[MPWG] Stilt grass and other weeds, their functions, uses, and ways to deal with them

[Center for Sustainable Resources]

                                                Japanese Stilt Grass

I have continually attempted to assist people with solving their own 
problems concerning weeds and other issues. This ongoing conversation about 
the specie Stilt Grass seems to be a favored topic at this time. Here in WV 
I have looked at this issue and since it does not seem to register as to how 
to solve such problems with many individuals I will solve it for you.

Stilt grass is a weed meaning it has little use or value. Or, does it?
Stilt grass commonly establishes on damaged sites where practices are such 
that the ecosystem cannot function properly through normal cycling. Most 
often it establishes on disturbed areas such as logging roads where the soil 
has literally been removed. These sites, planted with true grasses by 
loggers will quickly cover with stilt grass because the soil will no longer 
support grasses or herbs, which had grown there before.
Plants such as ginseng and many others have specific requirements for 
habitat. You cannot expect them to continue when their environment has been 
removed no more than you can expect to grow chickens under water.
Ginseng and other forest plants depend on highly organic soils to sustain 
them. It is really more than that. They have specific requirements, which 
are linked to certain species of trees and other plants. In one respect they 
are parasites or at least have symbiotic relationships with everything else 
in their environment. The soils contain various microbes in high numbers 
along with certain minerals, which are supplied by large trees and other 
plants. Survival is not possible if such conditions are not met except by a 
highly artificial arrangement temporarily. So, when this system is broken 
many of these plants affected do drop out.
We live in a non-brittle environment in WV. This means that rest is the most 
powerful tool for curing the problem of habitat destruction. However, in a 
non-brittle environment all space when rested will eventually cover with 
living matter. This is our community dynamics in action. Will it be ginseng 
when this occurs?  These areas will cover with what can tolerate the minimal 
degraded conditions left in the wake of the disturbance.
Evidence: Here on our farm in central WV stilt grass has established on 
logging roads in response to logging five years ago. This area is again 
without good soil and almost no organic substrate of any kind. Therefore not 
many plants I have desired are present in these areas. On one site in a road 
where stilt grass is dominant I placed a large stockpile of horse manure 
compost two years ago for lack of a better place to hold it. I used all of 
this in garden areas within about six months. There was a residue of this 
material left on the ground. The stilt grass has grown up to this area but 
none is present on the specific site. Clover, grasses, jopye weed and others 
have established because living soil was put back on this site. I have been 
looking for evidence going back farther to support this for your comfort. 
Quite by accident I was talking with a well-known landscaper a few days ago 
and mentioned a lot of hoopah about stilt grass. He said why and went on to 
say that when he moved into his house over ten years ago his entire yard was 
made up of stilt grass. He stated that he simply mulched the area with horse 
manure compost (a free material in this area) and has not seen it since.
What constitutes a disturbance? Anything, which alters the soil conditions 
both above ground and below, will alter the entire eco system for the area 
in question.
Example: The forester in WV who has been most outspoken about stilt grass 
“invading” his property is a good example to examine. Knowing this person I 
know that over the years various kinds of decisions have been made from a 
non holistic perspective which have lead up to this. Large trees have been 
removed periodically for income. Large trees have been removed to release 
more favored trees to grow. Just removing these trees has a profound impact 
on that system both in the soil and the light regime, which ultimately 
impacts the soil and community dynamics. This is not to say that removing 
the trees should not have happened but that he does not account for 
unforeseen consequences and is left upset because this plant has appeared. 
This is understandable for someone coming from a linear background. When you 
have a problem shifting gears in you suv you take it to a mechanic and get 
parts replaced. The problem is that nature functions in wholes and this does 
not apply with a forest.
How were the trees removed? From previous conversation I know that a 
combination of girdling and the use of tordon, glycophosphate, and diesel 
fuel have been used. It is commonly known that the use of some of these 
ingredients in this fashion causes fish kills in nearby streams when rain 
events occur after treatment. If these ingredients can kill fish off site 
why would anyone even entertain the idea that they would not kill and 
sterilize the soil?
After all of this an ice storm occurred in that area which damaged a large 
number of trees. His stand like many others in the area was in need of 
forest work to retain some value of the woodland. One activity was to skid 
out trees that had some value and could be sold. This accounts for yet 
another mechanical disturbance. Add this to the fact that the deer 
population is out of control in that area and one begins to wonder why 
anyone would expect any of the original forest plants to remain on these 
sites.
Nature is responding as best as it can by getting the soil covered as 
quickly as possible. Stilt grass is the only specie, which has been able to 
establish. In this respect stilt grass is a very good plant to have around. 
Otherwise erosion would continue and the time of recovery would be far 
greater.
If what you want is something other than stilt grass the habitat must be 
recovered, which supports that, in which you want. This is very simple 
really. If ginseng is what you want the soil needs to be highly organic full 
of living organisms. The light regime must be such that the area stays moist 
yet well drained. The trees need to be large enough to handle water upward 
with needed minerals at the correct levels to support the plants.

Options: The first option is to leave it alone. The consequence of this 
action is that it might take ten years for these areas to recover without 
any influence but they will recover and the stilt grass will go away when it 
is no longer needed.
A second option would be to incorporate organic material containing animal 
manure as mulch right onto the stilt grass so that the losses from 
disturbances are quickly replaced. We know this works.
A third option which mimics what nature used to do before the removal of 
large numbers of animals would be to use animal impact on these areas. This 
could be done with some cheap poly fencing and a solar charger. Running 
these animals and concentrating them on the stilt grass for very short 
periods of time to get the microbial cycling going again while adding 
organic material to the area. I know this works because this is what I am 
doing.
Feeding some hay to supplement this is better for the animals and the soil 
and in fact eliminates the need for seeding. Spraying the stilt grass with 
water tainted with salt and sugar will get the animas to eat it but this is 
probably not necessary. Concentrating chickens on these sites seems to work 
faster than grazing animals. They not only eat the stilt grass but kill what 
they don’t while building the soil.
How will the stilt grass be replaced? Grasses will normally seed in and 
establish. If you want forest plants the grasses will gradually fade away as 
the soil builds and the tree canopy expands. If you don’t have any trees, 
you are stuck with grasses and broadleaf field plants.
Discussions on stilt grass: Yesterday I had several folks on my farm 
primarily to look at critical area stabilization. These are frankly all 
areas left by the logging job five years ago.
Stilt grass was discussed since it was all that can grow on these sites. The 
discussion included NRCS staff, a state forester, and Federal EPA staff. 
Loggers had obviously planted grass on these sites but it could not grow so 
stilt grass established. It was determined that stilt grass is a good plant 
to have around because these areas were not in that bad a shape as a result 
of stilt grass cover. The idea of an enterprise to sell stilt grass seed was 
also discussed since industry folks have had no luck at getting other 
species to grow on damaged sites. However, I pointed out that seeding is not 
necessary.
Some mention of national park areas having stilt grass has been brought up 
as if to say “here is an example of a place in pristine condition” with 
stilt grass. This is also false for a number of reasons. These areas tend to 
be fairly sterile due to over rest. It is not natural to have these areas 
left untouched by animals. This eco system did not develop in that way. The 
forest was periodically occupied by large herds of animals moving through 
and putting back living organisms through urinating, putting down a layer of 
manure, and trampling as they go. What we have now is an over population of 
whitetail deer which have created a system of permanent partial rest that 
results in favored species being diminished while other plants are left to 
proliferate. This is the primary response of an impaired wildlife strategy. 
Yet the impact of the deer from a microbial standpoint remains so low that 
soils continue to become more sterile and lifeless. It can also not be ruled 
out that herbicides and other forms of poison to soil life are being used by 
government officials managing these areas along with ongoing mechanical 
disturbances.
It is easy for people who want to continue with damaging practices to blame 
a weed for their problems but is becoming less acceptable as people become 
more aware of their environment. While I am not proposing that anyone is 
guilty of a crime or that they should be required to stop what they are 
doing I am proposing that the cause of such problems is really far simpler 
to understand and that the continued degradation does not have to happen if 
you don’t want it to be that way.


Below is a response to Jennifer who requested information on dealing with 
“alien invasive” plants. This information is really all that is needed to 
deal with such problems on your own in a way that presents the least 
unforeseen consequences.

“Alien Invasives”
I am responding to this in hopes of bringing some rational decision making 
to what you are doing. This might be too simple or too complicated but I 
will give it a shot.
It appears it is now a vogue issue to look at weeds as invading species with 
the intention to destroy a static eco system. From my observations, the idea 
of native and non-native is not the issue and the language presents a 
problem. So, lets talk about weeds. Weeds are plants that we don’t want 
crowding what we do want. Weeds are plants that tolerate more extreme 
conditions than other plants and establish easily on damaged land.

When dealing with such an issue the manager must first ask why is it a 
problem? Many times we mistakenly assume a plant or animal is a problem when 
it may simply be a symptom of a much larger problem.

There are four key insights, which are universal throughout the world 
concerning eco system processes.

1.	When dealing with these issues one needs to take a holistic approach 
because nature functions in wholes not parts as in linear science. Managing 
otherwise results in consequences not intended.
2.	Environments may be classified on a continuum from non brittle to very 
brittle according to how well humidity is distributed throughout the year 
and how quickly dead vegetation breaks down. At either end of the scale, 
environments respond differently to the same influences. Resting land 
restores it in non-brittle environments, but damages it in very brittle 
environments.
3.	In brittle environments, relatively high numbers of large, herding 
animals, concentrated and moving as they naturally do in the presence of 
pack hunting predators, are vital to maintaining the health of the lands we 
thought they destroyed.
4.	In any environment, overgrazing and damage from trampling bear little 
relationship to the number of animals but rather to the amount of time 
plants and animals are exposed to the animals.
These insights can assist you in responding to problems more effectively by 
addressing the root cause of the problem instead of fighting symptoms.

There are only six tools, which can be applied to eco system processes. 
Technology, rest, fire, grazing, animal impact or living organisms as 
applied with human creativity, money and labor is all you have to work with. 
All of these tools are equal. They are simply what you have in your toolbox. 
How you use them is where one must be very careful.
Eco system processes can be viewed as three windows. The mineral cycle, 
water cycle, and energy flow or solar cycle is the three areas to look at 
when determining the cause of a situation. Community Dynamics refers to how 
organisms develop into communities and interact with each other but are 
always related to ecosystem processes.
Here is a specific list of questions to ask when addressing a natural 
resource problem.

1.	Which ecosystem process is the most appropriate to focus on to help you 
reason out what is happening? If the problem involves an increase or 
decrease in a particular organism, for example, look to community dynamics; 
if it involves a gain or loss of water (e.g. a falling water table) look to 
water cycle, and so on. How would you describe the eco system process under 
consideration in relation to how it potentially could be?
2.	Has any natural disaster occurred that could have contributed to the 
problem?
3.	How brittle is the environment?
4.	Which tools have been applied generally for a prolonged period of time, 
and how?
5.	How does each tool applied tend to affect the eco system process under 
consideration at that level on the brittleness scale?
6.	Based on the answers, what is the probable cause of the problem?
7.	What can be done to remedy the problem? Is this something you can test on 
a small-scale area to confirm that the diagnosis is correct? Does your 
proposed remedy address the weakest point in the life cycle if you are 
dealing with a problem organism?
8.	What criteria could you monitor to ensure your diagnosis and the proposed 
remedy is on target?

The information I have presented to you is crucial if you are to address 
problems in various regions as you have mentioned. Although you may be 
unfamiliar with the principles here it may be the only way to move forward 
without creating more unforeseen consequences.
The western US is a completely different environment than the northeast. 
Your actions using particular tools will result in very different 
consequences from one area to another.
An example of this has to do with rest. California depending on where you 
are is most likely far more brittle than an area of the northeast. In a 
brittle environment rest will likely result in more weeds and more of what 
you do not want as animal impact and grazing becomes more necessary. In the 
northeast rest can be powerful in restoring natural vegetation. However, you 
also mention national forest and parks. It should be noted that even in a 
non brittle environment some of these areas may be over rested to the point 
of poor mineral cycling i.e.: sterile weak soils which can no longer support 
what was there previously. Add a disturbance natural or man made and 
something gets going.

The weeds are actually serving a purpose. They are keeping the soil covered 
and preventing erosion. If what you want is other plants, what are the 
conditions needed for those plants to grow well? Remember the weakest point 
in the life cycle question and turn it around. Most likely you may find that 
the land you deal with has lost a lot of it’s ability to produce plants with 
specific requirements because the soil has lost the microbial life the 
plants require to stay healthy. The forest community dynamics are a little 
more complicated than other areas in that certain trees which are large, 
mature specimens play a role in providing minerals and water along with 
correct light regimes which are crucial to the survival of certain species 
of under story plants. In this case the weeds are again just symptoms of 
much larger more complex problems. Getting the weeds to die off on there own 
as plants you want come back is a way of monitoring progress toward your 
stated goal. It may take a longer period of time since the trees took a long 
period of time to grow and develop the community dynamics you desire. It 
will not be a matter of planting plants and reestablishing them as you might 
begin to see at this point.

It is also worth noting that change in eco systems is normal and should be 
expected.

If you persist in changing these eco systems back to a particular dynamic in 
a shorter period of time, likely actions to look at might be using animals 
as tools to treat these areas (required in brittle areas) having the animals 
to improve the soil quickly to support more desirable species of plants. 
This can be done with holistic grazing or even managing wildlife populations 
(much harder).
Look at what animal species are missing from the environment.
Mechanically removing unwanted vegetation even with animals might be another 
option to address. Spraying the area of vegetation with water tainted with 
sugar and salt makes the plants desirable for animals to consume.
This will not completely solve the soil problems unless this is repeated 
most likely for a long period of time. You may then need to add soil, which 
is suitable for the plants you want to establish.
Things such as stilt grass which have the weakness of a shallow root system 
and frail tops can be eliminated by simply mulching with organic matter deep 
enough to prevent seed from germinating. A friend who runs a landscaping 
business did this a number of years ago and reports great results. Again, 
the mulch rebuilt a strong biologically rich soil since it contained horse 
manure.
Certain plants have other weak points. Ailanthus does not need to be 
eliminated but just keeping out of the canopy will eventually stop it as 
long as the trees are managed Holistically to maintain the proper light 
regime and soil structure.
In Colorado, which is very brittle, the entire problem might be dealt with 
by incorporating herding animals with planned grazing. This may be the only 
way in such an area. The weeds in this part of the world have almost nothing 
to do with the problem, which results with their presence. This area once 
had huge herds of grazing animals.

The key to what I am pointing out is that that land manager must diagnose 
each problem in each area. I don’t know of anything that would apply 
everywhere. I am merely providing you with some examples of how this process 
works.

More harm than good can be done by human decisions made without addressing 
root causes.
I am a farmer. I raise medicinal plants, manage our forestland and raise 
twelve different species of fish along with cattle, goats, and chickens. I 
am also an economic developer teaching people how to produce agro forestry 
crops for income while also being a Holistic teacher and practitioner. I can 
be reached at 304-548-7117.
You may also get some further insight from the Savory Center for Holistic 
Management in New Mexico. I will copy this to Allan Savory as a possibility 
since he did invent the framework I am referring too.

     Fred Hays

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