Eliminating johnson grass

Dean Olson · Jul 27, 2012

I recently acquired 4 acres of weeds that I want to become a decent pasture. Some Bermuda,Bahia, some Johnson grasses. About 1/3 of that was brush that was 10' tall.

Over the course of that last year I have it all cleaned up and shredded down. I want to keep the Bermuda and Bahia and eliminate the johnson grass.

Whats the best way to eliminate johnson grass?

About 60 acres across the road is 100% johnson grass that is baled regularly. It gets 6-7' tall and goes to seed before they cut it.

Am I fighting a losing battle?

Old Bob · Jul 27, 2012

Graze it. I rented a pasture that was totally over ran with johnson grass. Put cattle on it, within 2 years, not a sprig of johnson grass.

LAA · Jul 27, 2012

Number one is to not allow it to go to seed, Johnson grass seed can lay dormant for years and then pop up when the seed is incorporated or conditions change, the other reason is because of the large amount of seed each plant produces. If it is patches in the field mow early and select spray with Touchdown or equivalent, that treatment will keep a hay field or pasture clean for the season but to actually get rid of the roots (rhizomes) takes fall tillage. If you have 60 acres of seed across the raod you probably have long term control to deal with but it gets easier once you have no seed being produced on your own land, livestock are the most efficient spreaders of weed seeds. Johnson grass was the cow hay of choice in my neck of the woods in the 60"s and early 70"s now you probably could not give it away.

john in la · Jul 27, 2012

Graze it or cut it. Johnson grass will not survive being kept short.
Fall tillage can help from winter cold killing the rhizomes but spring tillage just spreads it by breaking one rhizomes into many plants.

Tx Jim · Jul 28, 2012

(quoted from post at 23:12:27 07/27/12) Graze it. I rented a pasture that was totally over ran with johnson grass. Put cattle on it, within 2 years, not a sprig of johnson grass.

Bob is correct JG can't withstand intensive grazing. If JG is tender livestock will graze it first.

jackinok · Jul 28, 2012

turn cattle on it.

TGIN · Jul 29, 2012

Wish I had 60 a. of johnson grass to bale up this yr. !!

donjr · Jul 30, 2012

You'll never totally eradicate it without tillage or another cropping system. It not only seeds, but rhizomes. You kill the seed but miss the rhizomes; you kill the rhizomes and you miss the seedlings. And the seed is like alfalfa or clover- it can stay viable in the ground for 15 to 20 years without germinating. We get rid of it by no tilling with roundup ready crops and a post emergence spray of roundup which will kill the newly emerged grass as well as killing the rhizomes. You have to stay on it for at least five years. The best control is to graze it hard for a few years- it will suck the energy reserves out of the rhizomes and they will die.

Tx Jim · Jul 31, 2012

(quoted from post at 23:13:15 07/30/12) You'll never totally eradicate it without tillage or another cropping system.

Tillage for Johnson grass is similar to stimulants for athletes. I promise you, you might slow down JG exposing the rhizomes in the dead of Winter or heat of Summer but you're not going to kill it. At least if it's any thing similar to the JG in Texas.

Eliminating johnson grass

Dean Olson

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Old Bob

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LAA

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john in la

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Tx Jim

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jackinok

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TGIN

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donjr

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Tx Jim

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