Meadow management: where can I get advice?

[HammerFour]

Control the brush and weeds with mowing and weed killing spray 2,4-d or similar.

Overseed with some pasture/grass mix with legumes ( clover, etc ) to get a good mix of plants in the meadows. The legumes are very important as they will fix nitrogen into the soil from the air and help the grasses grow. This time of year is a great time to do your overseeding....

Keep up your mowing and spraying for a year or two and you will see a huge change in the grasses growing.

We did this process on our property since we bought it in late 2002, it was overrun with weeds in the pasture areas and brush along the creek. Now we have lots of good grass and legumes, the mowing and spraying has eliminated almost all the weeds ( and I have only sprayed the entire property once, I have a couple areas that were the worst that have been sprayed twice ).

 

[jeffinsgf]

If it is allowed, your first and most productive move might be a controlled burn. It is amazing how nice a field comes back after is has been burned. A landscape rake is not likely to do what you want. It will pull the thatch out, but it makes a mess with it when the rake gets full. The end result is that you just move the thatch around without every getting rid of it. Tillage will yield a completely new environment, but it doesn't sound like that is your goal.

My "lazybones" approach in your shoes would be:

1) Controlled burn.
2) Spot treatment of the most offensive briars with Round-Up.
3) Mow more often the first couple of summers (this will kill the weeds and briars).
4) Enjoy the frosty beverages.

 

[IslandTractor]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( If I were you I would wait a year or two before you do anything other than mow. Mowing pature two times per motnh maybe too much in the hot season. Get some free range chickens to control the ticks. )</font> <font color="blue"> </font>

Now that's the kind of advice I was hoping for. Go Dawgs!!

I may need to do a bit of overseeding in areas that were truly taken over by brambles for years as other big ugly weed types seem to be coming up faster than any grass species. On the other hand I was careful not to mow too much last fall when I noticed that the native grasses were coming to seed so maybe those seeds will sprout this spring.

The chicken idea is a good one but has already been recommended by our neighhood fox. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

I actually don't mow exactly every two weeks but rather when the grass gets up about 8-10 inches high so I agree biweekly cutting not needed from mid July/mid Sept up here.

Thanks again.

 

[IslandTractor]

<font color="blue"> My "lazybones" approach in your shoes would be:

1) Controlled burn.
2) Spot treatment of the most offensive briars with Round-Up.
3) Mow more often the first couple of summers (this will kill the weeds and briars).
4) Enjoy the frosty beverages.
</font>

Well, if you saw our volunteer fire dept (known affectionately as the Prudence Island Chimney Saving Society) and understood the history of the island (many homes burned accidentally), I am sure you'd agree that #1 won't work here. However, I'm on board with trying #2 and #3 just as soon as I finish #4. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Thanks again to all.

 

[Egon]

I am giving you the lazy bones approach!

It's "pay me now or pay me later"

If you want a proper result you have to put in the Up Front Work! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[tat2z1969]

Well I have had this farm for 55 years and another we maintain in Maine. I would plant Buckwheat, it shadows the under growth and keeps it from growing and before the Buckwheat goes to seed mow it over or plow it under, Then I would plant Rye and keep it mowed. We keep about 400 acres clean this way, snow and cold does not kill Rye.

 

[1bush2hog]

The problem with Roundup is that it kills everything (supposedly) /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

There are other products out there like Remedy that will take care of the broadleafs and some other invasives, but won't harm most grass.

A controlled burn, like someone else mentioned, will take care of the ticks - maybe you can try this next winter after reducing the height of current growth and therefore the intensity of the fire

Of course, your results may vary /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[IslandTractor]

I dunno. Hard work might pay off after time but laziness always pays off now. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I think I may partner with Mother Nature on this one rather than fight her every inch of the way. I've already been doing battle with the overgrowth for the past two years.

Besides, I don't want a golf course, just some varied grasses and ground cover to fill in between blueberry bushes. I'll have another beer and think about it some more.

But thanks guys for all the useful tips. I'll let you know what happens.

 

[jeffinsgf]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The problem with Roundup is that it kills everything (supposedly) /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif )</font>

That's not quite right. It kills everything that is green and actively growing. Dormant plants are not affected at all. Most briars are tough to kill with Remedy and other selective treatments. Spot treatment with glysophate (the stuff in RoundUp) may leave a small brown patch of dead grass around the dead briar, but if your grass is healthy, it will fill in pretty fast. The briars may just laugh at the selective treatment.

The other side of that is that you can pour a whole bottle of undiluted glysophate on a briar in the winter or spring before it starts leafing out, and it won't do a thing. The key to using glysophate is to time its application so that the desirable plants are dormant and the undesirable plants are active.

 

[1bush2hog]

Correct - Sorry, I forgot to clarify the foliar application period for Roundup

My problem is I can never find that ideal time you mention - either everything appears dormant or everything appears active. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I was actually poking a little fun at Roundup, just so people know there are other less marketed alternatives that can be just as effective if not more so.

Remedy can be used during active or dormant periods depending on the application process and target species.