get drown out with grass plants 🌱 . We could try mulching too to build soil too, but bear in mind this will be a little slower as we are blocking out some sunlight. Increasing our grass plants is way, way more important than fertilising right now for most, but not all, of us. Oh and if overseeding, don’t fertilise or the established grass will grow more quickly and throw shade on new seedlings, preventing sun for germination.
Hope people find this info useful and a good refresher.
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