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Meadows & Prairies

removing prairie grass

17 years ago

Hi,

I just bought a house in Minnesota and front yard has established prairie grass (more than 4-5 years old). I would like to take the front yard in a different direction with some grass and landscaping. I was wondering if I could get some advice on how to get rid of the prairie grass. I understand that the roots go deep and it may be difficult. I don't want to use chemicals unless I have to but would be willing to till or do it by hand. Thanks in advance for the advice!

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Comments (6)

froggy
17 years ago
MnScott,

here is my take.
roundup 2x in a year will pretty much kill out ur prairie if that is ur wish.
rototilling = fossilfuels so that isnt so clean. blackplastic is also made up of fossilfuels so that isnt so clean. mowing thruout the year will kill out ur prairie grass but that isnt so clean because of fossilfuels...
heck, kentuckybluegrass by its very nature isnt so clean to the environment anyhow...and im sure ur gonna be mowing it week after week...fertilizing it, weeding it...winterizing it...so frankly, i wouldnt be so worried about the roundup...

froggy
bob64
17 years ago
If you were in my area I would come take the prairie sod away for the asking. Maybe a prairie enthusiast in your area would do the same? It would be a shame to let it go to waste.
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Let me try to answer some of your questions. If you want to do a prairie/savanna planting it would be best if you could mow or burn occasionally, but it's not mandatory. Since it is a small plot it's possible that it can be maintained through culling weeds and woody vegetation either by hand pulling, or careful herbicide application spot treatment. I have to say that burning is sweet for keeping things in check when you are growing a prairie. I'm guessing from the later part of your post (pachysandra and moss) that this area is somewhat shady. If it is shady, I wouldn't attempt a prairie garden (full sun). A savanna garden (mostly sun) might not flourish either if it's too much shade. I think it might be better to create a woodland garden. there are lots of native and non-native plants that would flourish in a semi-shady site. A woodland planting does not require burning or mowing, but will require weeding. Rodents will find their way to your vegetable garden no matter what surrounds it. As far as Black-Eyed Susan, I'm quite sure they are referring to the regular flower not the vine, possibly Rudbeckia hirta.
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joepyeweed
17 years ago
I would encourage you to keep it. The birds will thank you.

Whenever a person buys a new home, many professional landscapers will suggest that you wait a minimum of one year before you make any significant changes to the landscape. (Go on the landscape forum and ask the question.) You need to get a feel for the property, and what is there and how you are going to use the land. There may be pockets of flowers in the landscape that are not visible at this time of year. Perhaps if you lived with the prairie grass for one or two seasons you may change your mind about wanting to convert all of it to turf grass. The prairies are so beautiful as they change through the seasons, I would hate for someone to make a quick decision without understanding what they have.

Maintaining prairie grass is much easier than maintaining turf grass. Prairie grass needs no watering and you only mow it once a year. You will save yourself tons of time and tons of money if you keep the prairie grass.

The prairie grasses are a part of history. Today less than 1 percent of the land that was prairie exists today. By maintaining prairie grasses on our property, we preserve a bit of history while maintaining great bird habitat.

And if you insist on getting rid of it, I suggest you contact a local native plant society (or maybe a local wild ones chapter) and offer it up to them. Their members would gladly come and relocate it. If you lived close to me I would be there in a heartbeat.
mwbeall
17 years ago
Ditto and Thanks, Joe...
If you must eradicate your native grass in favor of mowing turf, see if there is anyone who may want to take the sod/forbs. There is so little native grass around that it is worth trying to save even if you dont want it. Blessings, Mike
naturallynorris
17 years ago
Ditto, and thanks Joe and Mike. Beware of using pesticides to erradicate your mowing-and-watering-free-natural prairie; especially if you have well water; or you'll end up drinking the pesticides yourself.

Also - check out Sara Stein's book, Noah's Garden, to find answers to your questions.

Best wishes!
ladyslppr
17 years ago
When you wrote "prairie grass" were you referring to the agricultural forage crop called prairie grass (which isn't native, I think, although I am not sure exactly what species farmers call "prairie grass") or were you writing about a native species of grass, or a prairie which is a mix of grasses and other herbaceous plants?

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