Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
fruit plantings. This crop is relatively low-growing. While it does not provide
much in the way of clippings to mulch the rows, it forms a dense sod and
requires less mowing than taller-growing crops.
Drought-Tolerant Grasses
In arid climates, drought-tolerant perennial grasses can provide advantages
as alley crops, although some are problematic. Bermuda grass is often
planted as lawn turf in warm, arid regions. Native to Africa and Asia, Ber-
muda grass gained its name because it became a serious invasive weed
there, and it can also become an invasive weed in orchards. Texas fruit spe-
cialists suggest managing Bermuda grass on the orchard floor if the grass is
already present, but not to introduce it into an orchard.
Buffalo grass is less competitive than Bermuda grass and tends to be ex-
pensive to establish in orchards in arid regions. Buffalo grass has not proven
hardy in colder areas. King Ranch (K.R.) Bluestem is a clump-forming grass
that shows good promise as an orchard crop for warm, arid regions. Klein-
grass, another clump-forming grass, makes a good alley crop for the South-
west, but it is more difficult to establish than K.R. Bluestem. Fescues work
well in northern and southeastern U.S. plantings, but they tend to die out in
Texas orchards.
Alfalfa
In Washington State apple orchard trials, alfalfa proved to be an effective
perennial alley crop. In that climate, alfalfa crops normally persist for about
5 years before they need to be replanted. In these particular trials, the alfalfa
created an effective alley crop and the large amount of top growth that
was produced provided good weed control when blown into the tree rows
as mulch. In related trials, however, alleyways maintained in alfalfa became
heavily weed-infested.
