Posted on 12/15/2014 7:45:44 AM PST by US Navy Vet
I have about 1.5 acres of land in my back yard and I need advice on what/when to plant on it so all the dirt does now wash down to the bottom. Whatever I plant/seed needs to come in thick and fast. My daughter had 2 horses back there and now the land is pretty bare.
You’re welcome.
Some people don’t like the perennial because it is a pain in the butt to get rid of once it’s started.
Best answer yet.
Also it takes care of the "it's a wet land" issue before the EPA shows up and takes the land away and designates it as a flyway or something.
O I live in W. Iowa(Council Bluffs).
Another possible solution to erosion problems is erosion mitigation through plowing and ditching. There were programs years ago to aid land owners in doing this. I have some land contouring on my property that was done for this probably in the 50s or 60s, it directs the water and prevents cutting and washing the soil away.
Your extension office can give you advice on this as well.
Prairie grass. Sweet clover. Brougham grass.
my brother also tried to do the Bee/honey thing but they kept running away
By the way, I spent 20 years in Omaha. Born and raised in Sioux City.
“You need some Kudzu!”
Around here, any disturbed land will fill up automatically with Kudzu or more likely with Japanese Stilt Grass. :-)
I have the same problem. Gave up trying to get rid of the moss because I value the trees too much to cut them down. Acidic soil from the oaks plus very little sunlight means the moss will do better than grass.
Damn stuff will grow on a telephone pole, literally.
There are high iron moss killers in liquid form that will work.
http://www.pitchcare.com/shop/high-iron-products-1/index.html
As a professional landscaper for years, I can give you these two invaluable tips:
Water goes downhill, and green side up.
And as a redneck and cowboy for many years, while admitting I do not know the environment outside of the Rockies, I would say that around here, an acre and a half is nowhere near enough for two horses. Hay ‘em more, corral, them and keep them off it till it needs mowing again.
Kudzu.
Huge Oaks are beautiful in their own right, so one possibility is to remove all sapling-sized trees, then plant a beautiful shade garden under your massive oaks with perennials and bushes that like acidic soil, like azaleas or rhodedendrons or whatever works good in your region. That would be truly lovely.
But if you are dead set on removing all the trees and getting rid of the moss, then be certain to amend the soil with plenty of organic matter and treat the area with the proper quantity of lime for your soil pH. You may not be adding enough, or else it’s getting flushed away through the sand too quickly. Then plant an appropriate grass for your region.
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