Site Development and Layout

When arranging a site for a field nursery you should consider natural features of the land as well as length, width, and turning radius required for sprayers, tractors, and wagons. Take care to ensure that rows follow the proper contour. Plan for grass waterways and field edge buffer strips to reduce erosion and sedimentation. Grass strips can effectively slow runoff and trap sediment, thereby reducing soil losses by 30 to 50 percent compared to bare soil. A grass barrier will slow runoff water in front of it, allowing silt to settle out in the crop area before it reaches the grass strip. Buffer strips should be established next to surface water or in fields parallel to rows of planted trees. Strips should be 13 feet wide to meet conservation standards; however, the first 3 to 4 feet does most of the filtering. As slope increases, the number of strips needed increases and the distance between them decreases. Best grasses for buffer strips and grass waterways tend to be sod-forming types, such as fescues or spreading rhizome grasses like bermudagrass since they produce a tight mat to slow runoff and catch sediment. Before planting, prepare these areas as you would other planting areas and incorporate nutrients recommended by soil tests. Mow grass strips at least during the first year to keep the grass from seeding and to encourage a thicker stand. To keep grass waterways and buffer strips vigorous, avoid frequent traffic over them, lift implements above the ground before crossing, and mow and fertilize regularly.

Fact sheets on field border strips, waterways, grading, contours, and terraces available include USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil Conservation Service) Technical Guide Sheets : Grassed WaterWay (421-1); Filter Strip (393-1); Field Border Strip (386); Alliance for Clean Rural Environment (ACRE) Fact Sheet No. 17—Grass Waterways and Buffer Strips: Soil Saving Tools; and North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service publications: Erosion and Sedimentation Control in North Carolina (AG 473-20); Soils and Water Quality (AG-439-1).

Few fields are absolutely uniform in slope, drainage (air and water), and fertility. For optimum growth, crops that will tolerate wet soils such as red maple, river birch, bald cypress, willows, sweet gum, and black gum might be placed on wetter sites. Although crape-myrtle will thrive in moist locations, they should be planted on well-drained sites because they tend to grow too long in the fall and is damaged by frost on moist sites. Dogwoods require very well-drained locations.

Avoid frost pockets with crops such as flowering cherries and Colorado blue spruce, which begin growth early in the spring. A few degrees difference could damage early cherry and plum flowers or destroy the first flush of growth.