Any thoughts on toughest ground cover? (PNW)

[PonyRiderMom]

I live in the maritime PNW (near Seattle). I understand that I can’t avoid mud in the winter, so I am creating a dry lot. However, I also have a nice paddock that I’d like to turn them out onto from time to time in the winter. It was fairly grassy when I started using it this summer, but after them being on it for a month they killed a lot of the grass, mostly by trampling it. When I finally pulled them off, it was half grass and half dangerous slippery mud (on an incline). I’ve reseeded the whole thing with rye grass and it’s looking great, but I think the same thing is going to happen if/when I turn them out there in the winter, especially if it’s wet. Note that I also added gravel around the gate, which is in the lower part of the paddock, and I will be gravelling more of the lower lying area some time this month. This isn’t to keep it dry, but rather to keep it from being dangerous slippery mud when it’s wet.

All of this is to premise my question of: in my climate, is there a grass or other ground cover that I can plant or encourage that is tough and will help keep the soil together better than the rye grass has? Ideally it would also be shade tolerant. Also ideally it would not be toxic to horses but it wouldn’t be very palatable either. I feed them hay when they are on the paddock – I don’t want them to feel like they have to eat that grass.

(Moss doesn’t help, does it?)

[goodhors]

Not sure if planting crabgrass is legal in your area, but it sure is tough. Mine comes back well every year from our mud paddock over winter.

The problem is that horse hooves, shod or barefoot, cut up any ground cover, weeds or grasses, when moving over wet dirt. You almost can’t keep the ground covered for grip, when it is wet all the time. We are not getting our “normal” frozen ground all winter anymore. Supposed to be warm again this winter. The mud is difficult to deal with, keeps getting deeper, slippery. Horses are stalled overnight to dry skin and hair, prevents Scratches and other skin issues. I do clip off long hair on legs, top of hooves for faster drying, less hair for mud to stick to. Not total hair removal, but short with my big clippers. Lets you brush legs clean easily.

We have put down geotextile fabric, with 6 inches of crushed concrete 30ft out from the fence. We then covered crushed concrete with rubber mats on the area in front of the gate and water trough area. Mud starts at the mat edges. This is level ground, not sloped.

I ended up discing and dragging smooth the mud area after it dried in spring. Crabgrass sprouted by itself, never planted any. But it does look nice when mowed, thick, turf like with high mowing using my lawnmower on the highest setting. Horses nibble it while waiting to come in.

That Buffalo Grass needs high lumens of sunlight to grow well. It developed on the prairies, needs intense sunshine to make the turf it is known for. Did not grow at all for me in “shady” Michigan, sunlight is not bright enough.

[Simkie]

Installing geogrid and then grassing might help it hold up … better. In the same vein that some people grow grass in their driveway by using grass blocks (random link showing a grassy driveway.)

This is the sort of thing I mean: https://www.greatmats.com/ground-protection-mats/geogrid-cellular-paving-system.php

Horses would probably still tear the crap out of the grass but it would be harder to rip out entirely, and your mud would be stable. It would cost a lot.

The flexible grids (like so: https://www.agriculturesolutions.com/agtec-geocell-8-4ft-x-27-4ft-ground-grid-cellular-confinement-system-choose-size) would probably be less $$ but wouldn’t work here since you’re not filling with some sort of rock.

Realistic answer: no. Especially not where it’s shady.

[PonyRiderMom]

Yes I am setting up one lot where I’m going to do everything right: grading, base layer, grid, pea gravel on top. But it’s so expensive. Also I’m hoping for this paddock to stay green. I don’t want the whole property to be gravel LOL.

[Simkie]

Yeah, the answer really is to have your dry lot surface done properly for your location/climate/etc, and then keep horses off the grassy areas when they’re too fragile to hold up.

Putting grid under grass would help it hold up better than just straight grass…but the cost would be so high. And it still won’t be “horse proof” grass.

Horses are just so tough on grass when it’s wet. There’s no magic plant for that!

[goodhors]

Have to say NO PEA GRAVEL as your surface layer! It does not stay in place, hooves carry it away. Hard to walk on if very deep, like marbles under you. Any hard stoppers in the paddock? Pea gravel HURTS when horse slides to the fence and sprays you with it!

We have been really happy with the crushed cement as a topping, which comes in various sizes.
Can be small like pea-sized peastone or larger, which pieces then seem to lock together for a solid surface. The more you drive on it, the more solid it gets. Still drains quite well. Cheaper here than limestone. Easy to clean off we have found, since our horses like to stand on it to be up out of the mud.