My orchard was in a lawn for 20 years. That did require mowing the alleyways. I used Roundup to keep a narrow weed free strip in the tree row. I don't think you will find a lower labor option unless you settle for unmowen weeds and clover.

@fruitnut: thanks. I suppose I'm hoping that the clover will stay a manageable height without mowing and mostly exclude weeds. I could mow it when it get too high - maybe once or twice per season. I have a weedy lawn that's full of Bermuda (I really hate Bermuda grass), so I'm trying to find a way to be free of that lawn in the orchard area.

I could reseed with a more desirable grass and mow it as you suggest - thanks again for the suggestion.

The lawn I grew in was common Bermuda. It's not bad if you don't fertilize much. Some of the aggressive stuff is pretty ugly.

You need to look up sheet mulching. Basically layering compostable materials (cardboard, or paper) finished compost, and any other soil ammendments you desire. The top should be top soil planted with some sort of cover crop.

Clover is good, lupine works well too. Comfrey is a great cover crop if it doesnt get too out of bounds in your area. Yarrow is also a great ground cover. Most get a bit tall, but they also have massive root systems which help pump up nutrients from deep in the soil profile. You can also interplant with some low growing flowers to entice some pollinators.

The thing is, where you mulch will eventually get covered in volunteer plants one its broken down. You will have to keep mulching. A combination of mulch and ground cover seems to be the best choice IMO.

"You can also interplant with some low growing flowers to entice some pollinators. "

" Flowering broadleaf plants in the groundcover can attract bees, creating competition for the trees during bloom, as well as subject them to insecticide applications when they are not wanted in the orchard" - University of Vermont

Why not just do the conventional thing and make mulch rings around each individual tree? 5-6' diameter circles will allow the trees to establish quickly- when they are as big as you want them you can let them grow in mowed sod if you like.

Flowering broadleaf weeds will attract pollinators but also attract stink bugs and other fruit pests- in the humid regions, at least. Also seems to keep the dew level higher encouraging fungus. Broadleaf plants also use much more water than mowed grass taking it from the fruit trees during drought. Even when soil moisture is high there is chemical warfare going on that slows the growth of trees when competing with weeds and grasses.

I mulch with shredded limbs. I do get some weeds and grass growing on the mulch, but I use round up on them or weed eat them.

I agree with Hman. All of my trees have 6 ft.wide mulch rings that are heavily muclhed in pine straw. The trees have nothing to compete against and grow much faster, and the mulch helps to retain moisture and reduce watering requirements. I don't have to worry about mowing, and any occasional weed gets zapped with Roundup. Over time, the mulch breaks down and helps to nourish the tree. I replace it every 2-3 years at little expense. You do need to lime the trees every other year, in order to raise the ph, because the pine straw will lower it as it breaks down.

You can also interplant with some low growing flowers to entice some pollinators. "
" Flowering broadleaf plants in the groundcover can attract bees, creating competition for the trees during bloom, as well as subject them to insecticide applications when they are not wanted in the orchard" - University of Vermont

"lowering broadleaf weeds will attract pollinators but also attract stink bugs and other fruit pests- in the humid regions, at least""

The only problem with that line of thinking, is that you can go the other way and say that growing fruit trees causes pest and diseases, so why grow them? It isnt as simple as "ground covers = pests"

Canadian,

I don't know what problems, if any, you have with stink bugs up in Canada, but here in Maryland they are a major pest and extremely hard to control. So while it is true that fruit trees will inevitably attract pests, anything that helps keep stink bug populations down in your orchard without other adverse consequences, is worth doing. I follow Harvestman's system of using mulch rings around my trees and it seems to work well.

I do the same as Harvestman..I do 10' diameter mulch from the first day I plant the tree. In the sand we have here it gives some of the mulch a chance to break down and enrich the soil and makes for a cool moist zone for the tree roots to rapidly expand in to.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I am guilty of trying to reinvent the wheel sometimes. I am planning to grow native fruit trees, so I don't think that pests will harm them too much. These will be the little wild plums that grow on roadsides. I was hoping to plant this orchard and no longer mow that area of the yard, but maybe that isn't feasible. I like trees and stuff more than I like grass, and I mow several acres - I just want to mow less!

I think I will grow in mulch circles and sow grass and clover together after tilling the site. That seems to be the general consensus here - that growing in sod is easiest, but that a cover crop like clover is worth pursuing too. I keep bees, so pollination won't be a problem I think.

@CanadianPlant: I am familiar with sheet mulching, and I like it. However, this will be a pretty large area to try that. I tried to smother the lawn in one area with cardboard, a little compost, and then 3-4 inches of mulch on top - the Bermuda grass just burst through all of that. This experience has made me a little gun shy about smothering the lawn.