The Greenery is Taking Over, New Dumb Home Owner Needs Help!

Hi all,

First time posting. I need major help. I have what used to be a well kept up lawn and garden. However the previous owner was getting too old to take care of it and it has become overrun and quite wild. To make matters worse the only thing I really know about landscaping and gardening is mowing the lawn and using the trimmer. Last year I tried to tear out all the weeds but those buggers came back with a vengance. Also the grass has overgrown into the landscaped areas and all sorts of "things" are growing in the old garden.

I did hire a lawn care service this year to apply fertilizer and weed control to the grounds but the garden area is still a major infestation of all sorts of plant life.

So after that rather long description I need help with an action plan. What I would like to do is take the higher part of the garden (lawn is elevated) and tear out everything and start fresh. I like a natural wild look but not ugly. I had read that prairie grass and some shrubs would be good but I am open, way open to suggestions. However I do know that I don't want flowers or anything that looks too organized. The section of garden runs the length of my city lot (can't be more than 30 yards) and is probably 5-6ft deep. That is the main problem area.

What do I do to prepare the area? What kind of lawn and garden tools will I need to prepare the spot? What do I do to keep the grass in the lawn and the plants in the garden area? I've done a little work clearing out the old dead winter plants but I plan on getting started this weekend (tomorrow). What should be the first steps. Please remember that I know virtually nothing. I need to approach this project as something that will be easy to maintain and not overly complicated. I may get more elaborate as I learn but I must stay simple for now.

Help!

My philosophy is that if you take a plant out you have to replace it with one that is desirable, or who knows what will grow there. I wouldn't do prairie plants until you get control of things. The problem with prairie grass and plants is that they are usually summer growers, and weeds and other cool season stuff will overgrow the area before the prairie stuff can get established. if you "take out", by tilling an area you should reseed with ky bg for example immediately. when i till and plant flower bulbs, i seed with ky bluegrass, because if i don't crab grass and other weeds will grow the next spring and summer.
the easiest would probably be to plant shrubs and ornamental grasses interspersed. for example, an old garden rose, then a clump of grass, say fountain grass, then another shrub, say a chokecherry, and a clump of little bluestem, etc. along the front side of the road perhaps some bulbs or flowers, herbs, or groundcovers.
the hardest part is getting a plan and getting started. but i would start with the largest items first, trees? then shrubs and ornamental grasses, then flowers then groundcovers. I would just dig holes and plant. fertilize and mulch later if you wish.

I will jump in with the lazy and mother nature friendly way to do this. Cover the area you want to plant with newspaper (6-8) layers, then farm post or compost to 3-4 ". The newspaper will smother the grass and weeds and the farm post or compost will nurture the plants.

In my case I use farm post that I get from the race track here just outside of Minneapolis. Then grind the horse manure with the bedding straw and put it out to age. I get it by the trailer load after it has been in the field for a least a year.

Another way to do this is to put down black plastic to kill the grass and weeds. It needs at least 4 weeks to do the job. Then you take up the plastic and put down the farm post or compost.

I am using plants and if I am using newspaper can plant the same day by cutting through the newspaper and then tucking it back around the plant. If you wanted to use seed I would think you would want to use the plastic method so when you spread the seed the roots could go down.

As far as native goes. That is what I would do is. Give the people at Prairie Moon Nursery in Southern Mn a call tell them what you want to do and they will suggest what to plant. You can have a very nice mix of grasses and native flowers. You can also look at their on line catalog and check out their premixes. Most natives are best planted in the fall so it won't happen this summer. You can get it ready for fall though.

http://www.prairiemoon.com/

If you want to stay loyal to Wisconsin try

http://www.prairienursery.com/

I have found them to be more expensive than Prairie Moon in that they don't have nearly as many seeds so you need to buy plants or have a narrow choice. They really aren't hard to control. They will spread if you let them, you have to be willing to pull them out as they start to grow, or hoe them out. I happen to love to plan and plant but am lazy so this is the way I came to this method of gardening. As it happens it is also mother-nature- friendly as well.

By the way a good way to keep down annual weeds and feed the grass and perennials is to spread corn gluten. It is a pre-emergent so don't do it if you have just planted seed or plan to in the near future. It is not a chemical and does add nutrients to the soil. Not being a chemist I can't tell you why. It just works.