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NATIVE GRASSES. CAN I GET THEM BACK?
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Author:  carhoods [ Wed Nov 10, 2004 6:49 am ]
Post subject:  NATIVE GRASSES. CAN I GET THEM BACK?

How do I go about getting the native grasses of north texas to come back to my land? We are in between Commerce and Ladonia and have 47 acres. Would like to do this but dont know where to start. Will it come back naturally if I leave it alone or will I need to buy the seed somewhere and start from scratch

Author:  Dirt Doctor [ Thu Nov 11, 2004 7:55 am ]
Post subject: 

Graze or mow the existing grasses and weeds at least once a year. If animals are used, do not let them have continuous grazing privileges. They will eliminate the better plants. Let the animals eat smaller pastures severely and move them to fresh ones. Let the pastures regrow well before letting the animals back in. The higher successional plants will come back on their on. Applying compost or molasses will speed up the process. Planting seed of the prairie grasses is worth the money if organic amendments are used. Without biological activity in the soil the tall grases will not spread well.

Author:  user_48634 [ Thu Nov 11, 2004 3:51 pm ]
Post subject: 

I agree except I think the molasses and compost are only needed if you don't use animals. You can run goats and cattle together. I would figure out how many cattle could run on your property as is (based on yours and your neighbor's experience) and start with half that many goats for a full year. Keep them moving at least weekly. Then in a year bring in the same number of cattle to graze together with the browsers. Keep them moving and gradually see if you can bring in more in cow/goat pairs. You will also need to determine what minerals your soil needs and feed that to the livestock. They will process it and spread it around for you. If you discontinue fertilizer, herbicide, insecticide, and seeding your natives should come back. Oh, you might also think about an equal number of chickens. They will help keep your flies and parasites down. You can let them go with the cattle or bring them in up to 3 days after the herd moves on. If you let the manure stand for 4 days or longer without chickens or dung beetles you will not help your parasite problem at all.

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