Observe the natural world and how it lives. We have forgotten so much and with well-done science and technology and our ability to do critical thinking and questioning authority, we can find knowledge we have lost and bring it forward in skillful ways.
This page is focused on practical information to help with planting – seeds and grown plants. The information here will also come from my observations and trial and error applying those observations. But there are a lot of successes to share here.
Let’s start with native seed.
Native Short Grass Prairie :
Grasses and Flowers Seeding Guidance:
Native prairie bunch grasses and wild flowers tell us exactly when they need their seeds planted.
In the very late summer or early fall the flowers and grasses go to seed. The grasses will put up tall, feathery seed heads and the flowers will build seed high on the flower stems. With the first rains or early snows, the seed heads are weighted down with the water. They slowly drop, touching the ground. The ground being wet or the snow being heavy, the seeds stick to the surface of the ground. They are not buried but more like they are pressed by the weight of the water into the surface of the soil. Then they are covered with each snow. In the spring the melting snow and the spring rains and the longer daylight present the conditions for the seeds to sprout. But those conditions are not always perfect – like the winter of the 1000 year snowfall. All of the seeds may not sprout in the first year.
Observing how the plants act without our help, here is how to plant Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida) seeds (and pretty much all native prairie grasses and wild flowers) for the greatest potential success:
🌾 Find places in your yard or landscape where there will be direct sunlight in the spring.
🌾 Even consider places where large snowdrifts form.
🌾 If there is lawn grass, remove as much as possible to expose the bare soil.
🌾 Using a rake, scratch the surface of the soil.
🌾 If the soil is dry spray it with water.
🌾 Lightly broadcast the seed over the entire area by hand.
🌾 Using your hand, or the flat side of the rake or a shovel, press the seed into the top of the soil.
🌾 Apply a very light spray of water whenever the soil dries out until winter gives us snow or rain.
Here is a photo of a Prairie Coneflower seedling so that you can identify them if you need to weed the planting area.
Remove any lawn grass that may come up. That lawn removal may be a regular Spring maintenance activity. Lawn grasses are not prairie grasses and will starve the baby seedlings out.
If you ever have any questions – or want to share some lovely photos of the blooming plants next summer – please feel free to text questions with photos any time. I respond to email and text messages from 7:00am to 9:00pm Monday through Saturday.
Next Post: Why Are The Birds So Important To Perennial Native Seed? How To Treat Perennial Native Seed Just Like The Birds
The Refuge Permaculture Center 