| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| farmgrlchick |
Posted - Feb 26 2006 : 10:49:02 AM
Hi Farmgirls!
I hope this isn't a repeat, I did a search and didn't find anything.
Has anyone put together a wildflower meadow. I would really like to do this.
ANy websites with good wildflower mixes?
do you really NEED to do the prep work that I have read it's quite a bit of ground work
Any other suggestions?
Thanks for your input.
Theresa |
| 8 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| almostidaho |
Posted - Mar 10 2006 : 3:04:35 PM
Finally - I can post something useful! I have some experience planting wildflowers and grasses. It's not that easy, so here is some advice for you.
First, I live in northern Utah, probably very similar to your situation in Nevada. Things are WAY different where we live than they are in the midwest or east. So your first order of business is to determine what is best to plant in our arid basic soils and sunbleached summers. Your best bet is to get familiar with your area's native plants, especially warm-season plants which will be green in the summer. Look into joining your state's native plant society, or at least check out their website for information. I can recommend www.unps.org for tips on learning about Great Basin &/or intermountain west natives. Don't forget to google 'native seed' to compile a list of websites and catalogs to order. They can be really instructive.
High Country Gardens does indeed sell appropriate wildflower/grass seed mixes. But they're premium priced! You'll find better deals at Western Native Seed http://www.westernnativeseed.com/ or Stock Seed in Nebraska http://www.stockseed.com/ . And look into local outfits, too. I've spoken with Granite Seed and Wheatland Seed here in Utah and they've told me they'll meet or beat anyone else's prices. And remember to order early: I needed to fill in some holes in my meadow in early summer and the price for seed had tripled! That's supply and demand for you.
Then, when you've done some research, do more. Go to Prairie Nursery's website
http://www.prairienursery.com/howTo/guide/prairie_estab_guide.htm
to download their instructions for establishing meadows. They are, bar none, the BEST I have ever seen for gardeners who want to plant wildflower lawns/meadows.
I know this disagrees with some other posts, but try to stay away from poppies (annual and perennial), as well as most flax. Not that they do badly in our part of the world . . . they, in fact, will take over your yard in our climate. At my last home, I had poppies and would spend at least a week of near full-time labor removing spent plants. Literally truckloads of them went to the greenwaste dump. I didn't dare leave them in place because I lived on a corner where people would toss their cigarette butts. Where I live, summer fires are a very real danger. Try to avoid building up flammable materials in your meadow unless you plan to burn it on a regular basis.
Most flax seeds sold commercially are NOT our native Lewis flax (Linum lewisii). It is Linum perenne, the European flax. The confusion can be traced back to a selection made here in Utah, L. lewisii 'Appar.' The ID turned out to be wrong (I think USU's Intermountain Herbarium website has a link to this botanical controversy). 'Appar' is a beautiful sapphire blue, drought tolerant perennial which will thuggishly crowd out everything in its path. The real native, which happens to grow on the mt. foothills in my area, has more lavender flowers, a sagey green leaf, and is quite well behaved. So, the moral of the story is to collect your own seeds or get them from a plant geek friend who knows the difference.
Finally, establishing a meadow takes several YEARS. Yes, years. The best time to start is in the fall by spraying herbicide on your existing turfgrass (sorry, but if you don't it WILL persist). In the fall is best because when the plant dies, the natural freeze-thaw cycle will break up the remaining clods and break down the organic matter so that you have an easier start in the spring.
Your biggest challenge will be to keep down the weeds until your plants are established. This takes a minimum of two full years! Many of our natives do nothing but put down roots in their first year, so you've got to stay on top of weeding while those little guys are getting established.
Whew - sorry for such a long post, but these were the most important points I thought would be helpful to anyone wanting to establish a wildflower meadow. If you want more details, do write to me directly. I even have some nice pictures I could send. Most importantly, the meadow I maintained for several years was absolutely stunning - after you've established yours, no matter how small, you'll wonder why you ever had a lawn!
Good luck, Tami |
| farmgrlchick |
Posted - Feb 28 2006 : 07:32:36 AM
Very Interesting girls! Thanks for all the great tips!
Theresa |
| realme52 |
Posted - Feb 27 2006 : 9:20:56 PM
There is a place called Wildseedfarms.com where they do mailorder and, as far as I know, have wildflower mixes according to climate regions/zones of the US. I bought a big bag from them a few years ago and just threw out the seeds, without any preparation. I thought, what wants to grow, will grow....and that's just what happened: some flowers came up and they keep getting more and more every year, others never showed up. I am happy with the result, because I can just let it grow wild and don't have to take care of it. (The area where I did this is too far away from a water source to be watered and we have very dry conditions here!)
From this hour I ordain myself loss'd of limits and immaginary lines. Walt Whitman |
| sqrl |
Posted - Feb 27 2006 : 12:55:53 PM
at our local nursery I was able to find wild flowers native to northern California. I don't have a meadow of wild flowers but I do through them out into the front garden and they always do well. I'm sure you can get them online somewhere, I just reccomend getting local wild flowers that way your almost sure they'll do well and I don;t introduce any new weeds to the area.
Blessed Be
www.sqrlbee.com www.sisterhood.sqrlbee.com
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| Lauram |
Posted - Feb 27 2006 : 04:23:47 AM
I also want to plant a wildflower meadow. Check out www.americanmeadows.com. This company has seed mixtures for different regions and sells them in bulk. The website can also help you figure out how much seed you will need and tell you how you need to do prep. I have read that you should plant some ornamental grass seeds in with the flower seed too. I thought it would be lovely to mix some prairie grass seed in with the wildflower mix. |
| farmgrlchick |
Posted - Feb 26 2006 : 3:13:24 PM
Thank You Libbie,
I am looking into the high country gardens, I like your idea of single variety. That's a good point. I don't need it to be very oraganized and self sowing is a must.
farmgirl Blessings,
THeresa |
| Libbie |
Posted - Feb 26 2006 : 3:07:10 PM
One more thing - blue flax has been wonderful here - it self-sows, and it's just SO darn pretty...
XOXO, Libbie
"Nothing is worth more than this day." - Goethe |
| Libbie |
Posted - Feb 26 2006 : 2:52:34 PM
Hi Theresa - I've never put together a wildflower "meadow" per se, but I do have some wildflower beds around the farmhouse - I really did minimal prepwork, and just raked in some seeds - single variety, not from a mix, but there is one company, High Country Gardens, that has some new wildflower mixes. I really like everything we have ordered from them. Also, there are some flowers that will self-sow so well that you'll end up with little "volunteers" all over your yard! We have bachelor's buttons and larkspur everywhere I look - I love it, but if you have an organized yard/garden, you may want to look for less prolific guys. I noticed you're in Nevada - I'm not sure where, but here in Utah, I've had some great luck with penstemon, poppies, columbine and, of course, the two I previously mentioned. If I can think of anything else, I'll let you know!
I think a meadow would be beautiful!
XOXO, Libbie
"Nothing is worth more than this day." - Goethe |
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