FAQ's & How To's

Smooth brome can seriously reduce prairie diversity. It wakes up early, forms dense sod, and competes hard for sunlight, moisture, and space before many native warm-season grasses and flowers have even started growing. If brome becomes dominant, it can thin out wildflowers and simplify the entire planting. The best control method depends on how much brome is present and how strong the native plant community still is. If the prairie still has good native roots and seed present, a well-timed late spring burn can help. Burning in late April or early May can set back cool-season grasses when they are actively growing. This timing is often used specifically to manage brome or Kentucky bluegrass. However, late burns can affect nesting birds and wildlife cover, so they should be used with purpose and care. Early spring burning can sometimes help prepare brome for treatment. By removing thatch and warming the soil, it can encourage brome to green up early. That can create a window to spray brome before warm-season natives are actively growing. This approach requires caution, especially in high-quality mature prairies with spring ephemerals or sensitive early native plants. Mowing can also be used as pressure, especially when brome is pollinating or entering its reproductive stage. At that point, the plant is sending energy upward to make seed. Cutting it then can weaken it more than mowing at a random time. Grazing pressure can also help in certain settings, but it has to be timed and managed carefully. Herbicides such as glyphosate or clethodim may be part of the plan, but one pass may not be enough. After brome is reduced, interseeding may be needed if the prairie has thinned and there is not enough native seed or rootstock left to reclaim the space. Brome control is rarely a one-day fix. It is a pressure campaign.