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Re: *!?#@! CROWN VETCH

>I am planning a 20 acre prairie restoration of land in south
>central Iowa going into CRP.  I have a healthy stand of cool season
>Eurasian grasses that have been established for over ten years.  Because
>the land borders a mid sized river I have a diverse population of
>wildlife.  I have read Steve Packard's chapter on interseeding (Tall
>Grass Restoration Handbook, Island Press) and I feel that I should
>restore using this technique in order to preserve the current wildlife
>habitat.  My problem is that numerous patches of crown vetch have
>invaded the grasslands from nearby roadside plantings.  My questions
>are...with interseeding, will a heathy prairie of native forbes and
>grasses overtake and eventually choke out the crown vetch?  If not, will
>strategic burns or mowing break down the vetch enough so that native
>plants can overtake it?

We have burned it, pulled it and mowed it...the only thing that has worked
for us is to spot treat it with an herbicide and plant other grasses and
forbs in it's place.  We have a clump of it in a prairie reconstruction
that includes a drainage ditch.  The slope is rather steep, but little
bluestem and other prairie grasses are good for erosion control.   Good
luck!

Ruth A. Green, Greenhouse Manager; Supportive Scientist
Illinois Natural History Survey, Center for Biodiversity
607 East Peabody Drive, Champaign, IL  61820
Office:  217-333-7091   FAX:  217-333-6294
Email:  rgreen@mail.inhs.uiuc.edu


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