Tilling and Planting

A seed sown into a meadow has many possible fates, most of which do not result in plant establishment. We suspect that inadequate seed bed preparation, competition with established plants, seed predation, and a lack of good soil contact or other microclimate issues all contribute to limited successes in shifting the plant community following our 2020 to 2023 seed sowing efforts. We’ve been unable to establish a high cover of diverse, perennial wildflowers using seeds alone.

Following consultation with multiple meadow experts, we began working more with plug and container plants in 2024, which already have roots and shoots and are subject to far fewer obstacles to successful establishment than seeds are. While more expensive and limited in spatial scale, our meadow plantings have proven to be highly effective management treatments.

We begin by using a plow attachment dragged behind a tractor to thoroughly break up the roots of the existing plant community. This will create root fragments that some species can regenerate from, such as reed canary grass and creeping bentgrass, so be aware that these resprouts must be diligently weeded out following planting lest they immediately begin the process of taking the site back over.

Next, we mix in compost with the tractor, before leveling the planting area with rakes. We plant plug and container plants in swaths of the same species for pollinator efficiency, and incorporate a significant grass component, which is important for preventing the re-invasion of the aggressive, non-native grasses that were present prior to tilling. Once the plants are installed, we spread a pre-emergent herbicide so that all the weed seeds brought to the surface by tilling aren’t able to germinate and out-compete the new plants. The final step is to apply a thick dressing of wood chips around the plants, which helps with weed suppression and moisture retention.

May 2025. Using a tractor and plow attachment, we tilled an area surrounding the original meadow overlook planting (installed in the same manner described here in 2024), then mixed in compost and leveled with rakes to prepare for planting.

May 2025. Plants have been installed and a wood chip dressing applied. During the first several weeks of establishment, if the weather is warm and dry, we water the planting three times a week for one to two hours in the morning. As summer progresses, we water twice a week for one hour to encourage greater growth and flower and nectar production.