Hi Robert42,
It is not a bad sign that you have tiny Maple trees popping up in your
lawn - so take heart! "Volunteers" germinate best in loose, healthy
soil - if the soil is very compacted with not much organic material in
it, seeds have a harder time germinating. First, as a prevention, rake
up as many of the helicopters (known as "keys") in the fall as you
can, this will help alot.
The little ones that you do find growing in the spring cannot survive
several cuttings with the lawn mower, and there's nothing more you
need to do than just mow your lawn. Let the seedlings grow and they
will soon be tall enough for the mower to take care of them for you.
The seedlings along the edges of your garden where you may not mow,
are probably shaded and therefore will not survive for long anyway.
For the few remaining hardy adventurers, spend a bit of time every day
pulling them up by hand or if you prefer, use a cutter or edge trimmer
and cut their tops off (hand pulling is the better option as long as
they are not saplings yet).
If you have children, cultivate a love for nature by giving them each
a trowel and have them gently pull a few up. If the seedlings are new
this year, they are not hard to pull up, especially if the ground is
moist. Pick a nice, cloudy day, pull up a few seedlings and find a
bare spot somewhere that could use a few trees and transplant (be sure
to water afterward).
Herbicides, although an option, are often ineffective and is not an
end in itself - there will always be more little seedlings growing the
following year.
Natural Invaders:
"Any garden or lawn in the vicinity of Norway maples will be bombarded
by the fruit keys of these trees. Efforts should be made to rake up
these keys either in the early spring or fall."
http://www.ontarionature.org/enviroandcons/naturalinvaders/invade2.html
Lawn Mowing:
" Given the prolific seed production by trees this season, it isn't
surprising that some customers are concerned about all the tree
seedlings growing in their lawns. Actually, if you have to be blessed
by a million elm or maple seedlings, the lawn is the best place for
them. They won't tolerate mowing. When they get tall enough that the
lawn mower takes off their leaves once or twice, they are goners. And,
as anyone who has spent hours weeding a forest of elms from their
vegetable or flower garden can tell you, tree seedlings in the lawn
are no problem."
http://www.bachmans.com/retail/WeeklyUpdates2001/7_05_01.cfm
Earth Keeper
"Tegan and her mother, Karen, have rescued tiny saplings,
transplanting them from around their property to a makeshift nursery
in their back yard. Marked with bright orange plastic tags, the
cottonwood, shagbark hickory, oak and maple seedlings are now safe
from the lawn mower’s blades."
http://chicagowildernessmag.org/issues/spring2002/campia.html
Additional Links:
Technical Services Topic – Trees We Love to Hate
http://www.asplundh.com/treemag/sum2001k.htm
I enjoyed working on your question. If you have any questions, please
post a clarification request before rating my answer and I will be
happy to try and help. Our property is lined on two sides with Maple
trees so I know exactly what you are talking about. It does look like
an awful lot of baby trees in the spring, but most do not survive long
enough to meet the mower.
Thank you,
hummer
Search Strategy:
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Terms Used:
"MAPLE SEEDLINGS"
herbicide
lawn |
