Posted 2015-11-17 9:50 AM Subject: RE: Arena ground management.....
Elite Veteran
Posts: 1118 Location: The South
We have a disc and my husband attached a chain drag that goes behind the disc and smooths the clumps out. I don't know if that's what you're talking about or not lol. It looks really redneck but it works!
To "seal" the arena where I boarded for a number of years, a HEAVY railroad tie was drug behind the tractor. This was done to pack the arena before HUGE rainstorms - the water would run off and not take as much sand/dirt with it. Just be sure your railroad tie is wider than the tractor you're using to drag it.
And - for the record, this only works if your arena is built so that the center is higher than the outside (creating a slight dome to it), allowing the water to go somewhere and not just pool or puddle.
We have a disc and my husband attached a chain drag that goes behind the disc and smooths the clumps out. I don't know if that's what you're talking about or not lol. It looks really redneck but it works!
I guess this is what I'm talking about.
So you drag and dig up the ground, and then smooth it out so the grooved ground isn't exposed to the air (which would dry it out).. ". The barn owner digs up the ground really good and then just leaves it and it's hard as a rock the next day. :/ as if I can actually suggest anything...but it's always interesting to read different techniques.
I'm afraid I've tried both techniques to what you're talking about and honestly, dirt is dirt, its going to dry out just about at the same rate no matter what position its in. The best way to deal with it is to just work it up again very often.
Posted 2015-11-18 2:35 AM Subject: RE: Arena ground management.....
Here is one of the best arena drags you can get and if you have a dirt road maintain it too without ripping too deep and creating a mess ...
It is built by J & I Manufacturing Madill, Oklahoma ...
It has adjustable 2-4 inch deep rippers on front bar and a leveling blade on the rear ... cost is cheap ... around $1100 ...
On a road or arena all you want to disturb is enough to level it out and enough to cushion your horses feet but not bog them down ...
on the arena the 3 inch or so of loose top soil is all the cushion you want or need ... always keep your base intact and enjoy fewer problems ... if you haul in sand ... ask for the baseball infield type of sand and clay mix ..... when it rains the surface will crust over and keep washing away at a minimum loss of sand ... this is usually a light orange color due to clay in the sand ... good stuff!!
On a road .. teach everyone to drive all over the road to pack the surface down and avoid driving thru any puddles when it rains ...
just a FYI:
We were taught when driving thru our pastures to drive all over it and not to make a rutty road and mess up the pastures ...
I must admit the guy driving the tractor is a complete idiot trying to keep in range of the video camera ... With that large of an area he should not be turning back to the drag he just made ...or backwards .. etc etc ... this thing does work wonders !!
Arena ground management.....
