In my opinion, the introduction of native prairie plants and grasslands is
feasible without soil improvement. Soil improvement would help but it is not
required. Seeds should be sown in early fall and I would not mow the area
for a few years unless there is a problem with non native plant
infringement. The area can be mowed later in the summer (or a controlled
burn) to help suppress the non natives. For more information, I would defer
to Jim Eidson, the North Texas Field Representative for Nature Conservancy:
903-568-4139 or contact me for other prairie enthusiasts. I recently
referred to them as "Prairie Huggers" and most seemed amenable to the title.
I hope this helps.
Steve Houser
City of Dallas Urban Forest Advisory Committee Chair
-----Original Message-----
From: dallastrees@googlegroups.com [mailto:dallastrees@googlegroups.com] On
Behalf Of Phil
Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2008 10:38 PM
To: DallasTrees
Subject: Grady Niblo prairie grass restoration?
There is some discussion emerging about the possibility of restoring a
portion of the Grady Niblo Estates development area to a grassland prairie
for an undetermined amount of time. It would be a part of a mitigation
process for this land that was cleared of existing trees (primarily immature
junipers) and other low-level vegetation. The attempt is to try to restore
the land with some vegetative cover but I cannot guarantee it would remain
indefinitely because of possible development of the property. After all,
that's why it was cleared.
I need some consultation on this from those who know. The site has been
cleared of virtually all of its nutrient rich top soils (for what it had)
and does not currently have much to root in to. I'm trying to determine if
the proposal is actually even feasible, and if so, what would be required to
make the restoration successful? When would planting occur? Would new soil
need to be reintroduced, and how much?
The location is directly above the escarpment zone in southwest Dallas in
the Austin Chalk just east of the Patriot Parkway (Spur 408). I can give
more details if someone has any ideas or knows who might assist with
discussing a restoration attempt.
