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Mud Free Winter Turnouts

Karin Hunt

Every winter in the Northwest horse owners face the problem of mud. When we expanded Shadysprings Farm, we wanted to address this problem, since there would be 36 horses on site during the winter months. In addition, we were concerned about the impact on our watershed. I looked into the subject and discovered there was little concrete information and lots of opinions. Some of the information covered drain tiles, drainage studies with an elaborate layout of layers, others recommended hog fuel.

I decided it would be nice to know what works, what's the cost and how it holds up. Working with West Multnomah County Soil and Water Conservation District, and a grant from the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, we were able to do a pilot study to see what footings work and what the cost/benefit ratio was for each. In the design of the turnout areas we decided to plan each with a different regimen and evaluate the results.

Before applying the footings you need to prepare the site. Preparation may include culverts, drainage ditches, drain tiles or terracing to level the site. We spent about 20 cents per square foot in site preparation. In preparing the site it is a good idea to know prior year's history of water movement. If it tends to have high water runoff during the winter months you should lay drain tiles under the site or ditch the water away from your paddock. Be sure and check your site with a laser level or other instrument to determine elevations. Slopes can be deceiving and you don't want the water to move the wrong way. If your not sure about drainage you may receive assistance through your local Soil and Water Conservation District. If they cannot assist they can generally guide you to sources of information. Home Extension often can help as well.

We chose to divert water away from the turnout paddocks by putting in drainage ditches and terraced slopes. The uphill drainage ditch intercepted a 12 inch diameter culvert pipe to move water downhill and into a vegetated swale. We seeded our ditches to slow run off and prevent sediment movement. Another option would have been to place drain tiles under the site, moving the water away. We also used manure and shavings from our horse stalls on the slopes to prevent erosion during the winter months. A benefit to having these terraced slopes between paddocks is that we have prevented horses in adjoining paddocks from fighting over a fence line. This not only prevents injuries but saves your fence, as well. If you plan to have more then one paddock you may want to leave some space in between so they don't fight over the fence. We ended up putting a six-foot strip in between two attached turnouts so any horse could be placed next to another.

We tried several types of footings for our winter turnouts. Following is a description of the footings used with a cost per square foot and what it would cost for materials and labor to do a 36 x 100 foot site. The least expensive footing was fill sand placed directly on a leveled site with fairly good drainage. It cost 15 cents per square foot, or about $540. I personally like this footing and have had much success with it. We have an outdoor arena that has poor drainage and although it has puddles of standing water, the footing is quite good since the fill sand has worked into the dirt over the years and has created a firm surface that isn't hard on the horses. Every couple of years we add some more sand if it starts to get muddy. When it comes to sand we have tried fill sand, dredged up sand, and finer sands. We like the fill or coarser sands best. If you're not sure, ask for a coarser sand that is used in concrete work. It tends to pack better and not move as much as finer sand. Make sure when you put down sand that it is not too deep; don't lay it thicker then four inches. If it is too deep you could injure your horse and end up with a bowed tendon or other injuries. The other thing about sand is do not feed on it. You risk having a horse with sand colic. We don't feed on our sandy areas and have not experienced any problems with colic.

Another footing used was a six-inch layer of 3/4 minus gravel on a prepared surface and four inches of fill sand on top. Some of the gravel moves up into the sand layer, but we haven't had any bruising problems, nor have we noticed more abscesses or other injuries. I suspect that the sand cushions the impact when they do step on the rocks mixed in with the sand. It does appear that the gravel is packing down and that you see less of it each month. I think this would be a good footing for areas with a slight slope since the packed gravel may slow the movement of the sand downhill. The cost for this was 36 cents per square foot; $1296 for the site.

On the next site we used six inches of 1 1/2 inch minus gravel on a prepared surface, with a six inch layer of cedar wood chips. Within a month the chips worked into the gravel and started to break down. We currently are adding another six-inch layer of cedar chips on top to see how they hold up. The cost for this has turned out to be 40 cents per square foot, or $1440 for the site if you include the additional wood chips. It appears that you would have to add new chips yearly and possibly remove the old material. While it isn't holding up as well as the aggregate and/or sand sites, if you plan on feeding on the site, this maybe the way to go. If you use just wood chips use at least a 12-inch deep layer. Even then, you may experience breakdown and mud if there is heavy use. I was told that heavy layers of wood chips might be bad for streams by producing a lot of acid (leachate) in the soil.

The most expensive footing was laying down a woven geotextile fabric on a leveled surface, spreading a six-inch layer of 3/4 minus gravel, and toppint with a four inch layer of fill sand. This cost 48 cents per square foot or $1944 for the site. In an area with heavy impact of 11 weanlings and yearlings all winter, I used eight inches of gravel on top of the woven geotextile fabric and then the sand, which came to .54 cents per foot. I thought this site would be in poor condition by now due to the impact. Happily, it doesn't look much different then it did in October. When you look at the babies you can even see their white hooves. No mud at all!

I have "seen the light." Since putting in these turnouts, the horses aren't covered in mud; horses aren't loosing shoes; and sediments aren't entering streams. The parasite load will be lower on our pastures this summer and I don't have to worry about mud fever and other horse health issues. Another plus is greener pastures. Last year the pastures were mud in the winter and dirt lots with poor quality grass in the summer. This fall we seeded over the old pastures and the fields are looking good. We're composting our manure and shavings (which kills parasite eggs) and plan to place it on the fields this spring. Healthy grass fields will handle more nutrients from the compost; provide feed for the horses, help keep dust down during the summer; prevent soil erosion during the winter and protect water quality. You're also proud to present your facility to others.

The project will continue to monitor the sites for two years to see how they hold up over the long haul and the maintenance required of each site. We are doing photo monitoring and water quality testing of our streams and ponds to see if good horse management works for the environment.

You can learn more about this project and other methods to improve horse management through conservation by attending the workshop at Portland Community Colleges Rock Creek Campus on March 29^th at 6:00 p.m. The class will be specific to horses and include conservation planning, water and manure management, turnouts and mud management, horse health relating to good conservation, and pasture and grazing management. On March 31 there will be tours at Shadysprings Farm to see the above turnout project, as well as other conservation practices with question and answer sessions following. To sign up or get more information call (503) 681-0953 at the Washington County SWCD. Can't make it to the workshops or tour? Then visit our website at www.shadyspringsfarm.com for more information or visit our farm to see for yourself. You can reach us at (503) 621-3024.

Managing you land with conservation in mind is a win, win situation. Not only do we help protect our watersheds but we have healthier, happier horses as well.