Recently logged out woods,, What to plant on logging road

[Rat Rod Mac]

As the title says I recently had some logs taken out of my woods and now I need
to straighten out the mess and get some kind of vegetation growing on the logging
roads to keep them from eroding. The woods is on the side of a hill so I will need
something that will dig in and last for as long as possible. I thought maybe
orchard grass or clover of some sort. Whatever I use it must be able to take some
shade from the remaining trees that are left. Any ideas ?? Thanks. RRM

 

[oosik]

You know - it would help a whole lot to know where you are located. Recommendations, particularly involving re-vegitation, will be based, a lot, on your location.

 

[Rat Rod Mac]

Oosik, good idea. Did not think of that. Location is N.E. Ohio. RRM

 

[nybirdman]

Switch grass is normally used for erosion control.Problem is it takes about three years before you see a crop.Deep rooted and will be there forever.I don't know how well it would hold up to road traffic.
I planted a plot for wildlife cover and very happy with it;a little expensive to purchase but it's a one time deal.

 

[Redlands Okie]

Check at your local co-op, or conservation district. Local university with a ag program of some sort. Also any local right of way maintence companies or Those that work in them, private or state such as the local highway department or county district office would have good info. Will probably take more than one phone call to each place to find a person of knowledge. Grasses are good for fast erosion control for the first setup. A mix of seeds types would be better. Not familiar enough to tell you a species.

 

[Tompet]

Check at your local co-op, or conservation district. Local university with a ag program of some sort. Also any local right of way maintence companies or Thomas that work in them, private or state would have good info. Will probably take more than one phone call to each place to find a person of knowledge. Grasses are good for fast erosion control for the first setup. A mix of seeds types would be better. Not familiar enough to tell you a species.

Agree. Also, I did a search for Ohio native ground cover and a search for Ohio sedge seeds, which came up with some info you may be able to use. Once you start to clear some of the slash, I think nature will also help sprouting some areas on it's own.

 

[oosik]

When I had to reseed a couple areas - I went to our Ag college here in Ea WA. They had several blended grass/clover/etc mixes. We determined what soil type I wanted to reseed and I got the exact mix best suited for my soil. The seeded area grew so well - it made the unseeded area look kind of puny.

 

[RNeumann]

Agree. Also, I did a search for Ohio native ground cover and a search for Ohio sedge seeds, which came up with some info you may be able to use. Once you start to clear some of the slash, I think nature will also help sprouting some areas on it's own.

Yep this worked for me. If you throw the seed on top of the last few inches of snow in the spring it should produce good results. We were told this will pull the seeds into the soil a bit. We did that and had a bumper crop of everything we broadcast! Still looks good several years later.