Growing on a septic field
Which grasses or flowers are ideal for growing on a septic field?
**FULL QUESTION**
Dear *Gardening Life*,
What kind of grasses or flowers can you grow on a septic field? Ours is 24 feet wide and 110 feet long. We have to cover it with straw every fall for insulation in our Manitoba winters but I would like to plant flowers and grasses instead and just cut them down come spring.
*—Theresa Loutit, Lockport, MB*
**FULL ANSWER**
Theresa,
Plant cover can help your septic field function properly. But use only shallow-rooted plants. Why not try some shrubby dogwoods (*Cornus spp.*) along with native plants such as low-growing bearberry (*Arctostaphylos uva-ursi*); early-blooming prairie crocus (*Anemone patens*), your provincial flower; prairie smoke (*Geum triflorum*) with its red flowers and intriguing wispy seedheads; tall blazing star (*Liatris aspera*) that has spires of butterfly-attracting flowers; and shaggy-looking wild bergamot (*Monarda fistulosa*). They are all wonderful plants that will put up with dry conditions. For grasses, I love the look of sideoats grama (*Bouteloua curtipendula*) with its blue-green blades; blue grama (*B. gracilis*) whose seedheads dance atop long wiry stems; and little bluestem (*Schizachyrium scoparium*), which turns a lovely russet in fall. Wildflower Farm offers what they call a Septic Bed Meadow Mix containing a splendid mix of wildflowers and grasses. Also, be sure to wear gloves when working on the septic field so you don’t come in contact with anything toxic.
*—Marjorie Harris, Editor at Large*
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