Start Date
06/15/2022
End Date
06/15/2022
Description
The most effective protocols for establishing native meadows are complex and still
being developed. How do we uncover the most beneficial approaches for any given
environment, scale, or project program? One good answer is experimentation, an
endeavor which few clients are willing to finance. Fortunately, Duke Farms has spent
the last few decades doing just that.
In this field session we take an in depth look at numerous plantings and trials,
including comparisons of fall versus spring planting, no till drill vs. broadcast seeding,
burning vs. mowing, planting into subsoil vs. topsoil, controlling weeds with and
without herbicide, and using seed vs. live plants. We will also observe and compare
two woodland areas with starkly different ratios of native and invasive species to
determine the causation, and draw conclusions regarding the best protocols for forest
management. Finally, we will observe and analyze the 15-acre Great Meadow, which
exhibits the results of a research-based approach.
Location
Hillsborough, NJ
Distance Learning
No
Course Equivalency
No
Subjects
Horticulture / Plants
Health, Safety and Welfare
Yes
Hours
6.0
Learning Outcomes
1. To learn how to better establish native meadows and grasslands by comparing the results of various site preparation, planting, and management approaches.
2. To learn how to better direct vegetation on the forest floor by analyzing the environmental conditions and human activities that led to various compositions including those with a high presence of either native or invasive species.
3. To learn how to integrate native restoration plantings with existing formal and historic landscape gardens.
Instructors
Thom Almendinger & Larry Weaner
Course Codes
Provider
New Directions in the American Landscape