Trees / Pasture Landscaping

[Aggie4Bar]

This summer is barely begun, and it’s already incredibly hot. I need to plant some shade trees both for myself and for the horses, anything to catch some breeze and provide relief during turn-out and riding.

I’m in Texas, Houston area specifically. Fastest growing shade tree recommended to me is the Silver Maple. I’m aware Red Maple is toxic, and a brief search on Google gives indication Silver Maple may be as well. My personal preference would be Live Oaks, except that it’s a pain to keep grass alive around them, and apparently all oaks are toxic. (That was a surprise to me as oaks are everywhere, and almost everyone I know has oaks in their pastures.) So anyway, I’m sort of at a loss now what to plant. Ash? Pecan?

Suggestions?

[goodhors]

Can Cottonwood survive in your locale? They grow quickly (for trees), being in the Poplar family. I have not heard of them being poison to animals. However any tree should have a fence around it to prevent chewing, rubbing and compacting the soil over roots with stomping hooves, while standing in the shade. Roots grow out as far in dirt as branches reach sideways above ground. Protective fence néeds to be of fair size like 10X10ft.

If your area is hot the young trees may need extra weekly watering so they survive those hard times. I am watering my young trees now in our drought and high temps. You just have to nurse them along as saplings, while they develop longer roots to survive with time.

I would not plant ANY kind of Maples in horse pastures. Silver Maple is an invasive spreader, has weak wood that breaks easily in wind storms, under snow weight here in the North. I actually cut down any volunteer Maples on my place to save me cutting them as bigger trees later.

[neversaynever]

Tulip poplar is a fast-grower and non-toxic to horses. I think crepe myrtle, magnolia, and sweetgum (if you can stand the “gum balls”) are all pretty safe also. There’s always mesquite.

[clanter]

Cypress ? Even here in Fort Worth these are pretty forgiving of drought yet tolerate extended period of heavy rain. We have one that is a beauty of a tree, just wished we had planted more.

But our experience has been anything in the pastures (except for mesquite) is considered Food… the horses have pretty much left the mature Pecans alone

[Bluey]

A local fellow planted a line of austrees and in ten years they were monsters and protected his roping arena and house.
They do take watering until they are established.

Cedar trees also do very well here as windbreaks and shade and don’t need hardly any water.

I have lacebark elm trees and they grew very fast and are good shade.
Horses think they are candy.

I have two cedar elms, that here are used for signature trees, that look like multi-trunk oaks and are also thick and don’t take much care.

Any elm trees need to be protected from horses.

[Palm_Beach]

If you plant them outside your fence line, and on opposite sides of the pasture, you should get both morning and afternoon shade. Do you bring them in during the day? If you leave them out, consider simply building an open or 1 sided run in shed.

http://billetbarns.com/pages/shaders_and_windbreaks.htm

Not sure about your riding in the shade, though.

[TrotTrotPumpkn]

I planted a disease resistant elm. Then I fenced around it. Then I realized the mini donkey was working his way under the fence and had debarked my elm. So now I need to dig it up and start over. I will still plant an elm.

But anyway, I was going to comment on cottonwoods. I have huge cottonwoods in my shelterbelt. I love them, but when they are old they do drop giant branches in wind storms. I would suggest a combination of quick growing trees like a poplar, cottonwood, etc. and something that will do really well in storms, but grow more slowly.

Silver maple has horrible roots that will make your ground lumpy. I’d nix that idea.

[fordtraktor]

I put large sheds in my field and cut down all the trees. I have trees outside the fields. After my uncle had 9 cattle killed in one lightning strike from standing under a tree, I don’t “do” trees in horse fields any more but if you have a whole bunch of them (a “belt” like TTP describes) it seems less risky. If you just have one or two or a little grove it seems like those are the ones that get struck on my place.

Since I’ve lived on my place I’ve actually lost 3 trees to lightning strikes but since they are all outside the fields the animals were safe. I lost one by my driveway in the storm last week and 2 huge ones behind my house. Scary stuff. We’ve only been on this farm 6 years! I figure the trees serve to draw lightning away from the sheds too, since they are so much higher. If you live somewhere without a lot of thunderstorms this might not be a concern and the benefits of the shade might well outweigh the risks.

[jdobbs64]

You will regret sweetgums. those stupid gum balls seemingly do not rot, ever.

I would vote cedar. My horses love to chill in the shade of a big cedar and they don’t bother it/chew on it. If they have the tree has not complained to date.

[csaper58]

I would build a run in shelter. Much faster growing, safer in a thunder storm, and non-toxic varieties are available.

[Aggie4Bar]

Oh no to sweet gums! We cleared out every one of those blasted things and took down the pines, too. I’m actually horrified anyone would deliberately grow mesquite.

Now off to go research some of the other trees mentioned!

[csaper58]

Of the oaks, Water Oak and Willow Oak are fast growing (for oaks) The toxic parts are the tannins in the acorns, which horses will eat.

Members of the White Oak family have much less tannin and are safer.

Swamp Basket Oak is one of the nicest.

[neversaynever]

[QUOTE=Aggie4Bar;8725041]
Oh no to sweet gums! We cleared out every one of those blasted things and took down the pines, too. I’m actually horrified anyone would deliberately grow mesquite.

Now off to go research some of the other trees mentioned![/QUOTE]

Kind of figured sweet gum and mesquite weren’t going to make your list but they are pretty innocuous to horses, except maybe gum balls in hooves and thorns from the mesquite. Dogwood and willows are also possibilities that are non-toxic to horses.

[KrazyTBMare]

The tree guy with my county suggested sycamore. Fast growing, big shade trees. Yes they drop their leaves in winter but that let’s in more sun. Plus they will do well in my wet ground here in Florida. I would look into them.