any know how to get rid of moss/rushes ?

butt1

:oive 50 acres of mixed land,in need of some tlc,its covered in rushes,its bein rented the last 20 year,do i spray 1st,put out lime,or just cut the rushes,its not wet land just neglected ....badly

bbam

Start by cutting them back..
We've been reclaiming some ourselves over the last few years..
Many will tell you you need to gather the rushes but we've found to top them in low gear/high revs will trash the hell out of them and they rot away fast enough..
Spray off or weed wipe the regrowth after 6-8 weeks..

Look at feeding the ground, manure/slurry as poor round will grow rushes at a shocking rate...

There should be less and less to kill off each year and any wet spots that need drainage will be evident soon enough..

TUBBY

I'd agree with BBAm on this but think it depends on how big a project you want or your budget too.

I would look at spraying off the ground altogether and re-seeding with one=pass system to keep the top soil on top. I found ploughing brings up too much subsoil.
If the ground as neglected as you say, the grass would be off little use anyway and probably full off brown dead base.

If you dont fancy doing that cause it would cost round EUR200/ acre, you could get in a mower and fleece the whole thing. Then, spray after 6 weeks when the regrowth happens.
You would need to check soil pH and it would prob need P and K but if the grass is old ley, you would not get the same response as new ryegrass.
This is the time of year also to re-seed also if you are thinking of doing it.

MrKerry

butt1 wrote: »

:oive 50 acres of mixed land,in need of some tlc,its covered in rushes,its bein rented the last 20 year,do i spray 1st,put out lime,or just cut the rushes,its not wet land just neglected ....badly

I am an expert on rushes. The answer to 'our' problem is a weed licker. It can apply the chemical (round up / gallup)directly to the rush. \\\

The weed licker can be purchased for approx. e1000.

Have one for a few years, great results!!

Mr. Presentable

Drainage.

Sundy

Mr. Presentable wrote: »

Drainage.

Looks lads, heres all your rush problems solved. Why did nobody tell us before?

butt1

thought of reseading but its for suckler cow and calves,would they just plough up my nice green fields,wouldnt they ground be very tender for 2/3 years after reseading,i know it would get rid of my rushes/moss,if i sprayed it with round up,limed itand reseaded,but i hear people talkin about paddocks,do they work?,how many cows and calves would 50 acres hold,if done in paddocks?

Shauny2010

Coillte will get rid of them for you:D

butt1

:P

Shauny2010 wrote: »

Coillte will get rid of them for you:D

Tora Bora

Shauny2010 wrote: »

Coillte will get rid of them for you:D

And then Bertie Ahearne, will get rid of Coillte to some Chinese tycoon. You will end up exporting rushes to China:D

TUBBY

butt1 wrote: »

thought of reseading but its for suckler cow and calves,would they just plough up my nice green fields,wouldnt they ground be very tender for 2/3 years after reseading,i know it would get rid of my rushes/moss,if i sprayed it with round up,limed itand reseaded,but i hear people talkin about paddocks,do they work?,how many cows and calves would 50 acres hold,if done in paddocks?

i reseeded a bit myself over the years and if you plough, it leaves the land tender enough but the min-till is a good job. Only need to plough i think if the land is very uneven.
from what you say, it looks like your land isnt wet, just neglected so no drainage or coillte needed.
Also, throw in some white clover. wil save you on nitrogen bills down the road. make sure though you choose your grass seed carefully as some varieties more suitable with grass cover being better etc.

paddocks are a great job. they make you manage the grass an awful lot better and make the cattle graze out the ground (giving you more utilisation). If you have a big field, the cattle will leave any sour stuff, you will pass no remarks and let them into next field. By the time, they back in again, they definitely wont eat what they didnt eat before and you are losing regrowth then and wasting time having to top.

i know reseed and paddock expensive but in the long run, you could spend lot of money p***king about and end up having bad grassland still.

butt1

how many divisions could i break the 50 acres up in2,and how many cows and calves to a paddock,and for how many days,we graze from 1st of may till the 15 oct at the moment?

ootbitb

ideally to reduce worm burden divide into 21 paddocks and move daily.. think most people would have between 5 and 11 and move less often.

your stocking rate depends on ground conditions and fertility. could be anywhere between 1 cow/calf per acre on good land to much less on neglected/ rushy land.