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19 What kind of tillage should you use? Should you use herbicides in addition to tillage? Planting tallgrass prairie has many similarities to planting a garden or a field crop such as corn, soybeans, oats, or alfalfa. As with gardens and farm crops, it is far easier to start new plants in a weed-free environment. Tallgrass prairie planted by nature before the influence of Euro-American immigrants grew with little competition from weeds. Most alien weeds we know today (especially the annuals) were still at home in Europe. While you should strive for the ideal, few prairies can be planted in weed-free conditions. Soil use over the past hundred years has contaminated most soil preparation c h a p t e r f i v e  Broadcasting a prairie seed mix into drilled soybean stubble or harvested corn stalks in November or later in early winter will expose the forb seed to a process of cold-wet stratification . The undisturbed stubble will prevent wind and water erosion from heavy spring rains. 20 of the land with weeds. The soil seed bank is full of unwelcome surprises once the growing season starts. After many years of planting prairie, I feel that if conditions permit, late fall plantings (from late October to mid November) are best, because many species benefit from a period of cold-wet stratification to germinate. If you are planting in a harvested crop field, soybean stubble or corn stubble makes an excellent seedbed. Simply plant directly into the stubble without tillage; rain and snow will plant your seed. Herbicide use has replaced cultivation in most crop fields; however, if they have been cultivated and contain ridges, mowing the planting will be difficult. A light disking will level the field, but disturbing the soil surface will likely plant a host of annual weeds. Try to leave as much residue on the soil surface as possible to protect against erosion. If you are going to do a late spring or early summer planting, eliminating weeds should be taken seriously prior to planting. If the selected site does not contain heavy stands of perennial weeds and was previously in soybeans or corn, till the soil by shallow disking or field cultivation every three weeks beginning in late April; this will eliminate many weed problems. Follow up the final disking with a field harrow to level the field and break up clods; then roll the soil using a cultipacker or corrugated cast-iron field roller. Rolling provides a good, firm seedbed and is your best defense against erosion. Keep in mind that any tillage may open up the soil for erosion should heavy spring rains occur. If the area contains newly emerging annual weeds or a heavy stand of smooth brome grass, reed canary grass, quack grass, Canada thistle, or other undesirable perennial plants, consider spraying the emergent green vegetation with the herbicide Roundup (glyphosate). This will prevent serious problems later. Plants must be actively growing; if they are perennials, use three to four quarts of Roundup per acre. Roundup is not a restricted pesticide, although you will need to take precautions to avoid spraying any desirable plants. We have occasionally covered plants with a bag during spraying to prevent damage to them. The most effective treatments have been done in late fall, when plants are storing food reserves in their roots. Previous herbicide use on cropland has not proved to be a serious problem. ...

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