We have a small situation...

[LoessHillsArcher]

We've got a dozer doing some work on the farm today and tomorrow. The spot catches lots of water and has no dikes/terraces to stop it from eroding the hillside. We have the dozer putting in a few terraces and structures to slow the water and we are going to plant trees in and around the area to help absorb the water and strengthen the ground. However, we need something that will start growing asap so it will provide some protection until the trees can grow. What are our options?

We don't really want to use brome grass or any cool season grasses (unless you guys think that is bets). I was thinking broadcasting oats down and letting them go all summer. Then frostseed some switchgrass in this winter. Or have some other native warm season grass planted. Any thoughts?

 

[iowaqdm]

I would plant brome, orchard grass, and clover in the waterway and on the structure/dike/terrace as soon as the guy is done. I would also seed oats over the entire worked area at the same time. I would then do your frost seeding of switch in the areas that are not in the waterway or part of the actual structure. Switch is a clump type grass and will not stop erosion. A mixture of the brome, orchard, and clover is what I have found to work best for erosion control. You will want to mow the oats the end of August/first part of September in the waterway and on the structure to allow the grass to take over this fall. Where you want the switch I would leave the oats standing through the winter. If the guy doing the dozer work shapes the waterway below the terraces you will probably only have a 20-30 foot strip of the cool season grasses going down the hill and on the actual structure. Without actually seeing the area it is hard to make a general recommendation but I hope this helps. Be sure to post some pictures of before, after, this fall, and what it looks like next Spring!!! /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

 

[LoessHillsArcher]

Russ is back there now and I've told him a few times to take plenty of pictures, we've got some willows, shrubs, and pines to plant Tuesday or Wednesday in the area. We'll get some sort of erosion control like the grasses you mentioned done asap.

 

[nannyslayer]

Brome is a quick emerging, great grass for wet areas. That is the grass of choice for waterways. It can handle "wet feet" pretty well, along with most clovers. Then I would do like was said before and put oats on the whole worked area.