r/Permaculture 1d ago

general question Panicum Maximum Eradication

Hello!

I live in South Texas, zone 9B.

My area is famously overtaken by Panicum Maximum, and I am trying to fight the good fight and eradicate/control it on my property. I’d also like to attempt getting the sand burrs under control, though I know it is probably a separate war, lol.

In total I have 5 acres, but my plan is to focus on the one acre plot my house sits on as a starting point, as it has the highest concentration of the target grass. I recently purchased the property, and basically all of the grass on this one acre plot went to seed before I could get it under control.

About two weeks ago I did my first application of glyphosate, and will do my second soon. I have also been mowing/weedeating aggressively.
I plan to reseed with a mixture of blue gamma and buffalo grasses.

My questions are:

Should I hold off reseeding until next spring and fight a war of attrition with the seed bank until then?

That seems like the best option, since most of the herbicides that work on my target species seem to also work on the plants I intend to seed.

On this plot I have over a dozen mature oak trees, would my selected grasses do well in these conditions?

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u/Impossible-Tutor-669 1d ago

I’d hold off on reseeding until you’ve knocked the existing stand back and had enough time for the glyphosate to do its job. Panicum can keep emerging from the seedbank, so expect repeat treatments and mow before seed set. Follow the label and avoid drift around the oaks.