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| Publication Type:
| Report |
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| Content Type: | Abstract or Summary only |
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| Author(s): | Hughes, Melody |
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| Author Affiliation: | Vegetation Management Section, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin, TX 78701 |
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| Title: | Wildflower management on Texas highways |
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| Meeting Info.: | 50th Annual Meeting, Houston, TX, January 20-22, 1997 |
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| Source: | Southern Weed Science Society Proceedings. Vol. 50, January 1997, p. 127. |
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| Publishing Information: | Champaign, IL: Southern Weed Science Society. |
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| # of Pages: | 1 |
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| Abstract/Contents: | "Miles and miles of blooms grace Texas Highways each spring. The Texas Department of Transportation's (TxDOT) wildflower program is nothing new. Shortly after the Texas Highway Department organized in 1917, Gibb Gilchrist, who was State Highway Engineer, noted that wildflowers were among the first vegetation to reappear at roadside cuts and fills. In 1932, the Department hired Jac Gubbels, its first landscape architect, to maintain, preserve and encourage wildflowers and other native plants along the rights-of-way. By 1934, directives were issued to delay all mowing, unless essential for safety, until spring and early summer wildflower seasons were over. This practice has been in place for more than 60 years and has been expanded into a full-scale vegetation management system. The roadside environment is constantly changing due to construction activities such as widening roads and figureguards and due to the maintenance activities of mowing and levelling up the asphalt. Some of the major reasons for managing vegetation, whether it be grass or wildflowers, are to maintain the integrity of the pavement, prevent or reduce erosion, provide safety, provide maintenance efficiency, provide beauty and provide wildlife habitat. Our wildflower program, which is a part of a comprehensive vegetation management, not only helps our highways look good, but also reduces maintenance. The program is designed to reduce cost of maintenance and labor by encouraging the growth of native species that require less mowing and care. It strives to establish a right-of-way that blends into its surroundings. Maintenance techniques used to encourage wildflower growth include safety, or strip mowing which allow the wildflowers to bloom and allows native grasses to emerge. Directives to mow around blooming wildflower areas are included in our mowing contracts. The use of herbicides to eliminate noxious weeds such as johnsongrass allows the wildflowers to be visible. For years, TxDOT maintenance employees have helped nature along in terms of wildflowers. TxDOT purchases and sows approximately 60,000 pounds of wildflower seed each year. In the past, wildflower areas were cut after the peak of the blooming season and before the seeds dropped. The 'flower hay' was then raked up and spread where the Department wanted to enhance or establish a wilflower population. Another method used for wildflower cultivation involves carefully blading a thin layer of topsoil containing wildflower seeds and spreading the soil in a new location. Both of these methods are still in use today. The Texas Department of Transportation wildflower program is part of good stewardship. Today, TxDOT not only plants and enhances wildflower areas but, more importantly, protects and maintains the investment made in the years past." |
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| Language: | English |
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| References: | 0 |
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| Note: | This item is an abstract only! |
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| ASA/CSSA/SSSA Citation (Crop Science-Like - may be incomplete):
Hughes, M. 1997. Wildflower management on Texas highways. South. Weed Sci. Soc. Proc. 50:p. 127. |
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MSU catalog number: SB 611 .S6 v. 50 |
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