landscaping crackerjacks

[gteeitup]

so, i volunteered to be pto president of the elementary school that my kids attend...in doing so, i have also decided to just handle other tasks that nobody wanted to step up for...of course, right?...that sh t always happens when you decide things like this...later on, maybe, i'll tell you what was awesome about the last month because i decided to also handle spirit wear and playground/basketball court refurbishing...i took some ideas from our tar heels, ha!

anyway, we have a nature trail that we dads clean/mulch etc in august every year...i want to kill weeds and etc before we mulch and put straw down...what is the best product to use, applicator, precautions, etc that would help?....we're talking about a good 1 & 1/2 acres of trail with vegetation on both sides.

thanks in advance!

 

[coryfly]

I don't know about brands but I what I did when I made a trail was kill it, get rid of it (mowed and weed eated the crap out of it), and then put down some type of pre-emergent. I made a trail of pretty decent size back in my woods and did this and didn't put anything down like pine straw or mulch or anything and it has stayed as a trail pretty well.

 

[gteeitup]

how'd you kill it?

it's impossible to mow...i was told to get a gyroscope? or "bush hog on steroids", to clear about four feet on each side...problem is budget, public school, and responsibility of said equipment.

had a forestry dude come out and he just laughed...his quote; "you guys come every august and cut stuff down, but it grows back three-fold...i deal with helio drops that kill acres of coverage"

i lol'd and asked him; "what would that cost?...or, can you get me a flamethrower?"

 

[coryfly]

I just sprayed it with something, probably roundup or something. Obviously, you are talking about something more serious than I dealt with. I've done some serious landscaping in terms of clearing with the construction company I work with in the summer but we are talking some heavy machinery involved there. If it is just brush though it is more just pain in the butt work I would assume. Of course, I have no idea what exactly you are dealing with either, lol. The preemergent is the key to it not coming back though. Of course, you have to get it down to bare earth first.

 

[UNC71-00]

so, i volunteered to be pto president of the elementary school that my kids attend...in doing so, i have also decided to just handle other tasks that nobody wanted to step up for...of course, right?!

Huh. I never realized you were a stay at home mom.

 

[gteeitup]

Huh. I never realized you were a stay at home mom.

i've been working toward this for three years...not all the way there as of yet.

so i take it you have no advice?

 

[TarHeelNation11]

Save time and effort and buy an elliptical machine with one of those screens that makes you believe you're running in nature, without actually running in nature.

Next?

 

[UNC71-00]

i've been working toward this for three years...not all the way there as of yet.

so i take it you have no advice?

My advice is to leave the undergrowth high around the trail, then grow you some marijuana just off the trail where no one will see, cause who would ever think to look for pot on school grounds. You'll make a mint.

 

[WhatTheHeel?]

Well, you already had my flamethrower idea. Maybe get a weed eater with one of those brush cutter attachments. I personally would not spend the extra money for RoundUp over the other Kill-All products. RoundUp is great if you plan on planting something there in the next couple weeks, but that doesn't sound like the idea here.

I often deal with briars coming up (we're partly in the woods) and find that I have to put on leather gloves and just pull them out as much as possible because cutting them leaves the roots all over and they just pop right back up.

 

[gunslingerdick]

I don't think I understand. Is it a dirt trail? If so, why do you feel the need to mulch it? Personally, I don't like using weed killers. They're not natural and can harm animals. I love a weedeater though. But if I understand you right, it's a long trail and would be hell to weedeat on a regular basis. But as you get into fall, you'd have to weedeat far less. And it's a nature trail. Meaning, it's supposed to be natural.

I'd organize a team to do some serious weed pulling in early October. Weedeat it until then. After you pull the weeds in October, you should be fine until April.

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

If the trail were being used wouldn't that pretty much keep it clear? Tell the cross country team to get off their duffs.

The mulch may be hurting your effort in the long term; as it breaks down it becomes healthy organic material for new growth to thrive on.

 

[gteeitup]

My advice is to leave the undergrowth high around the trail, then grow you some marijuana just off the trail where no one will see, cause who would ever think to look for pot on school grounds. You'll make a mint.

yeah, because that's the responsible thing to do...maybe i'll pimp out 5th graders as well.

 

[UNC71-00]

yeah, because that's the responsible thing to do...maybe i'll pimp out 5th graders as well.

I know you were joking about the 5th graders, but I like your thinking here.

You should be meeting a ton of moms at the bake sales and field days and Christmas concerts and Halloween parties, right? Maybe you could pimp them out?

 

[UNC71-00]

If the trail were being used wouldn't that pretty much keep it clear? Tell the cross country team to get off their duffs.

The mulch may be hurting your effort in the long term; as it breaks down it becomes healthy organic material for new growth to thrive on.

Right.

He should buy a herd of goats. Let the 5th graders shepherd them as part of science period.

 

[gunslingerdick]

Right.

He should buy a herd of goats. Let the 5th graders shepherd them as part of science period.

Or pimp out the goats? Is this campus near the university?

 

[gteeitup]

I don't think I understand. Is it a dirt trail? If so, why do you feel the need to mulch it? Personally, I don't like using weed killers. They're not natural and can harm animals. I love a weedeater though. But if I understand you right, it's a long trail and would be hell to weedeat on a regular basis. But as you get into fall, you'd have to weedeat far less. And it's a nature trail. Meaning, it's supposed to be natural.

I'd organize a team to do some serious weed pulling in early October. Weedeat it until then. After you pull the weeds in October, you should be fine until April.

it's a trail with an outdoor classroom that some teachers use...it's not a dirt trail, at least not predominantly...we have been putting mulch and straw down for five years now, so it's a pretty defined area...i'm also not a fan of chemicals, but a current parent that is also a forester, suggested some that don't harm animals...however, he wasn't sure i could get them or if even he could for a job like this.

i suggested spraying something now, this week, and going back in two weeks with some other dads & weedeaters.

 

[gteeitup]

completely unexpected, this thread has gotten out of hand.

 

[JuleZ '02 HEEL]

 

[TarHeelNation11]

John Blake, is that you??

too soon?

 

[coolwaterunc]

All I can picture is walking around the yard sprinkling these everywhere