Annual rye grass

Creek chub

Active Member
I’m considering planting annual rye grass on some roads and my wood lot. These areas are sandy and rocky and I’m basically looking for erosion control and the ability to drive over them in wet conditions. Should I add red clover or go straight rye? Or another seeding option?
 
Annual rye grass will mostly be gone in one year. With hard and rocky ground like you describe very few of the seed that fall from the plants will even germinate. Annual means it has to come back from seed every year, so you end up with nothing.

For roads and erosion control, plant KY31 Fescue instead. It is the toughest perennial grass you could grow in Virginia. Don't listen to the old fables that it will become invasive and spread everywhere. That doesn't happen. It is aggressive where it is planted, but doesn't start popping up everywhere nearby and taking over everything like they teach in school these days. Some of that ignorant stuff from the so called experts just needs to be ignored.

Best wishes....
 
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I’m considering planting annual rye grass on some roads and my wood lot. These areas are sandy and rocky and I’m basically looking for erosion control and the ability to drive over them in wet conditions. Should I add red clover or go straight rye? Or another seeding option?

I've had mixed results on logging roads. I spent way too much money on annual and perennial rye two years ago. I've tried mixing red clover on those same roads and the only thing I've learned is that the specific site matters. Some areas are still bare dirt, others are lush red clover.

b3aa8824349d8ab8b258a2146bf7f918.jpg

64931f4e229d6f3390e010fc73a6dad6.jpg
 
Roads can be difficult because in many cases they have been graded and as such the soil tends to not be the best (top soil stripped away). Sunlight exposure, drainage and even the soil type can vary quite a bit. For erosion control....fescue is the answer. It's what it was designed to do and it's very good at it. It will also tolerate some abuse as well. It might spread some...but just keeping an eye on it and some gly or cleth will kill it where you don't want it. I personally don't like having clover on my trails because I don't want the deer to associate them as feeding areas. Some use trails as long narrow plots and that is fine as long as you are not using them during the hunting season for access.

Just keep in mind grass is a plant too so it has it's needs to perform well also....just like a plot of clover or the like.
 
Thanks for all the feedback.

Due to fescue seed cost, lack of rain and a short window before projected first frost, I may just use annual rye now and attempt a fescue planting in the spring.
 
Thanks for all the feedback.

Due to fescue seed cost, lack of rain and a short window before projected first frost, I may just use annual rye now and attempt a fescue planting in the spring.
get some winter rye or winter wheat down on it now.... it will hopefully germinate enough to survive and then grow come spring....that way you don;t have bare dirt some the spring rains.....
 
get some winter rye or winter wheat down on it now.... it will hopefully germinate enough to survive and then grow come spring....that way you don;t have bare dirt some the spring rains.....
I think this ^^ is a great idea. Rye will grow in the truck bed and give you some OM to work with next year.
 
I've had mixed results on logging roads. I spent way too much money on annual and perennial rye two years ago. I've tried mixing red clover on those same roads and the only thing I've learned is that the specific site matters. Some areas are still bare dirt, others are lush red clover.

b3aa8824349d8ab8b258a2146bf7f918.jpg

64931f4e229d6f3390e010fc73a6dad6.jpg

Pretty obvious what the problem is there, the top pic still has topsoil, the bottom is a 3’/4’ cut and what’s on top now has nothing in it to support growth. If you want growth on your roads save your topsoil. Some of mine are rocked, but the ones that I like best are the ones that are grassed over. Less noise !
 
Annual rye grass will mostly be gone in one year. With hard and rocky ground like you describe very few of the seed that fall from the plants will even germinate. Annual means it has to come back from seed every year, so you end up with nothing.

For roads and erosion control, plant KY31 Fescue instead. It is the toughest perennial grass you could grow in Virginia. Don't listen to the old fables that it will become invasive and spread everywhere. That doesn't happen. It is aggressive where it is planted, but doesn't start popping up everywhere nearby and taking over everything like they teach in school these days. Some of that ignorant stuff from the so called experts just needs to be ignored.

Best wishes....
I agree, K31 is one tough grass. once its established it will hold your soil in place. and it can be grown in sun and shade. The only real problem with it is if it isn't a thick stand of grass it can be very difficult to walk in because it gets clumpy. Kind of like walking through Lovegrass.
In the NTEP (National turf evaluation Program) K31 serves as the control for the test. That's because it has great genetic color, is drought and heat resistant, has great cold tolerance and early spring green up. With the price of annual rye this year you'd spend about the same money for something that would be gone by June.
 
I agree, K31 is one tough grass. once its established it will hold your soil in place. and it can be grown in sun and shade. The only real problem with it is if it isn't a thick stand of grass it can be very difficult to walk in because it gets clumpy. Kind of like walking through Lovegrass.
In the NTEP (National turf evaluation Program) K31 serves as the control for the test. That's because it has great genetic color, is drought and heat resistant, has great cold tolerance and early spring green up. With the price of annual rye this year you'd spend about the same money for something that would be gone by June.

Yep..

GIwP5ol.jpg
 
I drilled rye grain into my interior road system on September 7th and it has been dry since but the forecast looks promising for the next 10 days. I didn't plant any clover because I did not want the deer using the roads for feeding. I can report back later or next spring to let you know how it did.

I did drill a short 40 ft strip of the same road system with grain sorghum just to empty the drill and I was surprised that it actually grew pretty good but never did make a seed head but would work for erosion, just not very practical.

I agree with not wanting to plant something that would have potential of making it into a plot unless it was something I wanted in them anyway.
 
Pretty obvious what the problem is there, the top pic still has topsoil, the bottom is a 3’/4’ cut and what’s on top now has nothing in it to support growth. If you want growth on your roads save your topsoil. Some of mine are rocked, but the ones that I like best are the ones that are grassed over. Less noise !

Both deep cuts and both in bad shape with no real top soil. I was very surprised how well the MRC took in this hill. Obviously better conditions than the other spot, I think the shade actually helps when the soil is that bad.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Both deep cuts and both in bad shape with no real top soil. I was very surprised how well the MRC took in this hill. Obviously better conditions than the other spot, I think the shade actually helps when the soil is that bad.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I hope shade helps, if it doesn’t then I just planted two plots that will be wasted:)
 
The roads that I’m thinking about planting aren’t near any current plots. I mainly use the road to access firewood in the winter. At times, sloppy conditions exist where there is bare dirt. K31 sounds like what I need to go with long term. If planting conditions were better right now, I’d definitely give it a try. I did buy a 40# bag off annual rye grass today for $35. I know it’ll be gone by early summer but maybe it’ll stabilize the road now with the intent of burning or discing the rye next spring, hopefully killing most of it.
 
Be careful, because I'm telling you, those seeds will NOT be gone. That stuff is an aggressive re-seeder. Only takes one or two in a food plot. Don't ask me how I know.
 
Be careful, because I'm telling you, those seeds will NOT be gone. That stuff is an aggressive re-seeder. Only takes one or two in a food plot. Don't ask me how I know.

Mowing, even driving down the roads with full, ripe seed heads will spread the seed where it’s unwanted. No rye grass problems here, but behia grass is rampant in East Texas. Good for nothing IMO, but I don’t own cows. Still, it’s inferior to any strains of Bermuda grass, but it propagates like whoda thunk it. With tiny seeds that look like black pepper, you gather thousands of them every time you drive through it, especially when dew is on the ground. These are then deposited somewhere you don’t want them. That’s how it became the roadside grass dejeur all over my area. That, and folks hauling hay down the highway. I have to kill it every year on the state R. O. W. in front of my place.
 
Bhaia is the Natural Grass that grows the best here in Florida. You are correct that he Seed Heads will continue to Re-Seed itself constantly.

I went from St Augustine Grass, due to a 2nd Hard Frost killing it off, to doing a Seeding of Bahia on my yard. Over a period of several years along with an Bi-Annual Seeding my yard has become a thick full nice yard of grass.

Interestingly the State of Florida uses Bahia to Water Cannon seed the sides of the road after Road Work. At night you will see Deer along the sides of the roads eating it happily. Turkeys also are in it all the time during the day.

The Stuff grows everywhere and I'm starting to wonder if it has a sort of Bad Rap due to No One thinking it is a good seed to use for Deer. I am seriuosly thinking about putting some down on some of my areas to see if it helps where almost nothing wants to grow.
 
Be careful, because I'm telling you, those seeds will NOT be gone. That stuff is an aggressive re-seeder. Only takes one or two in a food plot. Don't ask me how I know.
Sounds rye grass is a vegetative equivalent of cockroaches. Where I’m considering planting this stuff there are no perennial plots, for now anyways. Maybe if I decide to use it and aggressively apply gly a couple times in conjunction with discing, I could eradicate it in a few years
 
Bhaia is the Natural Grass that grows the best here in Florida. You are correct that he Seed Heads will continue to Re-Seed itself constantly.

I went from St Augustine Grass, due to a 2nd Hard Frost killing it off, to doing a Seeding of Bahia on my yard. Over a period of several years along with an Bi-Annual Seeding my yard has become a thick full nice yard of grass.

Interestingly the State of Florida uses Bahia to Water Cannon seed the sides of the road after Road Work. At night you will see Deer along the sides of the roads eating it happily. Turkeys also are in it all the time during the day.

The Stuff grows everywhere and I'm starting to wonder if it has a sort of Bad Rap due to No One thinking it is a good seed to use for Deer. I am seriuosly thinking about putting some down on some of my areas to see if it helps where almost nothing wants to grow.
You think the deer are eating bahiagrass?
 
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