Hi v1rtu0s1ty,

I'll try to take some pictures this weekend (though it is supposed to rain both days).

I'm away at the moment, but a few days ago there were areas that were up and growing quite well with a very nice green color. Other areas seem to still be waking up.

But with temps in the mid 70s today maybe tomorrow, I'm hoping for some good progress by the weekend.

I've noticed a touch of powdery mildew on the northeastern-side of the house in the fall. But it isn't really that bad. It doesn't generate a dust cloud, as I think you indicated in one post.

It just looks like there is a bit of white on the tips of the blade. Of course, this only happens in the late fall. The rest of the year there is no sign of it.

And the grass never seems the worse for wear. I've done nothing to treat it. It just goes away when conditions improve. The grass there remains very thick and dark green most of the year.

You didn't ask this, but I will suggest that if you are worried about Powdery Mildew (and frankly, based on my experience, I would NOT be), you should discuss it with Bestlawn and try to figure out the right blend of KBGs for you.

I believe the Midnight types are less resistant to it than some of the others, like Bedazzled or Moonlight. So, maybe you would want to lean your blend more heavily in that direction.

For what it is worth, I've been experimenting in the backyard with a monostand of Midnight II. I can say that I've had no powdery mildew there (The backyard faces north).

The big difference between the backyard and the Midnight II, Moonlight and Bedazzled blend in the front is that the monostand of Midnight II seems to be greening up a bit slower than the front yard. (But that could be simply because the front faces south)

But on the plus the Midnight II monostand seems to be extremely thin-bladed.

Hey turf toes,

I'm really impressed with your lawn. I'm in the Kansas City area and want to try out the Midnight II but can't find it anywhere. Do you purchase it at a retailer there or do you buy it online.

Does anyone know of a good online store that has it?

Thanks,

sweetchuck,

I'd ask Bestlawn for advice on where to purchase it.

It is doubtful you'll find it in a local store. I purchased my seed from Rose-lawn Agri-seed.

They're the same folks who used to operate under the name of Turf-seed Inc. They also had a hand in the original research to produce Midnight KBG.

They're located in Oregon. I spoke with a guy named John Rector there. He seems like a good guy. They sell Midnight II and Moonlight. But if you want Bedazzled, you'll have to get that cultivar elsewhere.

SweetChuck, you can check the list here for several places to purchase Midnight II. Rose Agriseed is probably best as Turf Toes mentioned.

You guys are the best!

Thanks again!

FYI.

Rose Agri-Seed finally has its website up.

Well, their site is pretty interesting. It includes a rundown on the types of grass they sell.

They also explain how Midnight II differs from Midnight. (This site, if anybody, ought to know. Bill Rose, the owner of this company, also previously founded Pure Seed Testing, which, along with Rutgers developed both Midnight and Midnight II.

I know I've now posted three times in a row...

But I just ran across this cultivar on the Rose Agri-seed site.

It is called Moonbeam. It says it was developed by Pure Seed Testing and is a cross between Midnight and Moonlight. It claims to be darker than both parent cultivars.

I may try overseeding the backyard with a bit of it this fall, if it tests ok.

Nice find turf toes! I will definitely bookmark this.

I tried to post my other question earlier but it didn't work.

Did you say you only use Midnight II or was it blended with Moonlight & Bedazzled too?

The front yard, which you've seen via picts, is a blend. 33.3 percent each of Midnight II, Moonlight and Bedazzled.

The backyard is a monostand of Midnight II. (just finished the last half of that project last year...)

Awesome! Last question and I'll try not to take more of your time... :-)

Do you prefer your front or back yard currently?

Currently, the front. But that is because it is waking up a bit early. (That is because the front is getting southern exposure most likely).

I like the very thin blades of the Midnight II monostand. But I have to warn you that I do not encourage anyone to do what I've done in my backyard.

The danger is if some lawn disease hits it hard, I could lose the whole back yard. It just isn't worth the risk, in my opinion -- unless you are willing to totally start from scratch AGAIN after the monostand dies.

I've heard that Midnight II makes a good monostand and so far that is true. But I have to warn you that it is much riskier to do a monostand than a blend of three or more cultivars.

Thanks for the advice. I think I'll stick with the proven winner you have in your front yard. It looks so good it's almost fake!

I would love for you to try Moonbeam, Turf Toes. I don't see much about it in the trials (might be oversight) but a few years ago, John told me it is a more open turf. Not so tightly knit as the other Midnight types, but exhibits superior resistance to rust.

SweetChuck, please take Turf Toes' last post very seriously.

bestlawn,

Will do. I'm the type that researches and try's to do it right the first time. :-)

Thanks again for all your help and awswering all my questions. I am so sick of my current lawn. It takes a beating every year and I'm ready for something new.

I'd be really interested to see the results of a Moonbeam test as well. Not that I'd even dream of replacing it again, but for overseeding purposes in a few years...sure, if it looks good and works with the existing.

If you cross a compact-type with a compact midnight-type, what do you get?

(not the beginning of a joke, really just curious)

Moonbeam

LOL I don't know if you got it. Moonbeam was the result of a compact type (Moonlight) and a compact Midnight type (Midnight).

Normally though, there is no way to answer that. They do the breeding and see what happens. You might expect to get results that are similar to either the mother plant or the pollen plant, but progeny may or may not resemble either, and the offspring are not all the same. Some might have similar characteristics to the mother plant, while others are most like the pollen plant. Additionally, seeds from one progeny plant might produce a different plant altogether. What is ultimately selected is the desirable plant that consistantly produces the same seeds so as to have the same plant with each and every harvest. You wouldn't want to sow Midnight, for example, only to have what grows be something you and no one else can identify.

Hi Mallory,

I waited to reply because I wasn't sure if you were joking with me or not, so I figured I'd let someone else chime in first. ;-) I was of course referring to Moonlight and Midnight being crossed; that was the basis for my question.

Thank you for explaining that "there is no way to answer that." If I understand you correctly, Moonbeam is not yet classified as a particular "type" because we don't know enough about its characteristics yet?

I'm only asking these questions because I know in the past you have (very successfully!) tried to come up with seed combinations that included Compact, Compact-Midnight, and Compact-America, and I was wondering where this new hybrid would fit in that world, given that it is a combination of two of them.

So, is it just too early to tell what "type" moonbeam is? Or has it actually been classified? Or did I just simply misunderstand your post (which wouldn't surprise me)?

Again, I don't plan to be planting it anytime soon, I am just curious.

Thank you as always,
Paul

oops It appears I misunderstood "your" post. I thought you had not caught that Moonbeam was a cross between those two, and I took your question literally. Sorry about that.

Moonbeam is a Midnight type. In this instance, the progeny expressed characteristics most similar to Midnight, but that doesn't mean anything either to answer your original question. You'd expect the offspring to assume the general traits and characteristics of one or the other, but that doesn't always happen. It may turn out completely dissimilar of both. That happens but probably not very often. Something else that has happened is initially a hybrid is classified but then re-classified some time later. While it appeared one way at first, it changed over time of maybe 3-5 years. Again, it happens but hasn't happened often. Soooo, I think the ultimate answer is as I said before, there really is no way to answer. They just wait and see what happens. I probably shouldn't say that though, being that it seems a little too simplistic and doesn't account for intentional breeding, so please take that into consideration.

Turf toes, have you feed your new lawn yet this year? Or when do you plan on it? I know that you feed organically, since this will be my first year going this route, I'm just trying to time the first feeding.

I was going to do so this weekend. But they're calling for rain the entire weekend. But I will be doing it soon.

With the way grain prices have been rising, I'm probably going to give Milgoranite (I am sure I misspelled the name) a try. I know that has gone up too.

But my local grain and hay store here switched to cubed soybean from pellets. So, it won't be as easy to use a spreader with the soybean.

Cool thanks, I was thinking about trying to do it sometime today before it starts to rain.

I'm probably going to give Milgoranite (I am sure I misspelled the name) a try. I know that has gone up too.

Maybe so, but we all know what you mean. Last time I looked at HD, I think is was still the same price as last year, but that was a couple of weeks ago.

"Moonbeam is a Midnight type"

Glenn at Pawnee Buttes claims Moonbeam to be a compact.

Gary, I apologize for my contribution to any confusion.

There are three compact families:
Compact
Compact Midnight
Compact America

Moonbeam is a Compact Midnight Type. He was not wrong to say "compact" but was wrong if "Compact Type" is literally what he meant. To say "Midnight Type" alone is okay since there is only one genetic family of Midnight types, which happen to also be compact.