clearing out the existing "grass"

[Cutterhead]

I'm about to start a landscape project on my place and need to clear about 1-1 1/2 acres of field grass before putting in irrigation, lighting, beds, real grass, etc. I've searched through the forums and have seen several posts on the subject and it looks like tilling at a shallow depth is the way to go.

I've also seen posts saying Round Up the area first. My question is: is it reasonable take out that much area with round up? Or should I till and then use something like a harley rake to clear the junk out?

Any input is appreciated.

 

[kebo]

I wouldn't use roundup, that stuff will linger around for a good while. Just till it under really good, and you might even wait a week or two and till it under again to help kill the grass/weeds that survived the first tilling and/or use the harley rake as you mentioned.

 

[Wolfy]

Mow it as short as you can, then use a landscape rake to move the trash away, finally rototill. This way you will avoid mixing in most of the weeds.

 

[Grandad4]

Here's another vote for not using a herbicide like Roundup first. It will indeed kill all the current growth on the area, but you will also do that when you till it, so why bother? Unless you have a lot of perennial weeds, there's no need for it.

The greater issue is that your soil is already full of annual weed seeds waiting for their turn to germinate, and neither Roundup nor tilling does anything to eliminate them. Tilling actually pulls them near to the surface so they can germinate. I've found good timing seems to be the trick to getting the lawn type grass started, particularly in a warm climate like ours here in North Caroliina. We need to plant and grow out the lawn when grass seed has an advantage over the native weed species. A fall planting seems to work best here because it's past the summer heat where weeds flourish and grass is fighting for survival. Over the fall and winter, the weeds go dormant or die out but grass will build its root system so it - hopefully - crowds out the weeds in the spring.

A cooler, wetter climate, such as the Northeast and Midwest, gives turf grasses more advantages over weeds compared to the South and timing is not quite so vital, I suppose. I don't really know about Washington state... expect it would depend on whether you are in the coastal area or inland.

I would also have your soil tested so you can get the right pH and the type and amount of fertilizer to use. Often one needs to add lime to "sweeten" the soil, which favors turf grass over many weed species. This is best done in winter since it takes a while for the lime to work, but can be done at other times.

Good luck!

 

[Cutterhead]

Thanks guys, this will help. Now if we can only have three days in a row without rain I may be able to get started. Of course at least it's not under water.