Well, if you define “good” as I do, you can. 
“Sparse” describes my Zero Maintenance pastures (total ~3ac).
“Lush” is a word that does not apply.
Horses are allowed on them all year.
Are they rutted?
Yes, mostly at the gates.
Do they provide grazing?
Enough so my hay consumption drops sharply as soon as grass is up.
The only thing I do is have them bush-hogged in late Fall. Mainly to take down the roughs.
This is exactly why I wanted 10 acres and full time turnout.
It’s ALSO why I enclosed the barn inside fencing. Not only does that provide more pasture, even if just by an acre or so, but it means I don’t have to bring horses in or put them out, which also saves time, even if it’s just a few minutes. There are times when the barn area is closed off, so I have to do that, but it’s 100’, if that, from barn to gate
Another thought - when you do find your property, then depending on what type of fencing you decide to use, make sure your fence posts are set up so that if you want/need to put in some cross fencing, you can easily do that without suddenly realizing you don’t have the right corner post setup.
For example, I had some idea of how I would put up sections of cross fencing and knew I would be using Horseguard electric tape. It’s a hand-tightened fence, not mechanical, so doesn’t need structural support even in corners. But I had the bigger “corner” posts put in here and there along straight lines, and I put tape tensioners, not insulators, on those posts. I have never put in permanent cross fencing, but these posts have served me well for times I’ve had to temporarily cross fence for injury layup/rehab, weaning my foal, and a couple other situations.
100% agree on only using a well-constructed arena for turnout in an absolute emergency. There’s just a difference between working and jumping a horse on 2-3" of bluestone, and having a horse rip-roar around digging toes in potentially down to the base 
As far as rotation goes - is it ideal? Sure. Is it a requirement? Not always. I don’t rotate. Never have. There’s plennnnty of grass to the point horses are muzzled for 6-7 months depending on the growing conditions in a given year. But I also mow regularly, I don’t bush-hog just 1-2 times a year. I over-seed and fertilize regularly.
Could the pasture be more lush, with fewer weeds, by rotating? No doubt. But I don’t need, nor necessarily want that.
Exactly why I chose not to fence in any more pasture. I have one TB who can get fat on grass but otherwise maintains weight pretty well on 3 acres that get grazed down pretty low in the summer. My other two are an APHA mare and a Dutch WB - they are fat enough even in the winter. I limit their grass time in summer (typically drylot during the day, pasture at night) because they would explode otherwise. The last thing they need is more grass, better grass, or anything that might be described as “lush” or even “good”.
I have a similar setup where my barn is enclosed and opens to turnout(s). Depending on gates being open and shut I can restrict them to the barnyard, barnyard + arena, or any of 3 pastures. They can always get back to the barn - so I don’t have to put water in turnout or deal with frozen water in winter as the barn tanks are heated.
Sometimes less convenient - I have to lock horses in stalls or out in turnout to bring down grain, hay, etc., but compared to not having access to the barn it’s much more convenient for me.
Your set up sounds ideal to me! Hopefully someday I’ll be able to keep my horses at home.
As far as Indiana and the ag tax exemption - you have to have 15 acres and “attempt” to have some sort of crop. Hay, strawberries, they don’t care. They don’t need you to turn a profit on it, either.
Just in the last few years, they are doing a ratio of farm diesel usage versus crop produced. That ruffled quite a few feathers, though I don’t think anyone got flagged for any sketchy stuff.
That’s similar to what it is here - I don’t remember the size of the property required (but our 10 acres qualified), but you have to have produced $X in sales (just sales, not net income, not profit) in the previous year to qualify for the current year’s tax exemption. 20 years ago that was a measily $1000, I don’t know what it is now.
I am shaky about understanding Maryland’s agriculture assessments.
There are two separate ones: ag assessement that discounts your property tax and the sales tax exemption.
If your farm is under 5 acres, you have to prove $2,500 of income to get a the ag property tax rate. If it’s 5-20 acres, there is no income requirement as long as you are using it for approved ag activities. If it’s over 20 acres, there is some ratio of use thing that varies by region. We have 11 acres and fall into the middle category.
The sales tax exemption is weird for horses. Riding and show horses don’t qualify but breeding and 4-H horses do qualify. I just pay sales tax because I don’t have a clue how to go about that. Does anyone else have any great insight on that one?
I think NY is $10K in gross sales, but you don’t need to make a profit. My neighbors have it - they have a farm stand, pick your own berries, honey, etc. It’s tricky because you get it in 3 year increments, but if you fall short in any of the 3 years, you owe taxes for all 3 years.
I never looked into it seriously because I don’t have a crop/sales, but did calculate it out once to sell honey or something and it could be done (if you wanted).
As far as Indiana and the ag tax exemption - you have to have 15 acres and “attempt” to have some sort of crop
there are legal ways around using a Ag Exemption. we incorporated our operation so that then most all became assets on a depreciation schedule We did have to pay board to the operation and file taxes but the operation had to pay us a lease fee in the long run this did provide us benefits.
The City of Aiken (South Carolina) Zoning Regulations, Section 2.2(A) states “minimum lot area for the first three horses (or stalls) shall be one acre , plus 20,000 square feet for each additional horse or stall.”
Seems pretty crowded to me, at roughly 1/3 acre per horse. Are there regulations like this in other horsey cities you know about?
Is that one acre per horse for the first three, followed by 20,000 sqft for additional?
To me, it can be read either way…
here the animal control ordnance was just update (2022).
Have to have a minimum lot size of 1/3rd acre for any “farm any animal” (dogs and cats are limited under another section of the ordnance by limiting numbers per household)
For the first 1/3 acre one can have/keep one large animal (real horse or cow) Or three small animals (like a goat or pony) each addition 1/3rd acre or part of the 1/3rd additional up to one full acre one more large and/or three smalls per 1/3rd acre additional (One acre allows 3 large or 9 smalls or combinations such as 2 large and 3 smalls)
Additional acre(s) adds 2 large and/or 6 smalls or combinations per acre (One Large = Three Smalls).
Wording of the ordnance was changed to remove reference to pony or such after I asked if they actually knew what a pony was. None of the animal control or police force knew the difference just said oh we know one when we seen one…until I showed this picture asking OK which one is the Pony as we owned both and knew what they measured at
the Bay was the pony, she was nearly always challenged when entered in an open shows pony class but always measured at less than 14,2h
so I got them to insure a height rather than wording such as pony and provide a guide on how to measure
Also included a special dispensation to allow 4H or FFA project animals/birds under special conditions for lots less than 1/3 acre.
One animal remained Excluded and Not Allow under any circumstance was Pigs/Swine
Also there are the nuance ordinances that control hazards to human health such waste products and how they are to controlled
The regulation in Aiken means you need one acre total for up to three horses, then 20,000 more square feet for every horse you add over three. It was worded so that a homeowner with only a 20,000 square fot lot could not keep a horse at home. If you intend to have a horse (or more) you need one acre as the entry fee for keeping a horse on a city-located lot.
That’s very crowded from a sustainability and management perspective.
Most townships/cities have minimum acreage for horses, even a total horse limit, and often that’s unrelated to what is best for the horses (as it obviously the case here).
Once property is zone agricultural, and includes the allowance of horses, then it gets pretty different, and they may or may not have minimum stocking rates. Where I am, an ag piece of land doesn’t have any min acreage per horse, or max horse rule.
My town (in CT) is 1/2 acre per horse, up to 6 horses. After 6 horses, you need a permit regardless of acreage (or you need to have gotten a variance from the town to be grandfathered in when the regulations took effect).
Five acres per horse. I was raised in NE Ohio on a small dairy farm. The Rule of Thumb was always five acres per piece of livestock (cattle & horses).
This subject has come up as more times than I can count in the 19 years I’ve been in forums. When we retired to Middle Tennessee, I called my county Ag person to ask him the Rule of Thumb in my county. Lo and behold he said “about five acres”.
My two remaining senior horses (both over 16H so they eat a lot), have ~20 acres during the day. They have 24/7 access to the barn and get shut into ~4 acres every night. I have yet to mow any of that 4 or so acres with the finish mower because they have eaten it down lower than the mower cuts —— and they won’t even eat on this parcel during the day. They seem to understand that is their night time grazing.
I know they also spend some time in the barn at night so I make sure they have hay to munch in the barn.
I started out with four horses. The others have passed and are laid to rest here. The remaining 27 & 29 year olds are my last two, which is why they have +/-20 acres to roam:)
At any rate, five or so acres per piece of livestock, which is generally cattle or horses:)
My mom had a ~1.9 acre place in Littleton, CO where she was allowed 3 horses.
Where I currently live, there are restrictions for less than 10 acres, if you have more than 10 acres there are no livestock restrictions that I am aware of which is the case for many towns in the area.
Was that due to the soil/bedrock situation? I’ve never seen anything close to 5 acres per horse as a generic recommendation from a healthy stocking rate
what else was involved in coming up with this number? I do think that 5 acres per horse would reduce the months I’d have to feed hay, from around 5 months, to 4 or mayyybe 3, but I’d have to essentially stockpile some amount of that 15 acres (I currently have 3 horses) starting around August, to open up in December, if I wanted full time grass.
Drat!
I’m in NW IN.
With my total 5ac, I guess the hayfield my neighbors cut & bale on my property won’t qualify 
Last year they got 125 40# squares off it.
Re: # horses allowed:
When I moved here in 2004 you were required to have 3.5ac for the 1st “large animal” + an additional acre for each large added.
So I was grandfathered for 2.
Then County Zoning changed so 5ac was required for #1.
I assume if I sold, Buyer would be allowed just that 1 large.
Where I grew up had a 10 acre minimum before you could have any livestock (unless you were grandfathered in). But it had nothing to do with soil or bedrock. It was because of a dispute between neighbors over loose animals that resulted in a new township zoning ordinance. 
I don’t know if that is still the rule. I grew up in the heart of horse country and the rule irritated a lot of people seeking farmettes.
I had 5 horses on 1 .5 acres year round and they always had something green to sift through and we had no mud. This was well drained clay type soil.
Also had 3 horses on about the same amount of sandy soiled, well drained land. I actually prefer this type of horse keeping to struggling with weight on pastures.
I just fed hay 2 times a day and it lasted most of the day and then they searched for " something" to nibble on. They were happy and so was I.
So much depends on drainage , barn placement and keeping feeding areas well rocked to eliminate mud.
That was just my experience.
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