Not sure what to do here...Hillside question

Henro · Oct 2, 2004

HI,

I'll post two pics of the back hillside that I have been trying to convert from a brush covered area into a more park-like setting.

I do have some grass and short weeds coming in. I just don't know if this is enough, or if I should put down something else, like rye or winter wheat, to get some extra roots going, to better hold the soil in place during the spring rains.

My take on it is that if I did plant wheat or rye, when mowed in late spring, the roots would decay and actually make the soil a little better for grass to take hold on.

There seems to be a pretty good start as far as the grass goes. I spread Agway's #4 pasture mix along with some other grass seed that I had on hand.

So I guess my real question is, do I leave things as they are or should I spread something else on top of what has started growing there allready?

At the moment I am tending to think I might just leave well enough alone, but seed wheat or rye is cheap enough that if it would help, I would not mind buying it.

If I sound /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif I guess it is because I am /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif a bit on this issue... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Just call me the man with no green thumbs... /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

Henro · Oct 2, 2004

Second shot...

RobertN · Oct 2, 2004

I have refferred folks a lot lately, to get in contact with thier county Ag office, or Master Gardener program. The Ag office is through the state, while the Master Gardener office is through the University system. Either office could help answer your question, and give you advice for your specific area.

Most Master Gardener offices also put on public seminars that can be pretty interesting, such as pruning, planting, fertilizing ect. My wife is part of the program out here.

bmac · Oct 2, 2004

Henro,

I think RobertN is right on target about using the professional resources that are available through your county / state that are paid for with your tax dollars (I hesitate to use the word "free"). Now, I am far from a pro at this but I will chime in with my thoughts. Based upon the photos you posted, I would have some concerns about mowing on that slope. Maybe its not as steep as it looks in the pics and you, of course, know your terrain. Secondly, while the leaves will be falling from all of those trees soon and you might get enough sunlight during the fall / winter months, I would imagine that during Spring and Summer, the amount of shade would preclude a thick stand of grass. Now, being from Georgia, I only have experience with the warm weather grasses and maybe the northern grasses are different, but down here, with that much shade, I would be looking at different types of ground cover other than grass. Something low-growing that does not require mowing. Sorry, I can't give you any specific examples but I would find someone who could and heed their advice.

I am about to start building a home on 12 acres of heavily wooded land with lots of underbrush. My goal is to do what you have done and have a "park-like" setting that can be easily walked and explored without beating away the brush and briars. Do you have any recommendations on how to begin?

Good Luck.

BTW - I really enjoy reading your posts and following your projects. You are a valuable resource to this forum.

beenthere · Oct 2, 2004

I'd go with your thoughts to try to get some winter wheat or rye going yet this fall, to help hold the soil in the spring. After that, then if the topsoil is still intact (hope it is) proceed with overseeding more grass (and with the potential for a lot of shade from the many trees, maybe shade tolerant grass seed is the best way to go). Probably there will not be much need for mowing with the apparent shaded area.

Pretty area, and hope you get it stable.

Looks like an ATV trail on the right going up the hill. Maybe some chips or gravel there would help hold the runoff, as it might be hard to keep it in grass.

GareyD · Oct 2, 2004

If it was me...and if it will work up north...I'd sow that hillside with annual rye grass....wheat and rye will get 4-9 foot tall around here by spring of the year...annual rye grass won't get more than 18 inches..

The seed is cheap $15 per 50 LB., so, you can afford to sow it heavy...throw it out and let it get rained on, it will sprout and grow, staying green all winter...if you want the tractor time, you can actually work the ground before planting, but it is not really necessary.

A little triple 13 will make it happier!!

YMMV

GareyD

Varmintmist · Oct 3, 2004

Henro, it looks like its going the right way now. I'd leave it be. Looks good to /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

If you want to get a quick cover, the rye grass will sprout on anything. Fescew will take and grow anywhere.

I bet if you look at your pasture mix you have about 20%+ rye, and 50% fescew now.

Leave it be, it'll grow.

Henro · Oct 3, 2004

RobertN and bmac, never thought about asking the county ag office for advice...I'll put that idea in my pocket and may try it...for some reason I have trouble dialing the phone sometimes... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 My goal is to do what you have done and have a "park-like" setting that can be easily walked and explored without beating away the brush and briars. Do you have any recommendations on how to begin?

What I did was first just brush hog the area as best I could, so I could get some access to things like standing and fallen dead trees. I actually started on it last fall. One big mistake I made was not clearing everything I had either cut down, or cut up after finding already on the ground.

In the spring new weeds/brush came up before I got back to working on the area, and I then had a lot of hidden things for the tractor/rotary cutter to encounter. I cut things as high as possible and it was not a major issue, but it was a pain and this year I made it a rule to carry off whatever I cut and to leave nothing laying on the ground if I could help it.

I also found my landscape rake with gage wheels worked better as smoothing things out than it did before I got the gage wheels.

Having the backhoe sure helped getting some of the stumps out. While it is better to push over what you can with your loader, and to pop stumps out that was (in my experience anyway) some trees you just can't push over, either due to size or simply the root structure. IN those cases the backhoe sure made a difference.

I still plan on thinning things out a little more, but not much.

 Looks like an ATV trail on the right going up the hill. 

Beenthere,

That is actually the main tractor route up the hill. That area was kind of soft because of work that was done there as the result of sewers being installed over last winter/spring. I may try to put some soil down and get something growing on it next year, or may just not worry about grass like you suggest...I'm thinking I may go up there in the next couple weeks and throw some rye down on any spots that look thin, as far as green goes.

GareyD and Varmentmist,

There was a lot of rye grass seed in the pasture mix I bought. Grass seed around here is not that cheap though. Seems to come in at around $1 per pound for the cheapest stuff. As compared to $12 per bushel (about 60 lbs) for winter wheat seed. I think the winter rye seed is even cheaper than the wheat.

Thanks to everyone for the advice!

Varmintmist · Oct 3, 2004

Henro, fescew is about 20.00/50 lb at TSC. the problem with just fescew is it takes time to germinate. The rye will come up faster.

If you have already seeded, just give it some time. You can bhog the weeds now and give the new some cover to hold moisture. i think you will be ok if you just give it some time.

slydog · Oct 3, 2004

Nice area! It already looks good to me. I am faced with the same quandary! We have 16 acres of land in Edgemont, Ark. Here is a link to some pics: Our Land on Greers ferry lake There is a seasonal stream we want to improve/protect, and a lot of scrub grass and brush I would like to eventually do something with but I'm a total newby when it comes to land improvement/management. I guess the Ag office there would be the best place to start, IF they have one. When I called the county courthouse to inquire about permits for building, etc, they told me "Permits?? We don't require any permits. Inspections?? We don't require any inspections. Only need health department approvals for septic issues". I don't know if that is a good thing, or a bad thing! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif We have a great view of Greers Ferry Lake from the top of our land, but I want to use it all to maximum advantage without destroying any aspect of it. Right now this seems like more of a daunting task that will require a lot of thinking and planning before acting.

Ken