Vegetation Establishment

Red truck drives down gravel road, as man stands atop truck pointing green liquid spray into ditch

Planting in roadsides follow projects like road regrades, drainage improvement, and culvert and bridge replacement, as establishing vegetation is important for site stability. Each site is inspected and management decisions are made based on site location, conditions, and concerns for soil erosion.

Roadside construction projects are typically seeded with a high-diversity mix of native grass and wildflower species. Areas like intersections and driveways, where sight distant issues can arise, are typically seeded with low growing, non-native grass species to ensure roadway safety.

METHODS

Story County uses a hydroseeder to perform the majority of seeding operations. This 1,500-gallon truck-mounted sprayer allows us to seed multiple right-of-way sites in a short period of time. When possible, we use no-till drills or drop-seeders to provide better seed-to-soil contact in seedings as this can greatly improve the success of the planting.

A tractor prepares a large, barren bare dirt roadside for planting

Example of when a tractor and drill/drop-seeder is ideal for planting. Hydroseeding such a vast area would not be efficient.