Building Soil

Because the park is on a flood plain, there are restrictions about adding to what currently exists there. Because of this, we can't bring in enough compost, mulch, wood chips, manure, or anything else we would otherwise be using to build up the soil. Instead, we are growing cover crops and using plants that are already growing on the site to aerate the soil, slowly build up humus, encourage soil organisms and improve the soil tilth and nutrients in general. 

Go to the pages for each phase to see details.

Green Manure / Cover Crops / Native or Established Grasses & Forbs to build soil in the areas we will plant in the future

Field Peas

Forage Oats

Sweet Clover

Red Clover

White Clover

Buckwheat

Ryegrass

Forage Radish

Dandelion

Plantain

Mullein

Other native plants and "weeds"

Cover Crop Mixes:

Cool Season Soil Builder (from Green Cover)

mixed with extra oats

Ingredients

4010 Spring Forage Pea, Common Vetch, Dixie Crimson Clover, Goliath Spring Oats, Lavina Beardless Spring Forage Barley, Trophy Rapeseed, Golden Flax, Black Oil Sunflower, Nitro Radish, Florida Broadleaf Mustard

Planting Instructions

Drill seed at 3/4" to 1" depth or broadcast and lightly incorporate when soil temperatures are 45 degrees or higher.

Warm Season Soil Builder (from Green Cover)

mixed with extra oats

Ingredients

Red Ripper Cowpeas, 5518 Hutchinson Blend Soybeans, Mung Beans, Sunn Hemp, Sweet Forever Sorghum Sudan , Tifleaf III Hybrid Pearl Millet, African Cabbage, Trophy Rapeseed, Nitro Radish, Mancan Buckwheat, Clemson Spineless 80 Okra, Golden Flax

Planting Instructions

Drill seed at 3/4" to 1" depth or broadcast and lightly incorporate when soil temperatures are 60 degrees or higher.