City of Cassville well underway
with plans to beautify Greenway Trail
March 18, 2020
Vinnie Roberts
For several months, a sign has been up at the end of the Greenway trail in Cassville. The sign explains that, with little fanfare, the city has embarked on an endeavor to beautify one of their most densely travelled natural areas.
At the end of the Greenway, behind the Cassville Aquatic Center, the trail loops around several acres of flat land, currently home to a disc golf course. According to David Brock, Cassville’s director of public works, this space has already begun a series of changes in an effort to bring more natural beauty to the area.
“We’re going to convert about 80 percent of that into native grasses,” said Brock. “We’ll leave the fairways for the frisbee golf course as fescue and keep them mowed to their regular height, but the prairie grass, we’ll just let grow.”
While working on a plan to plant a series of pollinator gardens along the trail with the Barry County Master Gardeners, the group suggested to Brock that the planting of native prairie grasses in certain areas could achieve a similar goal.
“Someone from there had suggested that we plan some native grass out there,” continued Brock. “We researched it and the frisbee golf course seemed like a good candidate as it’s mostly just fescue grass out there.”
According to Brock, the planting of these grasses will have several positive effects on the area, both aesthetically and ecologically.
“This is a good location, because it is bordered by the trail,” explained Brock. “Those fescue grasses will want to creep into our native planting area. We also think that it will be a little bit more challenging for our frisbee golfers. Now, it won’t be just one big, open area. It’s going to take a little more skill to keep you out of the tall grass and in the play area.
“It’s also going to provide a little bit of scenery for our walkers,” Brock Continued. “It will also hopefully draw in more native insect and bird life, which will be more attractive for our people out there on the trail. Native grasses are deep-rooted and will absorb a lot more rain and flood water than a fescue grass. They’re also better at filtering out pollution in the air.”
Brock explained that the project began last year and will continue on into the future for some time. The project has a budget of $2,000, all to come from the park’s department budget.
“We actually began last year,” said Brock. “You have to go through a whole year of killing off the fescue grass. We did the first application of the herbicide and we didn’t want anyone to think that it was unusual, so we put up a sign to explain what we were doing.”
City workers will apply two other applications of the herbicide to the targeted area, one in the spring and the other in the fall of 2020. Afterwards, planting is set to begin in 2021.
Additional planting will be done throughout the year, as well as in the future, to add to the plant life diversity on that section of the trail. In addition to an extra seeding to ensure the density of the prairie grass. Brock explained that additional trees and other native flowers will be planted in the area.
“It’s a long way to go about it just to see some green, but it’s the proper way, as told to us by experts,” concluded Brock.
The initial project is set to wrap after the seeding and planting phase in 2021, but its effects and continuation are expected to extend far beyond.
For more information on this or any other city projects, contact Cassville City Hall at (417) 847-4441.
Vinnie Roberts
For several months, a sign has been up at the end of the Greenway trail in Cassville. The sign explains that, with little fanfare, the city has embarked on an endeavor to beautify one of their most densely travelled natural areas.
At the end of the Greenway, behind the Cassville Aquatic Center, the trail loops around several acres of flat land, currently home to a disc golf course. According to David Brock, Cassville’s director of public works, this space has already begun a series of changes in an effort to bring more natural beauty to the area.
“We’re going to convert about 80 percent of that into native grasses,” said Brock. “We’ll leave the fairways for the frisbee golf course as fescue and keep them mowed to their regular height, but the prairie grass, we’ll just let grow.”
While working on a plan to plant a series of pollinator gardens along the trail with the Barry County Master Gardeners, the group suggested to Brock that the planting of native prairie grasses in certain areas could achieve a similar goal.
“Someone from there had suggested that we plan some native grass out there,” continued Brock. “We researched it and the frisbee golf course seemed like a good candidate as it’s mostly just fescue grass out there.”
According to Brock, the planting of these grasses will have several positive effects on the area, both aesthetically and ecologically.
“This is a good location, because it is bordered by the trail,” explained Brock. “Those fescue grasses will want to creep into our native planting area. We also think that it will be a little bit more challenging for our frisbee golfers. Now, it won’t be just one big, open area. It’s going to take a little more skill to keep you out of the tall grass and in the play area.
“It’s also going to provide a little bit of scenery for our walkers,” Brock Continued. “It will also hopefully draw in more native insect and bird life, which will be more attractive for our people out there on the trail. Native grasses are deep-rooted and will absorb a lot more rain and flood water than a fescue grass. They’re also better at filtering out pollution in the air.”
Brock explained that the project began last year and will continue on into the future for some time. The project has a budget of $2,000, all to come from the park’s department budget.
“We actually began last year,” said Brock. “You have to go through a whole year of killing off the fescue grass. We did the first application of the herbicide and we didn’t want anyone to think that it was unusual, so we put up a sign to explain what we were doing.”
City workers will apply two other applications of the herbicide to the targeted area, one in the spring and the other in the fall of 2020. Afterwards, planting is set to begin in 2021.
Additional planting will be done throughout the year, as well as in the future, to add to the plant life diversity on that section of the trail. In addition to an extra seeding to ensure the density of the prairie grass. Brock explained that additional trees and other native flowers will be planted in the area.
“It’s a long way to go about it just to see some green, but it’s the proper way, as told to us by experts,” concluded Brock.
The initial project is set to wrap after the seeding and planting phase in 2021, but its effects and continuation are expected to extend far beyond.
For more information on this or any other city projects, contact Cassville City Hall at (417) 847-4441.
