Lawn to Woodland
Ongoing project converting a low, damp part of my suburban lawn to a 'woodland' area using tough native plants and few to no inputs or amendments. Our flock of chickens were employed to who degrade the existing turf over two growing seasons. Next we sited three river birches (Betula nigra), underplanting them with native groundcovers, ferns, and sedges, directly into the existing soil. Theses three 'mother colonies' are managed for undesireable species until highly weed suppressant, and then expanded. The rest of the area is covered with cardboard and a thick layer or fall leaves, suppressing undesirable growth and building organic matter in what is a compacted, mesic to wet clay area. The first plants were established in the fall of 2023, so the project is in it's second full growing season (in 2025), with some expansion areas in their first season.
