Matt McSpadden

Doug and Joao,
I hear you about the spray and mowing. Maine towns are supposed to abide by no spray signs... but it really depends on the person doing the mowing or spraying. I'll have to reach out to the town and get more information.

M Ljin wrote:“Ditch lily” (daylily)?

I like the low growing native wildflowers idea too, though. I think I’ve also seen currants growing in that sort of environment.

Hmmm, daylillies could be good... though deer to like them. At the same time, I suspect I will have enough other delicious stuff on the property that having them near the road would not attract them any more than otherwise.

Jay Angler wrote:Matt, are huckleberries native to your area?  

I'm trying to think of perennials that have a natural "bush" height, so they would grow in your nearer row without needing a lot of care. I have started some Salal to use that way and I considered Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo ) except that it can grow much taller than I think you want.

Apparently the black huckleberry is supposed to be native to maine... though I am not very familiar with it. They are supposed to not get over 3ft tall.

Timothy Norton wrote:I think Switchgrass might be a nice screen for your location. It could take to the mowing, provides habitat, and I really enjoy the look. Maybe mix in some little bluestem and other native grasses?

Interesting idea, but the shelter for wildlife would go away if it was mowed.

I'm actually starting to wonder if I break the two apart. Maybe make a break farther from the road and plant the ditch with something shorter that might not need to be mowed as much.

Judith Browning wrote:I wonder about elderflower?...

I plan to grow these, but will probably do it farther away as I don't want them mowed :)

Judith Browning wrote:and comfrey for pollinaters although it's not tall it will tolerate mowing.

I always think of comfrey for the leaves for chop and drop or it's medicinal value... I forget they have very nice flowers too.

Anne Miller wrote:Black Oil Sunflowers offers food for birds, you, etc.

Joe Pyle Weed for Monarch Butterflies.

I like both of these suggestions. I learned something too. For some reason I always thought of Joe Pye Weed as a southern plant, but when I looked it up... it is here in Maine.

I want to provide a screen for some privacy between the road and the property. In our area, this needs to be at least 30ft from the center of the road or it might get cut. This leaves that spot between the break and the road. What would you plant there to make the space be useful?

It would be good if it could attract birds, bugs, butterflies and similar for either food or habitat (with the knowledge that it might get mowed a couple times a year.
It needs to regrow because the town might mow it a couple times a year.
I don't plan to eat anything from that side due to all potential for runoff from the road.
It needs to be hearty because of all the salt that comes off the road in the winter.
The spot is about 500 feet long, so it needs to be affordable to do for a long stretch.

Any ideas?

em write wrote:... I’d thought of just doing spots but tend to suffer from chronic “wanting to do everything at once” lol. If I were to do this, how to calculate how large a spot to prep for a tree?

Been there done that :) I expanded my garden too much one year and ended up only planting about 50% because I was doing too much other stuff, haha.

The classic answer is "it depends". Some bushes and trees need more pampering to be productive and could benefit from a wide mulch area and less competition. Also, once the tree gets big enough, it can shade out some stuff underneath. Some people want the mulch for the looks too. I am not an expert, but I think a 4ft circle or square is probably a good starting point. That is the size I use for my trees. For raspberry or blackberry plants I use about a 30" wide strip. If it was me, I would start with a 4ft area to let the plant get settled and get a good start. Maybe check out some fruit tree guilds if you are planning fruit trees. Then you have some fast growing shade trees could probably out compete the grass just fine without needing mulch at all. Some smaller berry bushes or canes would probably benefit from keeping mulched their entire lives. Some you could mulch to get started and then let it fill in once the plant is established.

One thing that I believe is best for trees and bushes long term is to NOT add fertilizer or compost directly to the hole. I believe this makes the plant lazy since it's doesn't have to stretch out its roots to get stuff. I would dig the hole and put it in the dirt it is going to grow in and then mulch around it on top. Let those roots spread out and work a little bit... it will be a stronger plant for it.

When I put on multiple layers of mulch, I generally put the biggest pieces and the least rotted stuff on top (e.g. wood chips or straw). And the most rotted stuff or smallest pieces on the bottom (e.g compost or fall leaves.

Another option that I have used is to rent a sod cutter. This scalps off the top few inches of soil and sod into strips that can be rolled up or cut up and composted... but this leaves behind bare soil that can then be covered with mulch. Maybe broadfork it, throw down some old chicken feed, any soil amendments that you might want, then cover with fall leaves and top with 10+ inches of woodchips... you would have some good soil pretty quick. Especially if you could let it sit for 6 months.

**Edit - To be clear, I rented a gas powered sod cutter from home depot. I understand there are manual sod cutters that may work, but I felt it was worth it to get the spot cleared in a couple hours vs days of work. Something like this one - https://www.homedepot.com/p/rental/Classen-Sod-Cutter-SC-18HD/316822173

Am I correct in thinking that your goal is to convert your lawn into something more productive and helpful than grass?

I tried to clear a spot for my garden one year with chickens and it worked... but not as well as I would like. I ended up with a spot devoid of any grass or weeds which is what I wanted, but it took longer than I thought and ended with a hardpan dirt (and probably less healthy conditions for the chickens than I wanted).

My suggestion might be to plan out where I wanted the trees and bushes to go, and then spot mulch, rather than do the entire area. In each spot (or each strip maybe) that you want to put a tree or bush, I would scalp the lawn, lay down cardboard and then cover in woodchips (or some variation). This will help create some good soil to grow in and help keep the weeds/grass down in the area until you can plant what you want.