Discing Prairie

[Jerry]

Okay, so I get bored easily and don't really like to watch TV. That usually has me coming up with dumb ideas. Sooo, I live in the middle of the woods and have deer and turkey in my yard all the time. There are 2 fawns laying out my bedroom window now in fact. I have this small prairie remnant that I put in 11 years ago. The Indian grass took it over and outcompeted the forbs within about 8 years. I nuked it with gly 2 summers ago and put a bunch of forb seeds in that winter and the next spring. Some of the grasses have come back in the 2 years and I had several more forbs bloom this year than last

I haven't mowed it this year due to seeing more forbs and I normally mow once or twice while I am establishing new forbs. I have lots of weeds that I am not worried about at this point.

Now comes the crazy part. The forbs are about done for the year. What would happen if I was to mow this plot, do a little very light discing, and broadcast brassicas in for a little food plot to watch my yard deer feed in? Would a light disc harm my prairie establishment efforts in the future? How about brassicas over-wintering in the same spot?

I would do this a little late for brassicas in my area - around September 1. Just trying to get a little "extra" use from the spot while I wait out more forb establishment.

 

[Native Hunter]

The disking will set back perennials - both perennial grasses and perennial forbs. You will get a flush of annuals next year, and if your brassicas get some soil contact and enough rain, they should come up, unless some other unwanted late summer annual from the seedbank like crabgrass, perilla, etc. gets a head start on them. Given enough time, the perennials will eventually come back and dominate over the next few years. Since I don't know the annuals in your seedbank, its hard to say what the prairie will look like next year. If I did that disking, I would have a lot of ragweed, partridge pea, fleabanes, pilewort, blackeyed susan, annual grasses, etc come up in mine.

 

[buckdeer1]

If 2 acres you could plant for the bees and butterfly fund or get seed from someplace like American Meadows.I agree if you disc and disturb the seed bank hard telling what will come up