Horse Outreach Workgroup Resources

 The Maryland Horse Outreach Workgroup (HOW) created educational documents for horse owners that discuss pasture and manure management. HOW Members included representatives from local soil conservation districts, the Maryland Department of Agriculture, the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service, University of Maryland Extension, the Equiery, and the Maryland Horse Industry Board. The Maryland Department of Agriculture's Office of Resource Conservation coordinated the workgroup. Click on each document title to go to the MDA's link to read and view. 

Pasture Management Resources

Getting Started

• A Horse Owner's Guide to Best Management Practices

• Big Dreams for Your Horse Farm? Do Your Homework First!

• BMP Benefits

General Pasture Management

• Management of Established Horse Pastures

• Managing Pastures for Ground Cover

• Pasture Management For All Seasons

• Vegetative Cover: Is it Grass That's Really Greener on the Other Side of the Fence?  ​

• Vegetative Cover Problems and Solutions

Seeding and Renovation

• Common Horse Pasture Grasses and Legumes

• Guidelines for Seeding New Pastures and Renovating Old Pastures I: Plan Before You Seed

• Guidelines for Seeding New Pastures and Renovating Old Pastures II: Getting Ready to Seed

• Guidelines for Seeding New Pastures and Renovating Old Pastures III: Planting the Seed and Managing After Seeding

• Seeding Small-Acreage Horse Pastures

Heavy Use Areas

• Give Mud the Boot

• Sacrifice Lots

• Vegetative Heavy Use Areas

Grazing Management

• Rotational Grazing

Manure Management

• Horse Manure Management

• Composting Horse Manure