OT: Eternal Lawn Care Thread
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Hoping this rain.does the trick. Hopefully it just went dormant and not dead. But it’s pasture mix so I have no idea what to expect as this is my 1st time growing this blend.
My ground sucked those thunderstorms right up. By this afternoon the ground was bone dry again. I’m praying with you. I’ve got too much work and money involved to lose those 3 acres.
Cool season lawns have two peak growth periods - spring and fall. That's when you want to hit them with the high nitrogen fertilizers. During the summer lull, the grass grows much slower in response to the high temperatures and high sun angles. The high N synthetic fertilizers could stress and "burn" your lawn unless you deliver much lower than the per thousand feet rates advertised on the bag. You would be better served throwing down Milo or Oceangro. The iron will help it go greener and the lower nitrogen & phosphorus concentrations are much more in tune for hot weather feedings. And yes, Oceangro is locally sourced 😁.
Agree. Another approach you might take is to skip the dimension and use Mesotrione, which gives you a barrier of 30-40 days. You could spray Tenacity once or twice from now until you seed or you could use Scott’s Starter with Mesotrione that will give you some nitrogen (23 if I recall) and prevent weeds. You could also do one and one if you don’t want too much nitrogen. The great thing about Mesotrione is that you can seed with it (unlike most other pre-emergents).
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His soil was compacted worse than I thought. Was really hard to get the seed to germinate so I cut lines with a shovel and put the seed in there. Combination of white clover and grass. The clover is doing much better than the grass so far. I'm hoping that changes over time as the clover does its part in improving the soil. Already noticing a big difference in the color of the soil. Tried to add pics but couldn't figure out how. Anyone know how?
I was tempted to put down my weed & feed this afternoon but i fought the temptation and will wait until sunday after the rain so it can stay on the lawn a couple days. Can't believe i'm so happy it's going to rain all weekend SMH
So I purchased two bags of Oceangro at Yardville supply yesterday. I did not put it down today because of the incoming rain, tomorrow seems to be a wash too. Would I be ok putting it down on Saturday or Sunday with temps expected to be in the 90’s for a few days? I don’t wanna damage the lawn.
I finally put down my weed & feed on Tuesday and had to go out of town. Have no clue how much rain we actually received but it was supposed to rain this morning as well as this evening. Returning Sunday and will be greatly disappointed if my lawn is burned....
It's pretty hard to damage your lawn with Oceangro...maybe if you bury the crowns with piles of the stuff 😆. If it rains after application you're ok too. This stuff works in the soil, much less than through direct contact with the plant leaves.
I put down Oceangro 6 weeks ago and you can still see the black pellets in the pastures. When they say slow release, they mean slow release. Unless you live on a side of a mountain where rain will wash it down the hill you'll have no worry's about it giving your plants too much fertilizer too quick.
Weed and Feed is 28% nitrogen and 24d weed killer while Sunnerguard is 20% nitrogen and bug control. What is your goal with this application?how much nitrogen are you planning on putting down this year and when? In my opinion it’s a bit late for a quick release nitrogen such as in these products. I’d probably put down miloganite or Oceangro for fertilizer and if you are trying to control weeds, you can use the best weed killer for your targets. If you’re trying to control grubs or some other bugs, then there are products that do that. I’m not a big fan of combination products but others love them and use them with success.
So I am about ready for a second application of Lesco 19-0-7 in order to keep the crabgrass at bay for the rest of the season. I did the first application around 3 months ago. I do have some patches of clover in my yard and am a bit disappointed in that development. Clover I understand has some beneficial properties including adding nitrogen to the soil? Is putting additional Lesco down exacerbating that situation or would that only be with the 30-0-05 product?
I googled getting rid of the clover and the suggested method is tenacity with two other component products and a gallon sized sprayer. I assume this could be done anytime.
I googled getting rid of the clover and the suggested method is tenacity with two other component products and a gallon sized sprayer. I assume this could be done anytime.
The Lesco has dimension as a pre emergent so you can put that down to extend your weed coverage and add some fertilizer. Some people love clover, some don’t—personal choice. I don’t like it. Ortho CCO with the active ingredient triclopyr will take it out. Tenacity should too but triclopyr is probably better here. You may need two applications. You can getOrthoCCO at a big box store such as HD.
I put down 3 bags of Oceangro on June 5th and I can notice a difference already. Grass is growing more and is greener. Granted we did get a good amount of rain and the temps are not 90+ anymore so that helps. I did order some Tenacity and a Surfactant to use in my pump sprayer for summer weeds. I would like to seed and core aerate in the fall and from what I've been told and read Tenacity is the way to go for that. I did read it can make the grass a little discolored but it will bounce back. I believe the Oceangro recommends being reapplied in about 6 to 8 weeks, would I be ok doing that while spot spraying weeds with the Tenacity?
Amazon product ASIN B07M9SQ9CQ
Amazon product ASIN B07M9SQ9CQ
My wife won't let me kill the clover in the backyard because the flowers are popular with pollinators. I still have the entire front yard to show off my lawn domination skills. Compromise.
Oceangro and Milo are great! When you seed in the fall you can use Scott’s starter which is a fertilizer with Mesotrione (tenacity), or just spot treat with Tenacity. Tenacity will turn most weeds and weedy grasses white but won’t turn Kentucky Blue Grass, fescues, or perennial rye white.
For those doing their own fertilization, what would you estimate you would spend to cover about 1/2 acre of grass for the typical number treatments? We got tired of buying and hauling bags, using the spreader, etc. Our lawn is looking good finally with the service we use. Costs about $650/year.
In the fall overseed with grass seed wherever the clover is. As the clover helps fix your soil, the grass will take over.
Your wife's way is best, I'm always reminded of this meme when people use pesticides. And it's true, I think the estimate is about 4yrs. after extinction the human race will no longer be able to sustain a viable plant food source.
Your wife's way is best, I'm always reminded of this meme when people use pesticides. And it's true, I think the estimate is about 4yrs. after extinction the human race will no longer be able to sustain a viable plant food source.
This thread has killed millions of bees. 😀
Sometimes I think I could get cancer just reading it.
I'm very leery of Monsantos. I mean a company which got it's start by making Agent Orange is making something you put on the food you eat. Then all the lobbying and money they throw at Senators and Congressman to make sure they can keep selling their RoundUp and other crap? This one has all the smell, looks and touch of being just another Big Tobacco coverup.
There are a number of variables to consider when it comes to cost: amount of NPK per application and total for the year, fast release vs slow release, organic vs synthetic, etc. I prefer organic slow release such as Oceangro or Miloganite. You could do four applications in the year of Oceangro on 1/2 acre for about $300 per year. Actually less if your fall application is 46-0-0 urea. When using a service, labor is generally at least 1/2 the total cost. Here is an article that touches on some of this. https://www.fixr.com/costs/lawn-fertilization#cost-to-fertilize-lawn-per-sq-ft
Big agriculture is really bad news for everyone. Kinda like big tech. People need to get off of the chemical amendments that are caused by fixation on a perfect lawn. It's so hard to produce (chemicals required) because most people's soils are not meant to maintain that type of monoculture.
All the while we wonder why cancer rates are so high.
So I spot sprayed Tenacity 9 days ago. The crabgrass is turning white but still seems to be growing? The tips are turning brown though. I may do another spot treatment on Sunday.
Regarding fall over seeding. I am probably gonna order from Hogan Seed this week a tall fescue blend. Would August 28th be to early to over seed in NJ? I plan on cutting the grass low before hand, then dethatch. I have to find someone to core aerate in Hamilton. Any suggestions? If I am missing something with the over seed process please advise.
Any of you lawn guys ever see this? Thoughts
rollaerator.com
Regarding fall over seeding. I am probably gonna order from Hogan Seed this week a tall fescue blend. Would August 28th be to early to over seed in NJ? I plan on cutting the grass low before hand, then dethatch. I have to find someone to core aerate in Hamilton. Any suggestions? If I am missing something with the over seed process please advise.
Any of you lawn guys ever see this? Thoughts
The #1 Lawn Aerator | Lawn Aerator Tool | Amick Rollaerator
The #1 Lawn Aerator, aerate your lawn in minutes with our easy to use lawn aerator ool, Amick Rollaerator...
rollaerator.com
We only cut our lawn and never water it or use any fertilizer for the last 30 years. Maintain it as little as possible. Lot of clover and various weeds. The grass is green but lots of weeds. IS it worth it for one of those chemical companies to spread their chemicals or fertilizer to get rid of the weed? Does it work getting rid of weeds?
It will get rid of the weeds but you might be left with a lot of bare soil which will make it harder to grow grass. You are better off using an organic fertilizer and over seeding with grass seed. As your soil improves the grass will outcompete the weeds.
Killing everything and starting over is much harder imo.
Yep. I'm a DIYer, and you've got a multiyear project with incremental benefits in front of you. When I bought my house 6 years ago the lawn was a thin weedy mess. Now it is one that my neighbors stop when walking by, to comment on how good it looks (and it is by no means "perfect").
You're going to have to spend some time (1) feeding your grass, (2) killing the weeds, (3) improving the soil, and (4) maintaining moisture balance.
The best first step advice I can give to anyone is: put down a pre-emergent in the early spring (think St Patrick's Day) and if it has a fertilizer component in it as well, all the better. Then do it again a month later. This will stop a fresh crop of weed seeds from germinating this year, helping to break the weed cycle, while also giving your grass some much needed boost coming out of winter dormancy. This will help the grass to get strong & thrive & spread into areas previously occupied by weeds and help them outcompete quick growing weeds that are not affected by the pre-emergent chems.
Good luck!
Looks like a brake rotor mounted to a tiller handle with some cold rolled steel tubing welded to the rotor. I guess it would work.So I spot sprayed Tenacity 9 days ago. The crabgrass is turning white but still seems to be growing? The tips are turning brown though. I may do another spot treatment on Sunday.
Regarding fall over seeding. I am probably gonna order from Hogan Seed this week a tall fescue blend. Would August 28th be to early to over seed in NJ? I plan on cutting the grass low before hand, then dethatch. I have to find someone to core aerate in Hamilton. Any suggestions? If I am missing something with the over seed process please advise.
Any of you lawn guys ever see this? Thoughts
The #1 Lawn Aerator | Lawn Aerator Tool | Amick Rollaerator
The #1 Lawn Aerator, aerate your lawn in minutes with our easy to use lawn aerator ool, Amick Rollaerator...
Have you ever aerated or do you know someone who does it around us? Yup I think it’s a brake rotor. Pretty neat idea
I am a little disappointed by the performance of Lesco 19-0-7 in preventing crab grass. I am starting see some emerging primarily around the edges of my lawn which may be a sign that I did not apply evenly as I am sensitive about precluding runoff, but there are a couple of other spots that I am pretty sure I covered with the two applications in March and June. Oh well I have manually pulled them out before and I guess I will be doing so again.
I've never mechanically aerated. My neighbor did it once; rented a machine from Home Depot. It was loud & heavy and took a lot of energy to control it and without a pickup truck to transport it I decided it wasn't for me LOL. The closest I get to aerating is spraying Air8 on my lawn once a year.
0-0-5 Air-8 Liquid Aeration Bio-Stimulant, Humic Acid | N-Ext
N-Ext Air-8™ Liquid Aeration is designed to create space in the soil, increase water penetration, and encourage deeper rooting to drive more oxygen into the topsoil profile. One gallon covers up to 21,300 sq ft Analysis is 0-0-5::N-P-K Contains 8% Humic Acid Great for hard compacted soil...
thelawncarenut.com
I aerated for the first time last year in the 21 years we’ve been in our house. I rented this Billy Goat Core aerator for about $100. Self propelled and uses water as a weight system. Home Depot rents something similar about the same price for the day.
after over seeding, I used 50/50 sand/topsoil mix for overdressing. I’m a complete amateur though so I had no idea what I was doing. I just did it out of boredom. Some of the other guys in this thread know what they are doing. I just enjoyed following the thread and being outdoors during the pandemic! Good luck!
after over seeding, I used 50/50 sand/topsoil mix for overdressing. I’m a complete amateur though so I had no idea what I was doing. I just did it out of boredom. Some of the other guys in this thread know what they are doing. I just enjoyed following the thread and being outdoors during the pandemic! Good luck!
I'm no expert either but I don't believe Topdressing or aerating aren't a must for overseeding. They can help but not a must. The key is soil to seed contact, so as an alternative you need to cut the lawn low , dethach, and us a seeder to get the seeds deep enough into the soil (about 1/4 of an inch deep). Get good seeds too ( I'm doing 4th millennium Tall Fescue this year).
Super important for success - You should prepare your soil by watering before overseeding at least 3 inches deep. After overseeding you must keep the seeds and soil moist for a number of weeks depending on the seed (usually 4-6 weeks) and continue watering until your lawn is established. If this is not done a significant percentage of your seeds will not germinate and your results will not be as good.
You can also put down a started fertilizer with Tenacity in it to prevent weeds while the seeds germinate.
See links below for more information.
Scotts Turf Builder 21.5 lbs. 5,000 sq. ft. Starter Lawn Fertilizer for New Grass Plus Weed Preventer
Scotts Turf Builder 21.5 lbs. 5,000 sq. ft. Starter Lawn Fertilizer for New Grass Plus Weed Preventer 23200 - The Home Depot
Sometimes it takes time to get your lawn moving in the direction you want. But with Scotts Turf Builder Starter Food for New Grass Plus Weed Preventer, you don't have to wait. Starter Food for New Grass
www.homedepot.com
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