Spraying

[farmer_ben]

i am fully aware of the pro's and con's of spraying, pulling, cutting etc we do keep horses. I feel that sparying is the best option at this time. I have considered cutting and collecting but not sure the best way of collecting as i don't have a tractor and hiring one would make the job expensive. There is no way i am pulling a very infested nearly 10 acres by hand.

 

thanks again.

 

hi there, i do alot of paddock sprayer, mostly for ragwort, with my quad and sprayer.

 

i always charge hourly rates and normally tailer the charge on each job as each job can be so different.

 

as a rule of thumb, i charge £35 an hour and a minimum of 2hrs, even if im there for 30mins. you have to do a minimum charge as loading the bike, sorting chemicals etc takes longer than you think. i also charge for the chemical used seperately. in my opinion a job isnt worth doing if im not charging at least £100 total.

 

i personally believe spraying is better, as pulling ragwort will just leave roots and they will grow back, i dont care how care someone pulls it you'll never get all the roots out.

 

hope this is of help

[bythamboy]

If I had a big patch of ragwort ( too much to pull ) then cut with hay mower with swather ( leaves in rows ) bale it up and dump / burn . Check for any bits left , then field is clear of toxic / noxious plant. This obviously only works when sward is scalped else you leave viable plant to regrow and needs to be done before mature plants have shed their seed .

[Aaron]

If I had a big patch of ragwort ( too much to pull ) then cut with hay mower with swather ( leaves in rows ) bale it up and dump / burn . Check for any bits left , then field is clear of toxic / noxious plant. This obviously only works when sward is scalped else you leave viable plant to regrow and needs to be done before mature plants have shed their seed .

 

in an ideal world yes............. but lets be cost effective, to cut and bale 10 acres of decent growth your talking well over £500, oh yea, then will have to do the same next year.......... fair do's, little late to be spraying it as it will be back next year but if you get it earlier next year youll be on the home run. i honestly dont think people will pay costs to bale etc on a waste product.

 

Aaron

[Ruskins Trees]

Do not guarantee eradication, (unless you have a 20yr + contract plus access to adjacent land if any there). The seed is viable for upto 20years!