SPECIAL EDITION

RAGWORT ALERT:

Naturally most of us horse-owners are happy that the consequence of all this rain in June & July is growing grass for our horses...but, there's another plant that's also thriving:

RAGWORT, & IT KILLS HORSES:

It's a good idea to get out into your horse's pasture and dig these little perishers up!  get all the roots, wear gloves, keep your horse away.

This is what you're looking for:  possibly as tall as a metre high by now with pretty little deadly yellow daisies on top as below:

The 'rosette' stage as above is easy to identify as it's quite frilly and attractive, but like my Mum says, most things that are yellow are poisonous.

Don't let it survive or thrive, dig it up, burn it, stop it in it's tracks. 

If you're cutting hay be even more vigilant, Ragwort is easily caught up and dried into bales of hay and the bitter taste is gone once the dead plant is dry, leaving it very palatable.  Cutting rather than pulling ragwort might seem an option, but viable root systems will remain in the ground to revive and make another plant. if you have lots, kill it with spray, or better yet, get a professional to do it for you. 

Something like 'Grazon' needs only a few weeks after spraying before you can graze your horse on it again, I keep Tom & Henry off mine twice as long as it says...just in case. But there are a few things to know about this:

Grazon will kill ragwort & buttercup, BUT once dead ragwort will become palatable - so clear it completely away before letting your horse back on it. It takes several weeks for the plants to properly die.  Don't use Grazon to control ragwort unless you are prepared to clear up properly and completely after ward.

LETS GET RID OF THIS MENACE ONCE AND FOR ALL.