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Re: Prairie Maintenance Costs

Collin:

Here are some numbers we have used for cost justification on installation.

PRAIRIE: (one acre)
Herbicide=$112.00
Discing=$60.00
Harrowing=$53.00
Drilling=$73.00
1st year burn=$48.00
2nd year burn=$48.00
3rd year burn=$100.00
Seed=750.00
Total=$1419.00

LAWN: (one acre)
Dirtwork/Leveling=$80.00
Seed and Soil amendments=$2000.00
Fertilizer/Weed Control=$125.00 (for planting)
Watering=$Your Hourly Rate (for planting + water bill)
1st year Fertilizer/Weed Control=$125.00
1st year Watering=$Your Hourly Rate (+ water bill)
1st year Raking==$Your Hourly Rate
1st year Mowing=$400.00
or
do-it-yourself=Your Hourly Rate (+ annual cost of mower)

2nd year Fertilizer/Weed Control=$125.00
2nd year Watering=$Your Hourly Rate (+ water bill)
2nd year Raking==$Your Hourly Rate
2nd year Mowing=$400.00
or
do-it-yourself=Your Hourly Rate (+ annual cost of mower)

3rd year Fertilizer/Weed Control=$125.00
3rd year Watering=$Your Hourly Rate (+ water bill)
3rd  year Raking==$Your Hourly Rate
3rd year Mowing=$400.00
or
do-it-yourself=Your Hourly Rate (+ annual cost of mower)
Total if Seeded=$4030.00 average
Total if Sodded=Add $3000.00 average

This is not rocket science, but you can easily build upon these items yourself
and the costs are mind boggling.

Just a few more tidbits from Wild Ones, $25 Billion spent on lawn care (5% GNP),
20 Million acres of residential lawn planted, 30-60% of Urban fresh water is
used
for watering lawns, over 5 Billion spent for fossil fuel fertilizers which is as
much
fertilizer as on all of India's food crops............................it goes on
from here.  And
I won't go into noise and air pollution from lawn mower.

Check it out and draw your own conclusions, good luck in your endeavors.

Collin wrote:

Subject: Prairie Maintenance Costs


>Howdy All,
>
>Does anybody have info on the per unit of area annual maintenance costs
>of a native prairie grass vs. turf grass landscape.  I'm working on a
>non-point source pollution program in the Houston area and am interested
>in minimizing the use of fertilizers and pesticides in landscape
>maintenance.  I'm interested in selling the idea of prairie landscapes
>for large corporate campuses.  I figure that the best way to present
>these types of landscapes to companies is as a cost savings measure on
>building maintenance.  Unfortunately I don't have any documented costs
>available to me.  Does anybody out there have hard numbers available on
>costs?
>
>Thanks,
>
>Colin Shackelford
>Texas Agricultural Extension Service
>(281) 291-0551

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