Effective Treatment of Cogongrass
The good news is that Cogongrass rhizomes only reach about six inches (15 cm) below the surface. This means tilling can be an effective option to reduce the roots’ effectiveness and eventually kill them. This method may not be practical in many cases but can be affordable in open fields dominated by Cogongrass. This should be followed by overseeding with native grasses. However, tilling is difficult in Central Florida’s oak hammocks—“islands” of hardwood trees in otherwise different ecosystems like scrub or sandhill communities.
Long-term control of Cogongrass requires careful application of herbicides over multiple seasons. Despite their shallow depth, Cogongrass roots can form a nearly solid mat, making it difficult for herbicides to penetrate. Multiple herbicide applications may be necessary to ensure all roots are killed. Accurate tracking of herbicide application using GNSS/GPS equipment is recommended.
Recommended Herbicide Treatment
Three Psilos recommends using both glyphosate, which kills the grass blades, and imazapyr, which has a lasting impact on Cogongrass roots. Combined with a surfactant to ensure consistent application to the blades, this treatment can eradicate Cogongrass. Three Psilos, Inc. uses Ragan & Massey’s RM43, available in many farm and garden stores. RM43 combines two herbicides with a surfactant, is rainfast in two hours, and has no entry restrictions for pets or people after drying. Additionally, imazapyr has minimal effect on pine tree roots, making it suitable for use in pine stands.
Our Services
Three Psilos, Inc. cares about Central Florida’s xeric upland sandhill and scrub habitats. To that extent, we want to see Cogongrass eradicated, and have made it our mission to help.
We offer the services of professional landscaping, merged with the careful application of science specific to Florida’s interior dune ecology. This starts with a Site Ecology Recommendation.
Site Ecology Recommendation
Three Psilos, Inc. is proud to offer Site Ecology Recommendations across Central Florida. These are ecology reports that are meant to focus on a single species at your site. Whether an endangered vertebrate species like a Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus), or a Category 1 non-native invasive vascular plant, such as Cogongrass, Three Psilos, Inc. can help you make more informed decisions about the management and/or potential value of your site, and at a speed much faster than any other agency.
Focusing on one specific species within the context of the Central Florida ridges reduces overall costs required, and gets real science into your site much faster than any government agency can, while at a much lower cost than other private ecology firms. Have you wondered if you have a specific species at your site? Is there a species you would like to have? Or would like to have removed? A Site Ecology Recommendation is a powerful tool to help you quickly achieve your vision for your site.
Further, your Site Ecology Recommendation will contain everything needed to create a Site Management Plant, to hire professionals and act as your own General Contractor, or to even do all the management work yourself (DIY). It will include a site description, information about your species of interest, the coordinates of anything related to your species exported as GIS information, as a graphical map, or as a set of waypoints from your site. After the Site Visit, a complete PDF document of the Site Recommendation will be sent via email. This will help make support and management of your site more affordable, and makes specialized, or even endangered, species more obtainable for your site.
Additionally, a Site Ecology Recommendation can be used to help negotiate the price of any lot or land. Finally, a Site Ecology Recommendation can be invaluable evidence in a court setting.
Site Ecology Recommendation
Three Psilos, Inc. has a mission to restore Central Florida’s xeric upland Sandhill and Scrub communities on the Lake Wales Ridge, and on all the ridges… one day at a time.
We use “Applied Ecology” to help heal the land by introducing, removing, or managing certain species in effort to gain even more of our desired endemic species. If you live on or around the Lake Wales Ridge, or…
Cogongrass Treatment (per 1,000 sq.ft./93 sq.m.)
Treatment of your Cogongrass infection, which includes three site visits with hand-applied spot treatments by Florida ecologist.
Further Reading
Armed with the below documentation, anyone can get started helping fight The Battle of the Cogongrass. Three Psilos, Inc. wants to see Cogongrass eradicated from all of Florida. We aren’t doing it for the money, we are doing it for the land. It’s not a business, its a mission.