What Grass for New England Meadow?

[Charlesaf3]

I'm thinking of putting a wildflower meadow in, the sort of thing that would be mowed once a year in the fall at a guess? What grass would you use? I need something aggressive to fight the poison ivy, scrub blueberry, and bull briars.

Are there grasses that you maybe wouldn't put in a lawn, but fit the bill? I'm thinking tall clover... Or maybe pasture grasses? Not really familiar with them, are they hardier/more aggressive?

My usual approach would be a fescue/bluegrass mix.

Oh, sandy soil, hillside, full east exposure

 

[hazmat]

less grass - more flowers. google wildflower meadow as well as "low mow' or "no mow" grasses

Specific fescues are "low mow" as is clover.

I hope to convert some of my lawn someday...

some links

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Wildflower Seeds, Flower Bulbs, Wildflower Seed, Bulbs, Wildflowers, Perennials

Wildflower pictures, wildflower gardening tips and flower folklore

Vermont Wildflower Farm - Wildflowers - Wildflower Seed, Gifts, Garden and Patio Decor, Vermont Products

Prairie Moon Nursery - Native Prairie Seeds

Greenwood Garden Nursery: Gardens, Trees, Shrubs, Flowers, Fruit, GroundCovers, Garden Gear, Perennials, and more

New England Wild Flower Society — New England Wild Flower Society

Good Seed, Glad Harvest: NESEED Bulk Seeds and Seed Packets for Home Gardens and Commercial Growers

Mountain Meadow Seeds - Unique & Unusual Garden Seeds from Flowering Vines, Annuals, Perennials, Heirloom Herbs, Vegetables, Hot Peppers, Trees, Bushes & Groundcovers all Guaranteed to Make Your Garden Come Alive!

http://www.lesslawn.com/index.html

Easyliving Native Perennial Wildflowers

 

[hazmat]

forgot to mention - there are some decent books on the subject - check you local library - keywords "meadow" or "wildflower"

 

[Charlesaf3]

wow, lots of links - I'd only found one of them.

I was thinking the grass would help outcompete the poison ivy, blueberries, and other crud that is there now. With fall mowing giving the flowers a chance to grow with the grass in the spring. But low mow is a good idea.

 

[hazmat]

wow, lots of links - I'd only found one of them.

I was thinking the grass would help outcompete the poison ivy, blueberries, and other crud that is there now. With fall mowing giving the flowers a chance to grow with the grass in the spring. But low mow is a good idea.

From what I've read, to really get a wildflower meadow or low grow grass mix established will take some work.

First nuke the area with roundup,

till it under,

wait for the undesirable seed germination to occur & repeat 2-4X

If you are opposed to the roundup, you can simply till, but it will probably take longer.

Once you've gotten all the "weed" seeds out of the soil, you plant your new meadow. Then they say it will still require weeding maintenance until it gets established.

Sounds like a bit of work over the first 2-4 years, but then you should reap the benefits (pretty flowers and 1X per year mowing)

If you simply want to get rid of the blueberry & ivy, I'd think a regular mowing schedule (at 4-6" height) would do it with less effort (but you won't get many flowers thriving under those conditions save perhaps dandelions.)

 

[TDVT]

I've planted a good bit of grass up here in Vermont with what's labeled "Conservation Mix". It is a mix of grasses, comes in pretty quick & I've used it for both lawns & fields. It will mow nicely but if you let it go it makes a nice meadow.

If you mowed it 3 times a season to keep out weeds I think it would be close to what your looking for, though it may not grow the same way it does here.

 

[Charlesaf3]

Hmm, hadn't thought about that - seen it, but never knew what it was used for. Good idea.

 

[Egon]

Get a soil analysis and then pick grasses that survive in those conditions. Or, prepare to spend money on additives and plant in accordance.

If you have deer don't count on the flowers surviving.

You have had good advice on soil preparation.

I have been working on the same type of project for a few years now with limited success.

Just for information, a neighbour is starting to develop his meadow for blueberry production.

 

[Charlesaf3]

No additives - its the side of a hill. If I can turn the weeds under (I'm going to try my gravely hooked up to a remote control winch) that should be plenty of fertilizer. But fundamentally I'm looking for "aggressive" grasses. Though I hadn't though about them crowding out the flowers...

I'm going to put blueberries in on another section of hill actually - they love it here. Most of my weeds are wild blueberry. Sounds nice, but I've never seen a berry...

 

[Egon]

Do a goggle on raising blueberries. There are some things that help in production.