Weed Control
A weed “A wild plant growing where it is not wanted and in competition with cultivated plants”.
Weeds in any grass are unsightly, but in a paddock they are at best detrimental to grass growth providing competition to grass for nutrients and moisture. At worst they can be dangerous and poisonous to both horse and rider.
Ragwort, nettles, docks, thistles, buttercups, mares tail, Himalayan balsam, giant hog weed, burdock, cud weed are all weeds we have dealt with in the Yorkshire area over the last few seasons.
Ragwort is a weed that most people in the equestrian world have heard of, or have spent hours pulling up, leaving divots in the fields and a pile of ragwort to burn or dispose of. Never seeming to get on top of it. A paddock with a ragwort problem will need spraying a minimum of two years in succession due to the germination nature of the plant.
Giant hog weed is a good example of a plant that can be a problem for riders, if the sap from the plant gets on your skin and then is exposed to sunlight, specifically the UV light, it causes blisters on the skin.
Yorkshire Paddock Care works in close conjunction with a professional agronomist who works for our chemical supplier, and is the person who decides what chemicals are needed to treat each weed and the timings of the applications. This close working relationship allows us to be able to identify the less common weeds that are sometimes encountered and ensure that they are treated correctly
Yorkshire Paddock Care regularly work with people to manage paddock use, as the time frame for horses to be out of a paddock sprayed for ragwort causes pressures of grazing. By speaking to us about your requirements we can plan a treatment program specifically to suit your situation.
Spray operators at Yorkshire Paddock Care are fully trained and have the relevant spray certificates, PA1, PA2 and PA6. The operators are also members of NroSO (National Register of Spray Operators) and as such undertake relevant CPD. Yorkshire Paddock Care also ensures that our spray equipment is tested as required under the National Sprayer Testing Scheme.
Weed Control Gallery
