Hi! We've recently moved to our current home in Hillsborough. Our property is 1.5 acres with about half of it wooded. Open areas are around the house,...
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Japanese Stiltgrass #872821
Asked June 12, 2024, 2:58 PM EDT
Hi! We've recently moved to our current home in Hillsborough. Our property is 1.5 acres with about half of it wooded. Open areas are around the house, along the road, and our septic field. We have successfully seeded micro-clover around the house. Japanese stiltgrass is prevalent in the open areas and has invaded the clover and is far too pervasive to remove manually. I have manually removed some and we are committed to keeping it mowed to prevent seeding.
What do you recommend to:
Remove the stiltgrass in the clover without damaging the clover?
Remove the stiltgrass in open areas that are mainly moss and weeds?
Remove the stiltgrass over the septic field?
I am also interested in knowing if there is a pre-emergent product that we can use in the late winter/early spring.
We are striving to use native plants and to limit our chemical use but in the case of the Japanese stiltgrass I am willing to use chemicals to begin the process of decreasing the amount of stiltgrass on our property.
Any products or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you! Kathy
Orange CountyNorth Carolina
Expert Response
To be successful, Stiltgrass is very difficult to control. It is an annual, so preventing it from seeding is part of the battle since it is prolific seeder.
Pre-emergence herbicide is a good strategy. You have to get it down before Summer Annuals...Means treating in March and every 7-9 weeks through say July. That is about 3 treatments.
Changing the environment is also a good strategy. Out competing it with clover and removing the environment it likes....shade, wet areas.....
You really have to use an integrated pest management (IPM) strategy to get rid of it.
Since you are encouraging a dicot (Clover), you may be able to find a herbicide for the monocot only that won't damage the clover. If you go this route, you can't have any other grasses in the treatment area that you are wanting to protect.