Any turf experts here?
- Thread starter steveny
- Start date
Wow! Thanks!
I was told if I don't spray it now it will take over my whole lawn! My neighbors is WAY worse than mine and covers about 25% of his now.
The aeration and seeding info I told OSUGrad about would work for you. In Mass., you can start seeding the end of Aug, begining of Sept. With such a small spot, you can just rake those areas with a stiff rake and then throw down seed. For seed to germinate, it needs to make "Soil-Seed Contact" the soil needs to be exposed with the rake. If you just throw the seed down on undisturbed soil, less than 10% will germinate. (raking wont hurt the existing grass.)
Keep the kids off the lawn as long as possible, but the Turf Type Tall Fescue is durable, so it's not the end of the world if they go on it every so often, even immeditly after you seed. A good rule of thumb is to wait to go on it till you need to cut it.
John Deere will want to sell you a 50 pound bag of seed, they sometimes carry 10 pound bags...10 pounds is all you need, though any left over grass seed will sit in a dry cool area up to 10 years and still germinate.
put down 1000% more seed and no need for raking.:biggrin::biggrin:
If you spray, or pay someone to spray, it will be expensive.
A good fungicide is not cheap,
and,
A cheap fungicide is not good.
A good fungicide Banner Maxx or Compass cost $300-$400 per acre. These fungisides are curatives and systemic(gets into the plant) and will protect the plant up to 30 days.
Cheap ones cure it and protect the plant until its cut off or washed off.
The idea would be to incorperate a variety of grass that will resist these problems in the future.
I'm not telling you not to treat it but there is a reason why it is showing up, your grass does not resist it. One option is to let that grass die, and reseed with a better grass that will resist Necrotic Ring Spot.
Do you have a lawn care service?
No I already have a job as a brain scientist. Sorry.
De-thatching removes the thatch layer plus 20% of the existing grass. It's not bad for the grass, it's just not hte best thing you can do for your lawn. *De-thatching creates a wonderfull overseeding environment.
Core Aeration among other things: loosens compacted soil.
Lets air, water and nutrients in the soil, stimulating root growth and enhancing the activity of thatch-decomposing organisms.
While removing cores of soil, the tines also sever roots, rhizomes and stolons. Grass plants are stimulated to produce new shoots and roots that “fill up” the holes in the lawn and increase the thickness of the lawn.
Reduces water runoff.
Increases the lawn's drought tolerance and improves its overall health.
Creates a wonderfull overseeding environment.
You dont need to do both, core aeration is the best thing you can do for your lawn, and you should overseed after you do it.
Ha, heathbar0 is the most popular guy on the forum today!!! 
One more question, you're talking about coring and de-thatching and tilling and what not.
Before my wife spread seed, she went to home depot and bought this thing on a stick. Basically a long wooden handle and at the bottom was a single wheel with spikes or something like that that she just rolled around the yard, poking small holes into the dirt.
I have a feeling that's not exactly what you're talking about. What should we be doing before planting this next batch of seed and what tools do we need? Probably makes sense to try to rent them if they are expensive, even the thing on the stick was like $30.
Wait!! It's this thing!! OK, it had more 'wheels' than I recalled.... Lowes calls it a "Long Handle Cultivator". I know around the office here when they do the lawn, it leaves these little cylinder shaped dirt things all over the place, and I expect that's what you're talking about, but obviously I don't have access to heavy equipment like that. Just wondering what the manual alternative is.
One more question, you're talking about coring and de-thatching and tilling and what not.
Before my wife spread seed, she went to home depot and bought this thing on a stick. Basically a long wooden handle and at the bottom was a single wheel with spikes or something like that that she just rolled around the yard, poking small holes into the dirt.
I have a feeling that's not exactly what you're talking about. What should we be doing before planting this next batch of seed and what tools do we need? Probably makes sense to try to rent them if they are expensive, even the thing on the stick was like $30
.Wait!! It's this thing!! OK, it had more 'wheels' than I recalled.... Lowes calls it a "Long Handle Cultivator". I know around the office here when they do the lawn, it leaves these little cylinder shaped dirt things all over the place, and I expect that's what you're talking about, but obviously I don't have access to heavy equipment like that. Just wondering what the manual alternative is.
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:wink:
WWHHD~what would hank hill do?
Ha, heathbar0 is the most popular guy on the forum today!!!
awesome! thanks once again... I think I'm all out of questions for you...at least for now .
.
Just for reference, the wife planted the grass in early April I believe. He's the lawn on 5/26
The lawn 2 months later on 7/27 (it's raining out when this was taken)
The lawn 2 months later on 7/27 (it's raining out when this was taken)
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Man, some great questions and answers here.
I'm in Texas so we have hot summers with very little rain (and when it rains, it REALLY rains). I've got St. Augustine right now but it's definitely patchy on the front lawn. I've been told that to do St. Augustine properly, you need to lay sod, not seed. Any truth to that? Seems to me that, at some point, someone had to use seeds.
My lawn WAS well established but the prior owners left the house sitting for nearly nine months and the lawn was a mess when I got the house. I've managed to get many of the patches to recover in part but I'm getting new spots that are very bare.
I've fertilized the lawn but I have not aerated and I have been watering regularly. I don't think watering at night/evening is an issue here since it stays at about 75*F or higher at nights, so water still evaporates overnight fairly quickly.
Suggestions welcome!
I'm in Texas so we have hot summers with very little rain (and when it rains, it REALLY rains). I've got St. Augustine right now but it's definitely patchy on the front lawn. I've been told that to do St. Augustine properly, you need to lay sod, not seed. Any truth to that? Seems to me that, at some point, someone had to use seeds.
My lawn WAS well established but the prior owners left the house sitting for nearly nine months and the lawn was a mess when I got the house. I've managed to get many of the patches to recover in part but I'm getting new spots that are very bare.
I've fertilized the lawn but I have not aerated and I have been watering regularly. I don't think watering at night/evening is an issue here since it stays at about 75*F or higher at nights, so water still evaporates overnight fairly quickly.
Suggestions welcome!
Awesome thread. Especially b/c I need some help! How in the hell do I kill this stuff:
Weed
Tree Sapling?
I'm mowing at 3.5" every week and the above weeds and tree sapling? seems to outgrow the grass by a significant margin. I started pulling them by hand but those damned tree saplings are tough - rarely get the whole things out.
Here's the front a day after mowing:
Front Yard
You can see some of the weeds already growing back.
Weed
Tree Sapling?
I'm mowing at 3.5" every week and the above weeds and tree sapling? seems to outgrow the grass by a significant margin. I started pulling them by hand but those damned tree saplings are tough - rarely get the whole things out.
Here's the front a day after mowing:
Front Yard
You can see some of the weeds already growing back.
I don't know as much about warm season grass as I do transition grass, but, from what I know the best way to fix St. Augustine, is to sod. St. augustine is cheap in the sod form. If you wand to seed in the interum, you can use Rye grass to fill in until the St. Augustine fills in. As you probably know, St. Augustine is very invasive(growing into your landscape beds) if you fertilize and aerate these areas, they should fill in eventually, without having to deal with sod. I think insects are your biggest problem. I would suggest contacting your local University extension, thay are usually your best free advice.Man, some great questions and answers here.
I'm in Texas so we have hot summers with very little rain (and when it rains, it REALLY rains). I've got St. Augustine right now but it's definitely patchy on the front lawn. I've been told that to do St. Augustine properly, you need to lay sod, not seed. Any truth to that? Seems to me that, at some point, someone had to use seeds.
My lawn WAS well established but the prior owners left the house sitting for nearly nine months and the lawn was a mess when I got the house. I've managed to get many of the patches to recover in part but I'm getting new spots that are very bare.
I've fertilized the lawn but I have not aerated and I have been watering regularly. I don't think watering at night/evening is an issue here since it stays at about 75*F or higher at nights, so water still evaporates overnight fairly quickly.
Suggestions welcome!
Watering:
Its not the temprature as much as the humidity.
Do you have an irrigation system?
The light green, fast growing, grass type weed is Nutsedge. Nutsedge is pulled out very easily, but you dont pull out the "nut" 1 inch below the surface, so the best way to treat it is with a chemical called "SedgeHammer"
SedgeHammer can be purchased at a specialty store or the above refrenced John Deere/Lesco store(they are nationwide) For 1 oz. of SedgeHammer it will cost you over $100.00, but you may be able to find a small "Dose Pack" at JD/L for $25.00. This product must be applied with a handcan. It may take 2-3 sprays.
"Saplings":
For the saplings that are hard to control...
Get some Round-up, dump it in a bowl, put on rubber gloves, get a sponge, dip it in the Round-up wring it out well and wipe it on the sappling for the next 3-4 days.
***Warning*** Round-up will kill your grass! DO NOT spray it.
For the little ones, a good "3 way" weed control properly mixed in your handcan will work. You can get this at JD/L and they can point you in the right direction on how to mix and how to choose the right weed control.
You have Bentgrass, you are cutting at a good height, it is the grass that is used on tees fairways and greens. When you cut it as low as the golf course, it will become more accident prone, so I would not suggest cutting it real low.
I would imagine you have irrigation...
The grass your wife planted did well in the spring due to the lack of leaves on the trees in the early spring. The decline is probably due to the shade and possibly the grass seed. A picture of the back in the mid afternoon would help, but from the 2 pictures, and what you said, it doesnt seem to get enough sunlight to dry the soil. An easy solution might be to put a Fungicide down once a month in June, July and August next year I would suggest Compass. You can get it JD/L. The best thing you can do is re-seed this fall.
Thanks for the help. :thumbup: The grass is definitely fairly aggressive and it has filled in some spots nicely but I'm unsure as to what's causing the new patches. I'll probably try aerating the lawn to encourage growth in the poor spots. I'm already fertilizing every 45 days or so.
No irrigation system, just a "manual" one (sprinkler). I just move it every twenty minutes or so. It's a big one - covers about 2000 sq. ft. on full power - so it only takes about four moves to cover the front lawn in water.
Just for reference, the wife planted the grass in early April I believe. He's the lawn on 5/26
The lawn 2 months later on 7/27 (it's raining out when this was taken)
Let's see how this year goes. I planted the turf type tall fescue that was recommended in the fall and again in the spring. I also pissed off my neighbor. The tree causing all the shade is a 40' maple (I think) that sits in his yard. I saw him having his branches cut back and noticed that he keeps it so he has sun in his yard. I went to home depot, bought a $40 electric chain saw and went to town on the branches on my side of the fence that I could reach on a step ladder. I took a lot down, but the majority of what needs to go is 20-40' up. After I was done, the neighbor came out while I was cleaning up going 'WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!?!'. I told him because of the shade, by June/July I have no grass and my kids end up with a dirt lot to play in. He told me he's been trying to maintain a privacy screen between the yards and I've pretty much just ruined that. I told him I'm sorry but you should maintain the screen on your side of the fence, I'd rather have the grass than the privacy. (Nobody can really expect privacy where I live anyway, the houses are all on top of one another with tiny yards if there is a yard at all).
BTW, normally I'd discuss these sorts of things with a neighbor but these people are d**ks, so they get no consideration. Mass law allows me to cut down anything I want on my side as long as I don't intentionally kill the tree or go into their yard.
I've asked the property management company if they have anyone that can take down the higher foliage. Dirt sucks.
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