[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
RE: Request for some practical tips.
Nice posts regarding weed ecology and control.
As the original post had to do with control of a bermudagrass lawn or
bermudagrass pasture to establish a 4,000 sq. foot garden in Oklahoma
City where it is HOT and DRY.... perfect growing conditions for
bermudagrass.... there are few options in my opinion. One of the old
common names for bermudagrass was "Devil's Weed" for good reason.
>From a practical viewpoint, I see only two alternatives to Roundup
that are feasible at the 4,000 sq. foot range:
1. Cover crop and tillage sequence.. may take 2 years in a sequence
of winter cover cropping, spring tillage and establishment of
next sequence -- either a smother crop or smother crop mixture, or a
summer row crop that produces shade accompanied by inter-row tillage
or living mulch.... followed by winter cover crop establishment in
September. Repeat sequence.
2. Geotextile weed barrier.... will take around 2 months to turn
bermudagrass into an albino plant growing underneath the black weed
barrier.... expending all its carbohydrate root reserves, sending up
new green shoots which soon also turn to albinos and die from lack of
sunlight. A 4500 sq. ft roll of geotextile costs about $300.
Note: In a drought year such as 1998, the bermudagrass may go
dormant and fool the geotextile mulch.... in this situation it may
be necessary to irrigate the grass to encourage growth and subsequent
dieback.
Steve Diver
References: