Fodder to Grow and Sell

I’ve touched on the joys of different fodder sources to provide to horses – particularly in a drought – a few times on this blog.

If you have a passion for growing plants, helping business and property owners to be sustainable and happen to like horses, then do I have a business idea for you! A nursery or some kind of plant related business that works to grow different forms of fodder and then sell these on to property owners could be an interesting niche:

• seeds
• seedlings
• established trees
• and even harvested fodder could all be sold from the one property

In a world where land doesn’t grow and stock numbers are increasing whilst the number of houses and population of a town continue to grow, being able to source food for horses can be difficult. A nursery where you can go to purchase your own fodder sources to grow or even buy it harvested to feed to stock could have a lot of appeal for owners.

It is a dream that when my husband and I purchase our own property, that we will be sustainable and not need to purchase hay or other forms of roughage to keep our horses with something in their belly.

I believe this is possible through growing your own fodder source. These trees won’t just serve one purpose; they will provide shade, wind protection and aesthetics to a property. Plus they will help to boost your sustainability profile.

What sort of trees can be fodder? Well that one probably requires a bit of research, but I am aware of:

• Willows
• Tagasaste (lucerne tree)

According to Jane Myers’ text Managing Horses on Small Properties, these species are also useable as a fodder source:

• Carob (the seedpods)
• Honey Locust (the seedpods)
• Poplars
• Lucaena
• Wattles
• Saltbush and bluebush

If you’ve a passion for growing plants and helping others, then maybe a business idea like this is worth considering.

“Horse’s comment on a car -‘150 horsepower, big deal. I’d be impressed if it ran on hay.'”