Choosing Orchard Grass

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Photo by MOTHER EARTH NEWS Staff
Domesticated geese do a fine job of controlling the growth of orchard grass.

Q: We have a 4-year-old orchard on our farm in Tennessee, and we’ve been considering sowing the grassy areas between the trees with crown vetch, which we hope would conserve moisture, ease mowing chores, add nitrogen to the soil, and act as living mulch to aid in weed control. Will the lush growth harm the young fruit trees? And, if so, what other low-maintenance orchard grass or ground covers would you suggest? (We’re also concerned about the new growth encroaching on adjacent gardening areas.) Finally, will our eight Chinese weeder geese that feed in the one-fourth acre orchard stay fit on a diet of crown vetch? 

A: In your situation, crown vetch (Coronilla varia) probably is not the best choice for an orchard ground cover. Potential problems include its competition with the fruit trees for water and nutrients, its possible invasion of your garden space and the unpalatability of the legume to your geese.

When choosing a suitable cover crop, you should firstlook to species that would provide nutritious forage for your geese. The grazing habits of these web-footed birds make them excellent orchard managers, as they’ll not only reduce your mowing chores, but clean up diseased fruit as well. While the literature on this subject varies, it’s generally agreed that the large birds prefer grasses over broad-leaved plants (the latter group includes legumes such as crown vetch). The geese at New Alchemy, for example, graze alfalfa reluctantly, and only if there’s no grass available.

Furthermore, though grasses don’t have the nitrogen-fixing capabilities of legumes, this disadvantage will be somewhat compensated for by the soluble nitrogen contained in goose manure. Moreover, it’s been found that, in certain situations, legume understories in orchards can actually provide too much nitrogen for optimal growth.

John Quinney is the research director at the New Alchemy Institute. His work is based on an ecosystem approach to small farm design.

  • Published on Jan 26, 2011
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