Prelude8626
5 year old buck +
I too Have a lot of RCG, so I'm curious to see how you make out.
Fighting RCG (Reed Canary Grass)
- Thread starter chucker66
- Start date
chucker66
5 year old buck +
An update to my progress so far. I did spray around May 15th and was not able to get back up to the land for a month. I'm not sure if the initial spray killed it and then there was regrowth, but the RCG was still growing but it was stunted compared to what I did not spray. Anyway, I mowed it down as it was about a foot high and the sprayed again July 5th. I think I got a pretty good kill from that. Yesterday (July 15) I broadcasted some buckwheat and the sprayed one final time. Lucky for me we had a good thunderstorm last night and the forecast is calling for more on Tuesday so I need to get the rest of my Lickcreek mix planetd on my other Throw and Mow plots. 
I was able to get rid of about 3 acres of RCG in a flood plain / poorly drained area after a lot of work. To exhaust the roots, I let it grow taller and mowed it just before seed-set (end of June, zone 5a). I let that portion dry, then burned it at the end of July. That made a heck of a lot of smoke. Could have probably waited another two weeks....
Then the soil dried out enough where I could pull a disc through it to chop up the roots. This actually encourages the RCG to sprout from most of the dozens of rhizomes on each runner root instead of only a few rhizomes at a time. A carpet of green RCG shoots came up. I hit those hard with wetland approved Gly, then hit them again twice each time they came back again. That got rid of about 90% of the RCG for a four year period. I didn't have time to keep going at it to wipe all of it out. I sold the property, so I'm not sure where things are at now.
I didn't put any seed in its place in about 2 our of the 3 acres. What came back was a mix of stuff, a lot of it good, mostly forbs. Lots of boneset, some blue vervain, some great blue lobelia, a few sedges, lots of trash weeds (stinging nettle, burdock, thistle, etc.), and lots of devil's beggar-ticks (horrible in the fall!). If I did it again, I would definitely put something down to try to take over where the RCG was instead of letting nature take its course. Honey bees definitely appreciated all my work. You could hear the field buzzing with honey bees in July. It was pretty awesome.
One of the acres was a little drier, and I was able to get some alfalfa going. That portion was a lot more manageable. It got too wet for the alfalfa, so I put a CRP mix (from Prairie Land Management) in after an application of gly. Had good luck with that.
Then the soil dried out enough where I could pull a disc through it to chop up the roots. This actually encourages the RCG to sprout from most of the dozens of rhizomes on each runner root instead of only a few rhizomes at a time. A carpet of green RCG shoots came up. I hit those hard with wetland approved Gly, then hit them again twice each time they came back again. That got rid of about 90% of the RCG for a four year period. I didn't have time to keep going at it to wipe all of it out. I sold the property, so I'm not sure where things are at now.
I didn't put any seed in its place in about 2 our of the 3 acres. What came back was a mix of stuff, a lot of it good, mostly forbs. Lots of boneset, some blue vervain, some great blue lobelia, a few sedges, lots of trash weeds (stinging nettle, burdock, thistle, etc.), and lots of devil's beggar-ticks (horrible in the fall!). If I did it again, I would definitely put something down to try to take over where the RCG was instead of letting nature take its course. Honey bees definitely appreciated all my work. You could hear the field buzzing with honey bees in July. It was pretty awesome.
One of the acres was a little drier, and I was able to get some alfalfa going. That portion was a lot more manageable. It got too wet for the alfalfa, so I put a CRP mix (from Prairie Land Management) in after an application of gly. Had good luck with that.
chucker66
5 year old buck +
Have not updated in awhile. The Buckwheat came up but I did not plant it thick enough and the deer browsed it pretty hard. There is some RCG coming back but my plan right now is to leave as it won't seed now and then frost seed switch grass and then hit it with Gly once the RCG starts to green up.
Chuck
Chuck
sandbur
5 year old buck +
I have sprayed some strips of lighter stands/ mixed stands of RCG and put willow sticks in place.
The willows are starting to grow and after this summer the RC has not overgrown them.
My intent is for willow/ RC buffer between a cropland and my crab apple trees.
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The willows are starting to grow and after this summer the RC has not overgrown them.
My intent is for willow/ RC buffer between a cropland and my crab apple trees.
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Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
Bumping this older thread to see how it has been the past couple years for @chucker66
I'm a bit nervous about how my own war with RCG is going to go this year.
I'm a bit nervous about how my own war with RCG is going to go this year.
chucker66
5 year old buck +
Actually it went quite well. That area has been a pretty good food plot since starting the fight. I think a big part of my success was planting Winter Rye and clover. There is still some RCG that grows but the Rye get stronger and stronger each year. I still roll it and treat it with Gly after I plant the Rye in July. I probably won't have to spray this year. Thanks for asking and I can post some pictures when it greens up this year.
silver_yummies
5 year old buck +
Is Gly the best thing to spray RCG with to kill it off? Anything else I should add to it? I just planted spruce trees in it and new growth wasn’t quite up/tall enough to spray it yet. I’ll be spraying it with something in a few weeks.
chucker66
5 year old buck +
Yes or mow it and mow it and mow it without it heading out. However it has rhizomes also that allow it to spread. Gly has worked great for me but also following up with winter rye as it has some allelopathic properties which helps kill a lot of weeds and seems to really knock the RCG back.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
Perhaps I posted a picture of this before. This is an area at the upper edge of the reed canary grass where it attempted to create a tennis racket shaped bedding area. This was probably just over ten years ago. The handle of the racket is on the left. I used native willow cuttings in black plastic(actually used plastic from silage bags) and I planted some spruce on the inner edge of the plastic.
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sandbur
5 year old buck +
Perhaps I posted a picture of this before. This is an area at the upper edge of the reed canary grass where it attempted to create a tennis racket shaped bedding area. This was probably just over ten years ago. The handle of the racket is on the left. I used native willow cuttings in black plastic(actually used plastic from silage bags) and I planted some spruce on the inner edge of the plastic.
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The wire is from crab apple trees which are just behind me.
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Tree Spud
5 year old buck +
RCG will require at least 3 spaying with gly the 1st season. Probably at least another one the following. After the final spraying you will have to observe what additional RCG sprouts. The dense matting can shield a lot of the RCG from the spray.
If you disk you will disturb the seed bed for a whole new batch to sprout.
If you disk you will disturb the seed bed for a whole new batch to sprout.
Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
Was hoping to get something else established without having the dirt nuked non-stop this season but I do see how it would be tough to get anything to compete after just 1 spraying when a heavy sod mat is already down..
What about a nice dose of gly a week or two before planting and follow up with gly/clethodim at time of July planting brassicas, peas, beans, clover, then broadcast rye and possible oats or ww in august?
Tree Spud
5 year old buck +
RCG is very difficult to get rid off. It is not a clump grass. It grows by spreading rhizomes which form a very dense root mass. That dense mat also insulates soil and delays its emergence over time.
You can certainly plant other items; however, until you break down the top cover of dead grass, difficult to get seed to soil and lack of sunlight will stall growth. It can take a year or 2 to break that thatch down. Once the thatch cover is gone the RCG seedbed will be exposed to sunlight.
I recommend a multi-stage kill regimen the 1st year, and a follow-up kill the next season as that is what worked for based trial and error. If you allow an extended period of time for foodplot seed to grow, that gives time for RCG to re-build also.
I think the idea of forgoing any summer plot seed planting and 2-3 GLY sprayings. Then in Aug over seed with WR & re cover. WR has allelopathic characteristics which suppress grass & weed growth. You can then observe next spring what RCG activity is.
Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
A comparison of gly and cleth treatments i found interesting:
grasslandrestorationnetwork.org
Herbicide Treatments to Reed Canary Grass, Clethodim vs. Glyphosate
Subtitle: We need to focus on winning the war and not just the battle By: Julianne Mason, Restoration Program Coordinator, Forest Preserve District of Will County April 21, 2020 Like all invasive…
grasslandrestorationnetwork.org
Tree Spud
5 year old buck +
A comparison of gly and cleth treatments i found interesting:
Herbicide Treatments to Reed Canary Grass, Clethodim vs. Glyphosate
Subtitle: We need to focus on winning the war and not just the battle By: Julianne Mason, Restoration Program Coordinator, Forest Preserve District of Will County April 21, 2020 Like all invasive…
I've read that also.
