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  Discussion on Poison ivy et al in hayfield
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Posted on Monday, Jun 24, 2002 - 3:42 pm:

I took a discouraging trip to our hayfield a few days ago, and have several questions as a result.

I discovered a "carpet" of poison ivy beneath parts of the field (will that hurt the horses if they eat it? will the hay rake even get it, since it's so low?). Some places have been completely taken over by sweet clover (an aggressive non-native plant) and reed canary grass (another aggressive non-native plant, which even in small quantities our horses refuse to eat). In addition there's a scattering of milkweed (toxic) and yellow dock (unpalatable). Sort of the "who's who" of what you don't want in your hay.

Any opinions on what to do about this? There are small, select areas that are good (red clover, timothy, orchardgrass, alfalfa) but they would amount to less than 50 bales altogether. The undesirable stuff would amount to 350 - 400 bales, based on previous years' production. I don't know whether to pay and have it baled -- we have to pay a fixed price per bale to have it baled, regardless of the quality -- or to bale the good portions and just mow the bad parts (and then to somehow pick up and burn the cuttings?).

I don't usually like chemicals, but I think it may be the only way to eradicate a lot of these plants. I'm thinking about doing it just after the mowing or baling ... but that still leaves a question of what to do with the hay. Are cattle or goats susceptible to complications poison ivy, milkweed, yellow dock or sweet clover? The thought of spending several hundred dollars baling this, losing most of it, and then spending another several hundred dollars to treat the hay field is pretty frustrating.

Help!

Kandace

Posted on Monday, Jun 24, 2002 - 4:49 pm:

Though the poison ivy may be an inconvenience for you, horses love it and it's perfectly ok for them to eat it. In some circles, it's considered a valuable herb for arthritis -- "rhus toxicodenDrOn" is what we humans buy, the poison ivy without the specific irritant whose name I'll remember after I click send no doubt. My horse (who has arthritis) always seems to screech to a halt at a particularly lush stand by the road whenever he's feeling a little ouchy.

Horses love the roots too, so you might consider creating a temporary corral in your field to let them get rid of it by unearthing (and eating, yup even with some dirt clinging to them) those roots.

Melissa

Posted on Monday, Jun 24, 2002 - 7:04 pm:

I thought rhus tox was poison oak? I'll have to check my field guide, I guess. :-)

If a horse eats poison ivy, though, and then touches me ... couldn't he give it to me? The oils (urioshol? something like that?) can be carried and transmitted that way, right?

Kandace

Posted on Monday, Jun 24, 2002 - 8:51 pm:

Right, he can share his treat back on you. I have a lover of poisen oak here in California and he "loves" the stuff all over me if I'm not careful. I can never be careful enough!!! Dawn :)

Posted on Monday, Jun 24, 2002 - 11:18 pm:

Interesting, I've always understood rhus tox to be poison ivy, but then again we don't have poison oak hereabouts. Sounds like both "poisons" are good horse fodder!

And yes, as Dawn says, you can get it from your horse if your horse gives you a nice kiss after browsing in a poison ivy patch. I've gotten it this way myself. Then again, you can get it from your dog if your dog runs around in the pasture or the roadsides... I try to play safe, since I'm very allergic, but it's hard not to indulge my horse...
Melissa

Posted on Tuesday, Jun 25, 2002 - 8:34 am:

Hello Kandace,
As noted by the others poison ivy is not poisonous to livestock but you can certainly be exposed by your horse.

The milkweed is easy as it can be mowed and though it is a perrenial in time will dissapear. You cannot bale up the cut milkweed as it remains toxic when dried.

The yellow dock and poison ivy are responsive to 2,4-D application (I know you are adverse but see my reply to your earlier post about this herbicide) though combination with a hebicide called Remedy is recommended for the poison ivy.

We had a similar problem with poison ivy in a meadow where we grazed our horses when we camped. It seems the traffic of the horses on the meadow eradicated the poison ivy in that area but I am fairly sure it will be back if we leave the meadow unused for a lenth of time.

For more on weed control see: Care for Horses: Pastures: Agronomy: Weeds.
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Jun 25, 2002 - 9:02 am:

Kandace, yes urushiol.

One other thing, all parts of the plant are "poisonous" to humans including the roots, and plants that are dormant (wintertime) are just as poisonous. So attempting to eradicate it by pulling it up by the roots isn't a good idea (not that you were contemplating this!) since even if you manage to pull it up without getting it all over you, where do you put the roots? And they're vigorous and will just resprout in the spring.

The disposal problem has led some to burn it -- which is the worst thing of all, as the oils then travel in the smoke into lungs!

All this to say the herbicide approach is the only safe way to go!

Melissa, from poison ivy land....

Posted on Tuesday, Jun 25, 2002 - 2:27 pm:

Goats are supposed to be voracious poison ivy killers. Apparently they like it enough to help eradicate it from a field. Perhaps you could put a couple of goats in the hayfield after it is mown off. (They also help eradicate several other weeds in a field, especially woody ones.)
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