Johnson Grass on the Prairie
I love the prairie. I love to look out across its vast and stark lines. I think one reason I like the ocean so much is it reminds me of my prairie home’s vast openness.
Until lately, (I hadn’t been paying attention at all) I just thought of grass as grass. But my father has been teaching me. All the different varieties that grow where we live in Oklahoma; which ones the cows like best; which ones provide the most nourishment; which ones grow first and which ones grow later.
The beauty of the prairie goes deep and is complex. And it’s a lot more than green. It’s yellow and gold and beige and tan and brown and red and blue.
Plains Bluestem
Hosea Wheatgrass
July 25, 2008 at 11:39 am
I thought your article about Johnson grass was interesting. In west Texas – specifically in Hockley County – we have an overabundance of Johnson grass, the Plains Bluestem variety, among others.
I just chopped down about 1,700 square feet of the stuff yesterday and made mulch out of it. The stuff is PROLIFIC in these parts… along with Careless weed and grass spurs. Ugh! (And argh!) ;)
I love gardening, but it’s turning into more work than I bargained for, when I have to spend more time than usuall chopping grass and weeds out from between my furrows in the crop fields.
Great article. I read them all the time as I have your pantoerth on Google alerts.
Ernest O’Dell
Sagebrush Gardens
Hockley County, Texas
July 25, 2008 at 12:33 pm
This learning to live in harmony with all of creation is indeed challenging. Farmers here struggle with the challenges of Johnson grass – while the cows strain their necks over barbed wire fences to get a nibble of it in the ditches. Today, we are actually baling a meadow that has a mixture of several grasses, including over-your-head Johnson grass. The cows are going to love that hay!
There is so much to learn and so many of us are just now entering a different mindset, a different paradigm. But there are those out there who’ve been working on sustainable agriculture for awhile. I’ll blog about one such organization here in Oklahoma next week.
Good for you. All your back-breaking work is very worthwhile. And maybe we’ll find easier ways.
Peace,
Pat
July 25, 2008 at 12:37 pm
And, Ernest, thanks for reading our blog. It’s really encouraging to be in touch with others in the “community.”