# Any ideas on how to fix a muddy pasture?



## Elie May (Apr 24, 2008)

I would like to get a goat or two, but I need to work on the pasture first. We had had two horses on about 6 acres for the past 10 years. They have both passed on now. The majority pasture is in good shape and would carry goats very easily. But the area next to the barn and main gate is really muddy. Water logged Texas gumbo - MUD! No fun to walk through - definitely no place for a small goat. 

What do ya'll use to fix a muddy area like that? Any suggestions?


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## Cannon_Farms (Aug 28, 2008)

can you have sand put in or gravel? Gravel is great for wearing down hooves. Barley, Millet and rye are fast spouting grasses that can withstand a bit more moisture but its got to be able to grab hold. Even some decent top soil might work and a drain canal??? there is fabric you can put down under the soil to stop the problem, farm tech carries it just google their site


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## Squeaky McMurdo (Apr 19, 2012)

I second the sand. I put it down in my chicken run by the side of my house where it was always muddy and now it's the driest place in our yard.

I have heard that agricultural lime can also harden ground but have no personal experience with that.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

You need to improve/change the drainage. Get someone with a backhoe or grader or some other earth moving equipment who KNOWS how to sculpt the land so the water runs off.

Is the muddy spot where the roof drains? Put up gutters to re-direct the run off from the roof.


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## GreenMomma (Jun 3, 2008)

Have you looked into ag lime? I'd make sure your drainage is good, add lime to harden up what is existing and if you can afford to, a few inches of DG would be good. It compacts well and is easy to rake turds off of.


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

I second the suggestion to improve the drainage first. Anything you put there will become part of the mud if there is a drainage issue. Also improve the grading to the barn so what rolls away form the walls. In the meantime you can unroll a roll of hay over the mud and when the frost is gone you can use the hay as mulch to seed with a good goat cover crop. After I fixed some drainage issues I used gravel, sand and grass all depending on where it was an what I wanted. Best wishes/.


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## aart (Oct 20, 2012)

Ditto on drainage....evaluate where the moisture is coming from looking first at roof runoff and topography to see how water flows thru the area.

Roof guttering and/or just slope of land around the buildings drip line can make a huge difference.

Cutting swales uphill from the area can totally change the amount of water that reaches the area of concern.


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## dozedotz (Dec 12, 2012)

Fixing the drainage is a top notch idea...but sometimes there are areas like gates (!) and just outside doorways where the goats stand and just turn the area into a muddy place. We highly recommend "man sand" or the lime stone shavings for those kinds of areas. Works great!


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

You don't have to bring in heavy equipment to help the drainage issue. A hand-dug trench, a length of drain tile, and some gravel can do wonders.


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## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

Except for this year (drought), life here is a battle of mud. Everwhere. 
I have a number of shallow drenches and next to them, stall mat walkways. 
Goats are not like horses who happily plow through anything to get what they want. Goats will try very hard to avoid getting their feet wet. If you provide a path, they will mostly stick to it.


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## Elie May (Apr 24, 2008)

I think I will try the sand. Its really just the high traffic area. The barn actually drains the opposite way from where the water is standing. 
I was always worried about adding sand to areas where horses were. Guess that's why I never tried it with them. But I want to get it dried up before I try my hand with goats. Thanks for everyone's suggestions.


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