Granite Base. Heres a full list of inch to feet conversions so you can figure out the depth of gravel you want for your calculation in step #1 above: 1 inch equals .083 feet Scroll. Also check out this post by an Oregon farm as it has a lot of good tips for what works and what doesnt. A couple years ago I had a 40 acre place with a separate 4-stall, 3-sided tractor shed about 150 yards from the house. Examples of materials used for crushed stone include limestone and granite. Ah glad you found it Lawrence! Angular crushed rock is what we recommend for use with Lighthoof mud management panels. The only other option I can think of, is to save your money on the material underneath and put that towards having custom-cut mats that fill the stall, wall-to-wall in one piece. It also lasts far longer than mulch. Post some before/after pics for us if you can You can upload them right here. (normally everything here gets wet from rain, but dries the next day to hard surface). The paddocks are in one area on a slant so if the chips get a bit tired and over wet I can shovel out the wetter edges. Crushed stone is also less likely to get kicked out into the yard. Occasionally if on slope older spent chips need shoveling up but they can go on ground, gardens, hardcore roads. I heard the local racetrack likes to use it, but they are also grooming the track daily. Just purchased Nov of 17 and boy it was a wet muddy mess for my 3 because I only had one month to get so much done before I could move them in. You need good quality freshly chipped. Your plants also draw nutrients from their surroundings, especially the soil, that help them to flourish. Remember, he uses 5-6 inches of 3 rock on top of the Nilex geotextile, then 5-6 inches of 3/4 minus gravel on top of that. I would put drains (herring bone or french) if I did it again just to avoid water logs. It will naturally get pushed out to the edges over time anyway. Ill report back! Well, keep me posted if you can and let me know what happens! If theyre coming end of April, youre well over the worst of it. A friend of mine who builds roads in the Vancouver area and whose father builds horse arenas told me that you can go down 6 feet and you still wont hit any kind of hard soil or anything that would provide a barrier to your gravel sinking away. The two in front look taller than usual, Thank you so much for the invitation, but I will have to wait until I can afford my own plane (or fractional jet ownership!) No bark or greenery. So if you scrape down during a wet season, the rain will just turn the formerly compacted soil into more mud. Also, if you want your paddock to give your horses the opportunity to self-trim their hooves then definitely dont put crusher dust as your last layer on top. Can be used for landscaping, back fill and mixing concrete. My clients have a rubber mat outside and they feed off of that. Typically, a gravel driveway will cost about $1.25 to $1.80 per square foot, taking into consideration that the driveway is . Your site is so inspiring and YOU are so generous! You can then layer it with geocell to prevent pooling and unstable ground. . Another thought: Do you offer your horses free choice minerals? Boredom = monkeys . Clear stone is sometimes known as drainage stone. Because it packs down fairly solid, it doesnt have the big pointy bits that are inclined to puncture and lead to abscesses. These methods quickly dry up the yard, allowing you to operate on it with a . I live in Chilliwack, so have the same weather as you . Regardless of the problem, drying and repairing the muddy yard is necessary. Like you mentioned, 1/4 minus is dense and will definitely not drain as well as a coarser product. "It's a very modern look, but I tried to soften it with the gravel and plantings, like the ferns in the gravel," says Klausing. My mare has Cushings and sometimes laminitis. Youre welcome And how terribly EXCITING!! A clean crushed stone with an average size of 3/4 . Bulk crushed stone and gravel prices are $10 to $50 per ton on average. Pea gravel. Auburn Hills Main: (248) 338-3310 Oxford Yard: (248) 628-9777 Auburn Hills Scale House: (248) 332-6210 Weather Permitting what do you think? Dr. Ann Swinker (professor of Equine Sciences) says: Ideally a two layer footing system works best when working with gravel. If you do it right the first time, you may only have to do the underlayers once (as long as you keep organic matter off your paddock surface) and then top up with crusher dust every couple of years. 2. It makes total sense though that it would be slippery when wet/freezing. However, there's a medium between powdered limestone and massive chunks. I forget the size but its small enough to fall through the manure fork. Arizona River Rock. Youre welcome Suzy! That is a good idea however I have an intense dislike of the noise of leaf blowers! Too much depth doesnt matter so much indoors and I had a barn I never had to dig out. One thing that I did and would highly recommend is after having the 3 minus delivered we rented a 1000 lb plate compactor and compacted the arena surface for a full week, many, many, many times. We rented the compactor from United Rentals, it is a seperate machine, but we did use a tractor to lift it off of the trailer that we brought it home with, it was heavy! If it has to cope with as much water as your paddock, then go ahead and do it the same as they likely wont be trying to lie down on it anyway. As long as you keep their hay off the sand (hay nets with a large bucket or built in container to catch escaped hay underneath?) And that should be no problem for their hooves either its such a short time. Plants require more than just water and sunlight to live a long and healthy life. If you can afford concrete I would 100% go with that!! While similar to gravel in its size and texture, limestone offers a larger variety of colors to choose from and is extremely durable. Now Im going to moving my other mare over so wanted to check whats the best footing as I live on Vancouver Island, the place with the most rainfall on the planet. Ive also had a few that you had to be careful even with thumb pressure because that was enough to poke a hole through the sole.). appreciate your thoughts on this. My arena is also used as the dry area on wet days and overnight hours, I am very happy with my surface. You can also examine the crusher dust and see which suppliers contains the least amount of dust. 2. But Im afraid the only thing that is maintenance-free is concrete! This is a boarding facility so all my expense. The whole idea of having a gravel or crusher dust top layer is to prevent wet organic matter (soil, grass, hay, leaves, manure etc.) They have a program that subsidizes horse owners to improve drainage. So if your paddock usually turns into 5 inches of mud, then use 5 inches of footing. The product is commonly used as erosion control, as a heavy drainage material, as a stabilizer or for landscaping. Using pea gravel as a base for your hot tub has some distinct advantages.. Place 4 inches of medium-grade construction gravel on top of the landscape cloth, . Im in Virginia, USA and have been researching what to do for the muddy parts of our barn and our sacrifice lot. Lime is spread on lawns that are not growing well to help the soil become more hospitable for grass. It is crushed up #57 stone combined with . Crushed limestone typically produced by mining limestone or dolomite rock deposits. ft. ($53.81 /case) $5.07 Save 20% ( 139) Model# GDRCOBRG Merola Tile Coppa Brown Gold 12 in. I also found it really helpful to install a French Drain in my current paddock to help funnel the water off/away from the paddock and this made a huge difference in the effectiveness of my paddock surface. CRUSHED GRANITE. So make sure your two layers, over your Nilex Geotextile, are at least 10 inches deep. Usually its okay, but one year (same supplier) the crusher had clay in it and it completely packed down and stopped all drainage from happening! Very interesting Pippa. The other important thing with gravel, is that it requires regular grading/maintenance. So 6 = .5 feet, or 3 = .25 feet. Wish I had better news for you! It was great to read such an informative article. The chips are soft and they can lay on them but more often they pee on them. GABION ROCK - 3" X 5" CRUSHED LIMESTONE. And thanks so much for letting all of us know. So you cannot leave any of this organic matter sitting on your gravel, or else it will quickly break down into a mucky layer that defeats the whole purpose. Ive been researching every option, trying to come up with the best (and economical) course of action, so I apreciate your in depth article. So 3/4 inch minus gravel means that the largest particle size is 3/4 of an inch and all the gravel in the load is guaranteed to be 3/4 inch or smaller. trailer back into the shed stall area 'cause the ground (field) in front of the tractor shed is Bahia grass and soft . Crusher dust is gravel that has been crushed to the size of 1/4 or less. 1.5 tons are enough for one cubic yard. Thanks you so much! If I had known I would need him, I would have had him spend 30-60 minutes removing that topsoil/grass layer first, before spreading the gravel. We dont know if it built up over years of ingesting a little at a time, or if he somehow swallowed a whole bunch at once. I usually have my gravel delivered 2-3 days before the Bobcat/tractor guy arrives as my horses love playing on the gravel piles! Unfortunately, my landscaper/road builder/horse trail builder guy says that you need to scrape off the dirty layer of gravel at least once a year, and re-grade where needed. Use something like this Nilex non-woven geotextile with a load capacity that can withstand rock, gravel and horses hooves. Still deciding on what to put on the top. I also have access to granite based stone dust and of course limestone and just about any other rock, sand or clay material. 1. You might also want to look into the Paddock Paradise, or, Walking Track system. Rip rap is large nearly boulder-size crushed stone. For yellow star-thistle, toxicity symptoms may arise after horses have ingested 85 to 100% of their body weight in green plant material. It needs to be deep enough that the rock compacts and locks together so one layer (of 3 rock) is not enough. A barn I had advised on brought in a chipper to make custom chips this size. Which made me think nursery pallets > easier and cover more space and probably a lot cheaper. Because a farrier with lots of experience with it says its too acidic for the horses hooves. Im also going to tell you about the things Ive tried that didnt work so well for me. I guess it goes back for centuries in the European countries and the lady that wrote the list was from Scotland. Im curious to know if you ended up redoing the paddock surface area this year again? If you were to follow Dr. Swinkers advice, you could use pea gravel 0r 3/4-inch minus gravel on the bottom and crusher dust on top (crusher is really just tiny gravel with gravel particle dust), or limestone gravel and crusher dust, or limestone gravel and sand. Crushed stone, a mixture of stone dust and stone of various sizes, packs together nicely. Young's Sand and Gravel, a landscape supply company located in Ohio, charges $20 a ton for all limestone, except for #8, which can cost $2 more a ton. to see prices and products. Outside is not so good; it gets slippery when wet and is even worse when it freezes so this year I have put some gravel/sand mix on top of the chalk in some areas and so far that is performing better. Im concerned that if I use crusher dust or a smaller gravel, it will be easily churned into mud before the winters over. It is mainly used in applications by bodies of water, which is why you commonly see it along streams, rivers and similar locations. See the video at the end of this post here from a woman who also has 2 acres: https://www.listentoyourhorse.com/how-to-make-a-great-waterhole-for-your-paddock-paradise-or-pasture/, Or, this permaculture system: Paths made of large limestone pavers are also popular, but with big slabs some considerations have to be taken into account. part of doing a crushed stone base to to dig up the grass and top soil and dig down . My horses dont wear shoes. Im doing some research on how to sort out the high traffic area of stall threshold in a barn I just started managing. If you do this, be certain to fill up the ground back in with soil and sow turf seeds so the grass grows back as well as the ground doesn't lose absorbent planet. It does require maintenance but is sustainable. The discussion seems to be wide ranging and I would appreciate your thoughts. MSU, Inc. 1,100 lb. 1. from coming into contact with your horses hooves, and then to facilitate the drainage of rainwater away from the surface, so your horses hooves stay drier. She began riding at age 2 in Kenya, and got her first horse at age 8 in Alberta, and so continues a life-long journey and love affair with these amazing creatures. In hindsight, even if I could not afford to remove the topsoil and lay down the proper layers first, I should have dumped 3/4 inch minus gravel directly on the grass (at least 3 inches) and then dumped 1/4 inch minus crusher dust directly on top of the gravel (at least 2 inches deep). Excellent article, and appreciate the before and after pics. I was all ready to order my gravel and tractor (my two new horses arrive at the end of April) until I read that you shouldnt do this work when the soil is muddy. Thanks so much for your help! Multiply the square footage (length x width = square footage) of your paddock by the depth of gravel you want. It has great drainage, and my one complaint is that it gets dusty in the summer, but I consider that a small price to pay for a dry arena in the winter. They are never locked up and only have a run in, that is in the paddock. Ideally, gravel should be 3/8" but 3/4" would also work. How to Manifest the Land of Your Dreams Part 2, Neem Leaf for Horses Anti-Parasitic, Natural Wormer, Summer Frolic with The Singing Horse Herd, Exploring with a Wild Mustang No Training No Touching, How to Manifest the Land of Your Dreams Part 1, Wild Oregano Heals Horses Intense Bug Allergy & Itching, Horse Wisdom: Transmuting Patriarchy or Dominance, Meditation Journey with The Herd for Anxiety, Loneliness or Fear, Horse Wisdom: Integrating Spiritual Shifts in the Physical Body, Aligning with Dog Wisdom No More Food Anxiety, Understanding & Listening to Dogs My Approach. I have since left that boarding place, but the owners (who bought their own horses after being inspired by mine) did indeed dump 4 more boxes of crusher dust on that paddock ($1400). But she said she wouldnt use the crusher dust again, since it packs down like cement. ), Mischief, Feed Dishes & Increasing Awareness, Absolutely Easiest Way to use Horse Manure to Create a Worm Farm, Guided Meditation to Connect with your Horse, Dog, Cat or Pet, Paddock & Pasture Permaculture Setup for Rainy Climate, Livestream: Despair, Shielding & Using Imagination to Create Reality, The Dead-Easy Simplest Way to Compost Horse Manure, Horse Herd Communication Energy & Body Language, The Treacherous Creek, Tree Ecosystems, Horse Wrestling & Smooches. When it rains, you may build a patio, gazebo, or other, However, you will need to replace them with a long-term remedy since they wont last. The most common concern about using crusher dust which is just tiny, crushed gravel is whether it will be too sharp for the hooves. These costs can be double for delivery and spreading of the rock. This concentrates it where the horses will actually be standing/walking. 1.5 inches equals .125 feet But mine prefer to lie out in the field on the frozen mud, so perhaps sand would be better it would be warmer for sure and I think that plays a big part in their choice. It isnt something the horses prefer to roll in but give them options on a rainy day and they will stand on it over most other footings. The larger chunks of rock are also easily caught in the rake, so you end up dumping a lot of the gravel you just paid money for, out with the leaves which does not feel good! Coarse aggregate does not compact easily; many voids may result leaving the surface uneven and difficult for livestock to walk on. Another consideration: If you live in a dry climate with little rain, the dust particles in the crusher dust can work themselves deep into your horses mane and coat. I would suggest a coarse, crushed quarry rock or crushed drain rock for a base rather than drain rock or pea gravel, especially for an area getting a lot of traffic. I like the fines so far for helping with the mud, but for sure am trying a longer term solution. So the amount of rainfall was certainly unusual. For home use, it is typically bought in pellets or powder. It doesnt matter how much you scrape and pack, your gravel (even 3 road base!) I thought I could get a few friends out and spread the gravel using rakes, but when I looked at the size of the piles and realized how heavy the gravel was, I decided to hire a local farmer to come spread it for me. Their paddock is 8000 sq feet, so cost is definitely an issue. Thanks for all the valuable info. As the hogfuel ages and the acid leaches out, it turns sloppy and is a fantastic host for bacteria so again, another problem to deal with.. Your email address will not be published. Tip: When spreading the top layer of crusher dust or 1/4 inch gravel, I have it spread 6-12 inches away from all the walls or sides of the paddock. You can also subscribe without commenting. Perhaps just 3/4 minus gravel laid 4 inches deep and 2 inches of crusher dust (1/4 minus) on top would be sufficient?? Plain pea gravel or limestone costs $28 to $45 per ton. If you ever test your soil and find it to be too acidic -- or below a pH of 7.0 -- a gardening expert would recommend adding lime to the . The sand/gravel mix we have used is called Hoggin here and the best description I can find is on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoggin. One cubic yard contains 1.4 to 1.5 tons of stone. It consists of a coarse aggregate base and a finer cover layer. A local farmer grows willow (hardwood and quick growing) which is not poisonous and originally chipped it for power stations but they had special moisture parameters he could not meet. After tilling is complete, spread the required amount . ), they told me that the Cloverdale Racetrack uses limestone gravel for their track. Id like something that would be most comfortable as they sometimes stay in there for a longer period of time, like heavy rain or cold windy days. Top layer: Crusher Dust, But if not, then youre going to have to put down either geotextile cloth, or the plastic grid mats and then lay your gravel. There is much truth to this quip, as adding something to a muddy road often has . But again, after researching, I think thats an issue of the existing surface, how much is used, and what the resulting footing is like. I have put rubber mats down on every different gravel footing Ive tested and they always move and become uneven. The process of limestone formation typically occurs in shallow, warm, marine . Damage Caused by Slowfeeders, Hay Nets & Metal Grates and Solutions! In the middle of the worst rains of winter, the 3/4 inch gravel has the best drainage and keeps the surface drier, even during a full day of rain: On the same day, heres what patches of the 1/4 inch crusher dust look like you can see how the mud and soil underneath has been churned into the crusher dust. Jini Patel Thompson is a natural health writer and Lazer Tapping instructor. Thanks for the great advice, now I have no more muddy mess around the barn! e.g. So much good information (all based on experience with horses, which is good). If you are already starting with fairly hard footing underneath, crusher dust may not be your best option but on the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley [of BC, Canada], it is rare for it not to be an improvement.. Sorry I havent seen or experimented with stall footing. However, I cant imagine anyone giving away fleece for free around here! Gravel is extremely simple to put on lawns and offers a long-term solution. Also goes a long way to keep down the fly/flea population. 3/4 in. You could not just have a few inches deep like a shavings. x 12 in. material calculator delivery rates #10 Limestone Screenings This is our finely screened crushed grey limestone. And yes, I can also concur with your friends experience. Okay, now that you know what to do Im going to tell you about all the options available and what other people say. I live in a dry, desert region in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and I have purebred Arabian horses. The Easiest Waterhole for Horses that Doesnt Produce Mosquitoes! I started with the crusher fines, but have not been happy with the pee spots, so Ill go back and do the pea gravel, or maybe put some sand down in the pee hole, then the next 2 layers? Decomposed Granite With Stabilizers Awesome Sherry! Great info. Now lay a layer of large rock or recycled concrete (3 inches wide or larger rock) on top of the Nilex barrier, about 5 inches deep. She said most of the time you can find sheep herdsmen to give you the fleece for free. This may seem like a small point, but trust me, it makes a huge difference to the time spent scooping manure AND the loss of expensive gravel that gets tossed out with the manure. Our horses can come and go as the please into the paddock and back out into the property. My big constraint with my first horse boarding set-up was that it is not my own land, I didnt have a long-term lease, and so realistically, I could be kicked out at any time. Because even if you clear down to hard pan, put a layer of 3 minus rock, then 4 inches of 3/4-inch minus gravel, and 2 inches of 1/4 minus or crusher dust it still sinks! Lets start with these pictures of my first set-up, where I self-boarded my horses on a friends property, and my adventures in paddock footing began. crushed limestone for muddy yard. I have lost so much gravel from throwing it out with the manure, I highly suspect well need to put down a load of crusher dust after scraping/grading this year. I know nothing about it, so Im just asking you questions to stimulate your thoughts/research. , Post a before and after pic when youre done Joanna (with your sheep in it!) By February, all the horses hooves were still in great condition (they are also fed low sugar hay, which makes a huge difference to hoof health) and the surface was still in good shape. So now that I have all the information needed to make a good decision about what is the best paddock surface for horses in a wet, rainy climate its time to look at what Im prepared to spend! It can also be used to level stepping-stones. Rain on your crusher dust quickly takes care of this problem though. Most of the mud is next to the outside wall of my run in, so the water goes right under it and inside the run in; so in other words when its wet, they have no escape from it. Sand tends to overwear the feet but of all the footings for paddocks, it tends to be my second choice because at least their feet stay dry. A French drain offers a gravity-assisted means of keeping the yard free from excess moisture. Pea gravel is so good for their feet. Any advice? yd. I tried that one year and it was the worst gravel ever because it slides around so much it also mixes with all the manure particles and you cant ever get the manure off the smooth gravel. He was stunned by the county thinking gravel is non permeable and says they are dead wrong. It will all look normal. With 2400 square feet of gravel, my horses were able to self-trim enough that they only needed the farrier to come out and trim every 5-6 months. 4 inch Dig 2 inches of lime stone compacted. In order to safely use limestone for landscaping, remember these points, and your garden will thrive: 1. I am totally disillusioned with any gravelled solution now. Heres all the things I did not anticipate, so you can benefit from my learning curve: 1. Find Your Local Distributor Pennsylvania GROWMARK F.S. To create driveways. In 2018, I did an experiment with laying standard hardware store geotextile cloth down on the compacted subgrade soil, in a new section of my horses paddock area. The big problem you get in many (most?) Honestly, the best solution is concrete all the stables in the UK (same climate) use concrete for high traffic areas. Live and learn! I would not use it. You need the jagged edges and different particle sizes for the footing to pack down well and not just slide around every time a hoof punches down on it. Remember, I was only looking for this paddock to last a year or two. I am curious as to what you went with if you could let us know. When you say horse rooms Im assuming you mean stalls or stables? The same Farrier I quoted above also says: It locks together and makes a very firm surface with just enough give to allow for maximum traction. Contact Us, How to Fix a Muddy Yard (Prevent Water Build-Up Tips). When it gets real cold and freezes up, its nothing but thousands of frozen footprints that they can hardly walk on. But if you live somewhere rainy like the Pacific Northwest or UK, then this industrial-grade barrier material is crucial. Now I can focus on other things (water, feeders, trailer, star thistle, fences)! I recently joined a horse track group and there was a post on fleece lasagna and how well it works in boggy areas , gateways and lane ways! It has been suggested that a horse must consume 60% of its body weight in green Russian knapweed plant material before toxicity symptoms appear. Per its name, crushed stone is created by taking larger pieces of stone or rock and crushing it into smaller. Kimberly, Oooh thats fantastic Kimberly! Particle uniformity refers to the mix of particle sizes within the blend. When the wildies came in they hoovered the minerals at an incredible rate for about 8 weeks and then normalized they ate more in 8 weeks than the next 2 years! Yard Dirt (Unscreened Fill Dirt) from $ 51.10 per ton: Show Prices: Order Now: Your Zipcode. If your area has hard clay soil, it may support the pea gravel on its own. It can also be called quarter minus, or flume sand. It's also an affordable option, ranging from $0.30 to $0.70 per square foot. Just before we close, lets talk a bit more about geotextile cloth, which many paddock experts recommend using. It would probably be fine in a drier climate but on the Wet Coast, it isnt ideal. Please feel free to share your experience and experiments in the Comments section below. A really interesting topic, and I have a question: is gravel 4/3 & 4/1 good as an alternative to fine sand in horse rooms, or is fine sand better? Im so happy I found your website! Gravel is bound to have runoff, so your installation of a French drain was a great idea. This system still involves some heavy work but it is sustainable. Mix the Soil-Cement. The perforated pipes may then drain far enough away from your yard to be safe. Im going to pick his oh-so-experienced brain and see if he knows anything we dont already know or has some tips or tweaks that make a world of difference. My questions are as follows: if I use your advice of geotextile fabric with layers of gravel am I going to get washing of the fine gravel on the slopes with heavy rain? BUT, what am I going to put on their paddock surface to create a paddock footing with adequate drainage? Our farrier does not love the pea gravel. Meditation Claim Your Reality in this Crazy World, When your Horse says No Perhaps the Process IS the Point, How to Manifest the Land of Your Dreams Part 4. He says it grinds away at their soles and bars in particular. A smaller driveway may only require a budget of $300 to $350, while a longer and larger driveway may require up to $60,000 in budget. Awesome feedback! Your email address will not be published. The pea gravel has to be changed over to new, clean material every few years, I think. Touring the world with friends one mile and pub at a time; best perks for running killer dbd. Over the last two years we have found that the compacted chalk works well under a straw bed inside. But by April, the area around the slow feeders was wet and mucky. Like Hoffmans? Natural Decomposed Granite This is a great alternative to mulch that can be placed around plants, shrubs, and trees. However, under the lein-to part of the barn it has the 1" crushed limestone as well. The next winter, you will need to add another 4-6 inches of 3/4-inch minus gravel.