how are your fields doing this winter?

[Jacquinta]

After the driest summer I can remember we started autumn with parched fields and no grass. Two weeks of rain in November meant a little bit of grass growth but now it's turned frosty. The hay fields were cut early summer and have barely grown since.

Horses here are out every day but will have to hay in the field soon. How are your fields doing? I've not heard of any yards near me (south east) keeping their horses in yet, but imagine they will be soon.

I've just started putting hay out here as grass running out & they were standing at the gate! Not in yet though. It was warm for so long we had a lot of grass up until about 2 weeks ago.

Ours is great, no mud at all and loads of grass. Ds horse was kept off it all in the summer as he was so fat so apart from having it topped once it was left to grow. There's not much goodness left in it but it provides bulk and because it's rough it's not getting churned up at all. He's not shod which helps of course, that and the fact we are on a hill with chalk so it drains very well.

Ours are fine but we have 5 fields (two for summer and three for winter). I rotate two of them weekly and keep one for the end of winter. The other two are summer fields. I have hay in all 3 field shelters now as I have thoroughbreds and need to keep the weight on them in winter. I don't leave mine out at night in winter as they're delicate little flowers 🙄

What is this dry summer you speak of? I couldn't cut hay as the fields have been too wet to get a tractor on :(

Mines not too bad. we did flood in all the rain last week but it's drained away pretty quick (and everywhere here was the same not just us). I still haven't put them on one of the fields yet that's got loads on it.

Our fields are still OK although we couldn't drive across them any more. We are putting out hay though with this icy weather and we've noticed therefore that they are drinking far more and we're having to put barrels of water in every morning..

OK - all in at night (oop North) and haynets in field. Rain last week meant muddy gateways but nothing desperate, and all dried out now. Still a bit of grass to nibble at.

Lots of mud by the gate but the rest of the field is fine, loads of grass too. I'm at a large livery yard though so the fields are rotated a lot and horses come in at night or if it's very heavy rain.

South East here too, holding up well so far for Sussex clay land- most nags in at night but youngsters out permanently atm with 2 feeds a day and plenty of hay. Ice is a pain but the rain is most dreaded of all, digging out gateways and putting hard standing down in them is the best thing we ever did.

We are not eyeball deep in mud yet, so I am very happy so far. I accept that my grazing is poor and I'll be feeding hay whatever the weather, but if the ground is firm enough for a tractor to drive onto with a large bale that is a huge bonus.

Ours are in at night - they start wandering into the yard and pointedly standing outside their stables looking longingly at their hay over the door at about 4ish , so the fields are not bad at the moment at all . Bit sticky , maybe , but nothing major .