The ongoing heat wave in Oklahoma has people, plants and everything in between withering under the oppressive temperatures and humidity. What’s going largely unnoticed is the many failures of cover crops in the western part of the state.
There are solutions to mitigating droughts and future floods: native plants and grasses, according to Jack Titchener, urban soil health and agriculture specialist at the Oklahoma Conservation Commission.
“Oklahoma already has dramatic weather, which seems to be exacerbated by activities,” Titchener said. “Twenty years of production systems are changing. Food producers, from giant farms to backyard gardeners are changing when they plant and having to contend with increased plant disease and pests.”
One of those producers is Jordan Gee, co-owner of All Tomorrow’s Prairies, a Tulsa-based native plant nursery and ecological landscaping company.
“This last year we had a bad winter drought,” he said. “It hit us pretty hard — one of the worst I’ve seen.”
Gee’s business escaped many issues that traditional landscaping nurseries faced because it focuses on growing native, drought-tolerant species. He said the non-native plants are showing heat stress.
“They aren’t built to handle drought well, and they’re already turning brown and dropping leaves,” he said.
Understanding soil science is key to fostering native plants and grasses, particularly its ability to hold water like a living sponge. The stored water evaporates during droughts, carrying heat away much the same way sweat cools human bodies.
Cities have traditionally been built to channel and funnel water out as quickly as possible. Often, that moves water away before it has time to fill the soil, Titchener said.
Gee views the water issue as two-pronged: not allowing the aquifer to recharge and emptying it to water-thirsty lawns full of non-native plants and grass. He suggests root systems like the leadplant amorpha cansecens, which is a subshrub with a 20-foot tap root.
The state’s location in the Cross Timbers oak savanna is beneficial because the areas adjacent to rivers and streams have large tree growth. This provides shading to soil to keep it cooler and prevent rapid evaporation, Gee said.
Oklahomans have several strategies to minimize heat waves, starting with a change in the local culture regarding land management.
Homeowners choosing native grasses and prairie-style lawns will increase water infiltration, contributing to the ecosystem’s resiliency to droughts and floods.
Cutting lawns less frequently and maintaining higher length adds to the positive impact. Large landowners using methods such as rotational grazing, mulching, cover crops and no till growing will help keep soil moisture. Titchener urged folks to get involved.
“Talk to your city council about land use rules, work on dialogue to educate people,” he said.
Cien Carmona is a freelance writer in Tulsa and a contributor to the Tulsa Flyer.
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