Its no secret that at Marie Stud we are passionate about farming with our Draught Horses. When preparing a paddock for seed we used a 4 step process with our horses – ploughing, discing, scarifying and seeding.
Ploughing
The paddock was ploughed with ‘Hank’ and ‘Will.’ Ploughing turns the upper layer of soil over. The primary benefit of this is to bury the weeds/previous crops and pasture allowing it to break down while bringing fresh nutrients to the top soil. 
Discing
The paddock was disced with the use of ‘Hank’, ‘Will’ and ‘Clyde.’ All three horses are registered Australian Draught Horses. Discing cuts and breaks up the large lumps and clods of soil that has been turned by the plough.
Scarifying
The paddock was then scarified with ‘Hank’, ‘Will’ and ‘Clyde’ to further prepare the seed bed.
Seeding
Oats were placed in the Mitchell Seed Drill and with the use of ‘Hank’ and ‘Will’ the paddock was seeded.
It is no surprise that the process of preparing and seeding a paddock with horses takes longer than the modern day tractors. For us, it is more abut the passion of working and preserving the use of horses than how fast things can be done.
Marlie Draught Horse Stud 