Nightmare weed problem in backyard


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Old 03-18-15, 07:37 PM
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Nightmare weed problem in backyard

Hello,
I have a very stiff downhill, so usually did no much cleaning in that area. There was some kind of plant grows that was just for show. But the weeds started to grown around them now. And I have alot of different kind of weeds and wild planets growing. Right now everything is dead but soon they will be alive. What is the best way to get rid off them I was planning on dumping a lot of dirt to level it. But I dont have enough space to go in the back with a truck.
Any advice will be helpful.
Thanks
 
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Old 03-19-15, 03:19 AM
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A pic or two would be helpful along with a better description of what you want to do. Are you removing all the vegetation and starting over? How much dirt do you intend to bring in? How will that affect water drainage?
 
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Old 03-19-15, 05:08 AM
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So, if you can't get a truck in to bring the dirt are you actually going to bring in dirt to level the area? If not I would have a plan in place before simply killing everything. Even weeds do a good job of holding soil in place and preventing erosion. If you kill the weeds something will have to be done immediately to maintain the slope.
 
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Old 03-19-15, 07:06 AM
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Not enough information here for me to be comfortable offering any advice. Pictures and additional details would help.
 
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Old 03-21-15, 03:34 PM
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It's hard to gauge the grade from those pics. I assume water collects at the bottom after a heavy rain, what are your plans for dealing with that water [just filling in might make things soggy] How thick do you intend to build up the ground?
 
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Old 03-21-15, 04:23 PM
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I do not see a "Nightmare weed problem" in those pictures. I DO see a lot of slash from an operation cutting down a bunch of scrub trees. The FIRST thing to do is to clean up that mess of leaves, branches and downed trunks. Once you do that you can use a broad spectrum herbicide to kill any existing ground cover and also use a pre-emergent weed killer such as Casoron to prevent new weed growth. You need to be careful if adding additional soil to NOT cover the "swell" at the base of the trees you want to retain or you will surely kill those trees in time.

Now THIS is a nightmare weed problem, and it is a whole lot worse now than when this picture was taken!

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Old 03-22-15, 09:26 AM
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Furd, that is how it will soon look. The picture only shows everything dead due to the winter. But summer coming soon. I decided that for now I just want to clean everything up. And maybe later I will think about leveling the area. I am really busy so even making the backyard look nice, I wont have any time to enjoy it.

For now, I want to cut the fallen trees into small pieces and remove as much as weed as possible. I found a guy, who is willing to do that for $300. Is that a good price or am I being charged too much? I want some kind of non weed plant to grow in the area. If I use a poison it will just kill everything. Is there any other option? And no water do not get stuck or collected. its difficult to see in the picture but their is a canal down the hill, so it just flows somewhere else. Oh BTW, I believe the land in my area is artificially made, Its very difficult to grow vegetables in the back, full of rocks and other stuff. So I assume this means, the ground can hold itself.

This is picture side of my house after we had to dig to fill a crack on my wall.
So ya ground is very difficult to dig, but It is helpfull since, those area is always wet, due to water coming down from the house top of us.

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...817_153058.jpg

This is some of what it looked like last year, we just used the bob cat to clean some of the weeds.

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/f...17_1530521.jpg
 
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Old 03-22-15, 09:46 AM
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I found a guy, who is willing to do that for $300. Is that a good price or am I being charged too much?
It is utterly impossible to state with any certainty if $300 is a good price or outrageously high or even low as prices on labor vary so widely across the nation. Best is to get several estimates and also to check the references of anyone doing work for you.

Most broad spectrum herbicides do not have soil persistence but instead kill the plant itself. An example is Roundup which states it is okay to re-plant a week after use. The Casoron is different in that it DOES go into the soil and is mainly used in established planting areas to inhibit the growth of grass and similar weeds.

In your case I think I would recommend after cleaning out the existing mess that you first use the Roundup (or equivalent) and then plant annual rye grass to hold the soil together and prevent a muddy mess. Later, you can either cover the rye with soil or simply let it die.

Others may have better ideas.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 12:01 PM
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I am trying to avoid grass, since it will be difficult to cut the grass in that kind of hilly area. I hate cutting my backyard grass. takes alot of time.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 02:45 PM
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I hate cutting my backyard grass. takes a lot of time.
I hear you loud and clear. That is why I have the blackberry mess and also why I am building the riding mower.

The grass is mostly to prevent the soil from eroding during rainstorms. Since it is an annual it will die out over the next winter.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 02:59 PM
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haha, you can not ride anything in that area. That area is not the part I cut. There was some kind of plants that grew there. Its green leaf and about 8inch tall. But the weed just killed them all. I want to something like that to grow in that area. I too had some blackberry in that area. But again, it was mixed with all kind of weeds and **** and what not. I would not mind a nice jungle in that area, just not weed. They will take over rest of my grasses. lol. I cant even grow plants int he front anymore. Grass and weed takes over. Even with mulch and everything else I tried.....Ahh!
 
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Old 03-22-15, 03:22 PM
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Remember, weeds are merely unwanted plants.

My neighbor planted English ivy at the foot of the hill between our yards. That crap is considered invasive and it absolutely drives me crazy. I've got vines an inch in diameter climbing my trees.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 03:39 PM
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Oh yes, I too have a lot of poison ivy. But I did not plant them. God gave him to me as a package deal. He was like here I will give you blackberry and throw in poison ivy with it. Good luck.

Any idea what economical plant I can grow in the area that do not require any grooming.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 06:11 PM
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AFAIK, tall fescue grass quits growing at about 4" tall and therefore can make a slightly shaggy ground cover that does not have to be mowed. I also understand it to have some of the deepest grass roots, making it a good choice for erosion control.
 
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Old 03-22-15, 06:49 PM
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Ok, thanks. i will look into that. One of the contractor advice to do rocks instead. though that will cost over $1,000 just for the rocks.
 
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Old 03-23-15, 03:35 AM
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Check with your local nursery and discuss your options with them. They'll know which ground cover plants work well in your area and what would be best for your budget.

While some rye grass is annual and will die out, it often reseeds itself. I don't like doing more weedeating than necessary and would only plant grass on a steep hill if that was the only option.
 
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Old 03-23-15, 08:43 AM
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Yes, I just hope it is not too expensive. My ground looks to be artificial. Its full of rock and very sandy. Thats the reason its holding so well without any kind of barrier. I tried to dig without a bob cat and it was impossible. So I assume not many things will grow in that land.
 
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Old 03-23-15, 10:47 AM
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Alot of sites recommends using some kind of shrubs but the shrubs I found so far, all require alot of sun exposure. But My backyard gets little sun.
 
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Old 03-23-15, 11:08 AM
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My drain field is on the side of a steep shady hill and 20+ yrs ago I planted a flowering ground cover which choked out a lot of the grass and made that hillside easier to maintain. It was more invasive than I imagined, I don't remember the name but it was fairly cheap and took several years to get established. Not sure I'd use it again There are ground covers that don't require a lot of sun along with ones that thrive in poor soil. You just need to figure out what works good in your area [the nursery should know] then research to make sure you'll be happy with it and go from there.
 
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Old 03-23-15, 03:06 PM
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I am planning on going around and see if I can find something like you did. lol
But i just want to avoid going expensive. Need to keep cash for my business.
 
 

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