Correction, I believe my lot is in zone 6 according to the hardiness zone map for USDA.

-tph018

We can go organic...after the soil corrections. This soil is in fairly bad shape, comparatively speaking, with several nutrients in full collapse. Rapid correction of this is in the cards, which means some creative chemistry.

All feeding can be organic, no problem, we just need the lime, Epsom salt, and 20 Mule Team Borax to correct the soil.

EC 5.0: Sandy soil, possibly with the tiniest bit of silt. This soil doesn't hold many nutrients and shifts fast, so we'll want to keep an eye on it.

OM 5.1%: In the Excellent range. While I'd like to raise this, it's not realistic over 1.2 acres at any speed. Still, mow in your fall leaves and always mulch mow. That'll help raise your EC a little bit and increase water retention.

pH 4.9: Heavens. More below. While a good environment for blueberries, it's not even close to acceptable for grass or most other plants (dandelions, with their deep tap roots, will do tolerably in this, however, as would things like butterfly weed).

Sulfur 32: Kind of high. The calcium we add will dispel some of this, and it's not a problem even as-is. While I have less margin than normal for playing, I also don't need to play.

Phosphorus 393: Well over target and into luxury consumption. No P is required or desired on this soil.

Calcium 32.1%: Abysmally low, and setting off your low pH in part. Recommendations below. Use Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime as the calcium source--most cheaper limes would require far more mass, aren't as effective, are very slow, and are also adding other elements I don't want to be adding in this manner.

Magnesium 5.1%: Very low. In this instance, we use Epsom salt from your local drugstore for a fast, inexpensive magnesium source.

Potassium 5.2%: Nose on optimal, although it looks high due to the amount of calcium you're short. This will adjust itself.

Minor Elements: Boron is deficient. I mention iron below as that'll become a problem as the grass improves.

Boron: We use Milorganite as a carrier and 20 Mule Team Borax as the boron source. In a wheelbarrow or the like, dump the Milo. Spraying very, very lightly with water (I use a spray bottle like the kind people use to damp their clothes when they iron) will help the boron stick. Add the recommended amount of 20 Mule Team Borax and stir, spraying occasionally to get the stuff to stick to the Milo. Then apply over the recommended area. So if going for bag rate Milorganite (1 bag per 2,500 square feet), you'd add 10 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax.

Iron 62: While not deficient, it won't produce the best color as the grasses start to flourish and compete for resources. Whenever you like, apply Milorganite at bag rate to slowly raise this, gently feed, and increase organic matter in the lawn.

Recommendations:

Now: Apply 9 pounds per thousand square feet Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime.

July 15: Apply 2 pounds per thousand square feet of Epsom salt. Try to time this one before a rainfall.

August 1: Apply 4 tablespoons 20 Mule Team Borax as outlined above. Try to time this before a rainfall.

September 15: Apply 9 pounds per thousand square feet Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime.

October 1: Apply 2 pounds per thousand square feet of Epsom salt.

Thanks, Morpheuspa!

I appreciate your recommendations and plan to follow them in the coming months.

I do have a question: given the size of the lawn at 1.2 acres and the fact that I cannot feasibly consider irrigating the lawn regularly (1 inch of water every week, etc. as prescribed on the forums), is it still possible to achieve a somewhat better lawn after correcting for soil conditions than that which I have currently, all things being equal?

Curious to hear your thoughts on this...

Thanks,

-tph018

You can achieve a far, far better lawn, not just "somewhat."

Mind you, it'll go dormant during dry conditions, so I wouldn't expect stellar during July and August most years. But March through May, some of June, and September to November...absolutely. In Connecticut, you'll probably get more of June than I do down in Pennsylvania, far more inland and further south.

Properly cared for (including feeding appropriately, mowing tall, and mowing before it gets to be half again as tall as the mowing height) grasses tend to look good. They can even look decent when dormant. Sure, they're brown, but it's a consistent brown throughout the lawn without patches of soil sticking out.

In your case, I'd recommend feeding with urea (46-0-0) as it's cheap--not that you have to feed the entire 1.2 acres, either. Just the area you stare at a lot, or is used for parties and cookouts, would be fine.

When using urea nitrogen, just keep an eye on that pH as it's going to drift.

I'm now following Morpheuspa's plan outlined above based on my soil test results. Thanks, Morpheuspa.

Meanwhile, I do have the following questions:

1. I'd like to overseed with Kentucky Bluegrass and was wondering whether it would be more optimal to wait until next August/September of 2016 or whether I may consider overseeding this August/September of 2015 instead? I'm anxious to get the lawn on the right track.

2. My lawn does have a variety of weeds of all sorts. I have been spot treating the weeds with Tenacity based on two applications thus far roughly 2-3 weeks apart (one in mid-June and the other in early July). Assuming I do overseed this August/September of 2015, may I continue to apply perhaps one last application of Tenacity shortly after overseeding?

3. Any suggestions for where one may get urea (46-0-0)? Should I simply call local Agway stores or local feed shops in Connecticut where I would typically source soybean meal for the urea as well?

Thanks in advance,

-tph018

1) You can try...but I'm not sure how it's going to do this year. That pH and the calcium levels have a long way to go.

While I'd like to shift the September calcium app if you seed, I can't do it. It needs enough time before winter, which hits you much earlier than it does me. The new lawn is simply going to have to deal with it, so I'd expect very pale colors on new sprouts the first fall. That's not really a major problem, just not as attractive as it could be.

2) You can apply Tenacity right up to seeding time and it won't impact the new grass at all. Post seeding, you should wait for the third mow (which you probably won't get in this fall). Fortunately, when you seed it's getting late enough that weeds are unlikely to flower and generate their own seed to any great extent.

Tenacity will also suppress weed sprout in the new lawn, without impacting the grass seed at all.

3) Lesco and most garden shops have it. Whether you consider it organic or not depends; it's chemically identical to the urea molecules you create and pee out, but made from natural gas. Of course, I could argue that your soy was made from oil since they had to harvest, fertilize, grind, and ship the stuff, so... :-)

You only need to use the urea in the areas where you don't use the soy--and for property of your size, you can certainly simply skip feeding, let it do what it can, and only feed the areas of the lawn you use. Just don't expect that Kentucky bluegrass will do terribly well in those conditions, it likes food delivered quite regularly in fall.

Excellent advice, Morpheuspa. Many thanks!

I'll keep on the guide path you have kindly provided and update accordingly.

-tph018

Hi Morpheuspa and others,

Based on your recommendations above following my soil test results, I have one more planned application of calcium (fast acting lime) in mid-September and another application of magnesium (via epsom salt) in late-September.

Last weekend, I spot-treated the weed-affected areas of the lawn with Tenacity. (Boy, I have a lot of crabgrass weeds, but that's another story altogether. I'll have to figure out how better to minimize crabgrass in 2016....) I'm now planning to overseed the lawn this upcoming Labor Day weekend with Lesco's Premium Athletic Mix (70% KBG and 30% Rye).

Some questions for you and others on the forum:

1. Will it be necessary to apply starter fertilizer (14-20-4) for the overseeding? If so, should I apply on the same day as the overseeding or should I wait 2-3 weeks for the seeds to begin germinating to apply? I bought lots of starter fertilizer but am wondering whether my already high phosphorus levels from my soil test results (apparently, Connecticut is known to have higher phosphorus levels in the soil) negates any real need to apply starter fertilizer.

2. How short should I have the lawn mowed prior to overseeding? Would having the lawn mowed to a height no higher than 2 inches be sufficient?

3. After overseeding, will it be okay to mow every two weeks thereafter until the lawn mowing season is over? Or should I wait to 3-4 weeks after the overseeding before beginning to mow once again?

4. I live on a 2 acre lot of land with most of the lot being grass and utilize well water and thus am handcuffed with respect to irrigation. As I provide little irrigation beyond what nature provides, will it be crucial for me to irrigate the lawn in the first few weeks as frequently as possible following overseeding to allow for the germination of the seeds? Put another way, if I simply overseed and do not irrigate during the first month, will my success rate of seed germination be close to nil?

5. In the case of feeding with urea (46-0-0), any recommendations on a feeding schedule in the next 12 month horizon? I was planning to put down one application of urea around November 1 of this year. Should I stick to that plan and wait until Spring of 2016 to resume feeding?

6. Are there any other considerations I should make regarding overseeding? Last fall, I had the soil aerated prior to overseeding. This fall, I do not plan to aerate the soil. I was simply planning to use a broadcast spreader to overseed.

Any help is very much appreciated.

Thanks!

-tph018

Fantastic, Morpheuspa!

I love the idea proposed of dormant seeding above! That is excellent advice.

Thanks for the feedback and I will continue as directed...

Best,

-tph018

I believe I have a skunk or two digging up my backyard lawn in the past few nights and ripping up my nicely growing grass (which I overseeded with 70% KBG, 30% PRG from Lesco Premium Athletic Seed 2.5 weeks ago). Whereas last fall when I first moved in, I had a bad case of grubs, and ensuing skunks/crows/you-name-it ripping up the lawn due to lack of prior proper lawn maintenance. However, I believe I have minimized grubs this year by applying grub control (granules from Jonathan Green Grub Control - the Active Ingredient of which is Imidacloprid) throughout the lawn earlier in the summer.

Interestingly enough, the main skunk damage seems to be happening only around the area where I have been actively watering (2x's a day) since overseeding. The skunk doesn't seem to care about the rest of the large 2 acre lot, which I haven't been watering (to the detriment of my lawn itself),

I suspect the skunk has a liking for earthworms that are around the nice grass.

Do you have any suggestions for ridding myself of this evil pest? I have seen cayenne pepper as a possible deterrent. Perhaps I simply go to Walmart and buy up 10-20 pounds-worth of cayenne pepper and spread it around the watered lawn?

Below are some pics of the portion of the backyard lawn that I have been watering after overseeding:

Below are few additional photos of the backyard lawn in progress:

Side portion of front lawn below (this is a *gasp* major work in progress; weeds galore and dead and/or dormant grass from lack of water nourishment; you may also note some pulled up clumps of dead grass in the middle left of the pic. Well, the crows were seeking grubs a few days ago but I just don't think there are as many grubs this year as last year's experience so hopefully the crows don't return; I overseeded 2.5 weeks ago the entire lot but neglected to water this area due to large size of home lot. However, I'll plan to dormant seed in the upcoming months and to water more diligently during next fall's overseeding; at least I have next year to consider!)

-tph018

My dad has a few acres & he bought a tow behind drop spreader that is also a spike aerator--He loves it. I can see the narrow slits being better for the seed than cores & it was only like 200 bucks from HD. Plus you can spread seed & drop it into holes simultaneously while you ride! Honestly without water you'll need to stimulate growth other ways, so check out how ranchers would treat a pasture & mimic that ideology after you get morpheus' soil fixes complete.

I'm planning ahead for the 2016 season as I closely follow the progress of my soil adjustments and fall overseeding...

1. I'd like to use Prodiamine as a Pre-Emergent in the Spring of 2016. If I were to dormant seed in the upcoming months before the first snowstorm, when is the earliest I would be able to apply Prodiamine in 2016?

2. When should I get a follow-up soil test from Logan's Labs? I was thinking April 2016 would be ideal ahead of any further soil adjustments in the spring/summer/fall of 2016.

3. I'd like to apply soybean meal starting with 2016's first feed. I'm thinking early May would be appropriate. The cheapest I can find soybean meal in the Connecticut area so far is $23 for a 50 pound bag. In my case, I would estimate requiring 700 - 900 pounds (14-18 bags) for each feeding. Is $23 for a 50 pound bag of soybean meal the current market rate?

4. What rate are you buying 50 pound bags of soybean meal and which state and which supplier?

5. Outside of Milorganite, should I consider other organic feeding options? Which ones? What is the going rate?

Thanks!

-tph018

1) Technically, after the third mow...which will be a while. That'll be too late for most pre-emergents to catch spring weeds.

You could use Tupersan (Siduron) in spring when the forsythia bloom, however. It won't impact the grass, but it only lasts about a month and doesn't have an extremely wide umbrella of what it stops from sprouting.

2) March or April 2016 is great if you want. Done much later, any adjustments will generally have to wait for fall (I really dislike stressing summer lawns).

3) It depends on your locale. That's not completely unreasonable, but I would continue to look around to see if I can find it cheaper. See 4 and 5 below.

4) I paid $14.25 per 50 pounds this year...in eastern Pennsylvania, which is soybean and corn country (as in there's acres of soybean and corn within spitting distance of my house). I also use a grain mill way out in the boondocks, so prices tend to be a little cheaper just because of that.

5) Not necessarily. While corn once a year is a help in terms of a gentle fungus protection (and to diversify the microbes a bit), sticking with Milo isn't a problem if it's cheaper for you. My heavy hitter is soybean meal due to the low cost locally--it beats Milo's price by a mile. If it were the other way around, I'd use Milo instead.

Rough app levels are as follows (#/K = pounds per thousand square feet because I'm lazy):

Alfalfa: 10-20#/K (the limiter here is the growth hormones, not the nitrogen...this is a weak nitrogen feed, but a good addition in early September to encourage root growth).

Corn: 10-65#/K. The lower end helps with fungal protection, the upper end actually provides a feeding for the lawn, and there's no problem using corn at this level--except for the expense, of course. 65#/K delivers about 1 pound of nitrogen.

Cottonseed Meal: 15#/K. It's difficult to get up north, but the southerner's equivalent to soybean meal.

Milorganite: 20#/K. This is higher than bag rate, but will provide 1#/K of N. This is also rich in iron and contains both fast and slow nitrogen, making it a great pick-me-up for the lawn in addition to feeding it over the long term.

Oats, Rice Hulls, Most Other Random Grainy Stuff: 50#/K. Most grains will be around 2% nitrogen (about 14% protein) and are applied at 50#/K to feed at 1#/K of N. They can certainly be applied at lower rates to help organically condition a soil if you wish.

Soybean Meal: 15#/K. My personal staple. This provides 1#/K of N.

Thanks!

1) I guess if I were to choose only one or the other, which would you suggest: a) dormant seed before the first major snowfall in late 2015 or b) application of prodiamine in spring 2016? Or is it simply a matter of personal preference?

2) Yeah, at your great rate of $14.25 per 50# bag of SBM, I estimate that you are essentially paying half that of Milorganite (which retails in Connecticut for around $15 for a 36 pound bag), assuming you feed to 1# of Nitrogen per 1,000 square feet. That's a fantastic deal!

3) I had been calling a bunch of random feed places in Connecticut including a variety of Agway shops to inquire about SBM for the past month or two. However, just today, I think I may have finally found SBM at a local grain mill for slightly cheaper at $20 per 50# bag and delivered too by the pallet (either 20 or 40 bags)! Either way, the price and delivery beats Milorganite so I think I may just wait until early spring to put in my order of SBM...

-tph018

1) I'd skip it. Tupersan can be worth it at seeding time, but not so much in spring.

2) Actually, Milo runs $13.50 for 36 pounds here. :-) If you get it on sale, you can sometimes hit $12. Do you guys have a local sludge source, like New Jersey has OceanGro? That might be worth it for you. However, in my case, soybean is still the better bang for the buck in terms of nitrogen cost.

3) Perfect! That's a completely reasonable price, and 20 bags can be stored in a garage.

Word of warning: don't ever go into winter with much more than a token amount stored. I swear that mice can smell the stuff from twenty miles when it gets cold, and the result in my suburban garage was four mice. Which is about four mice too many as I'm pretty intolerant of them in the house. One decided to nest in my car's air system, causing much amusement at the local station when I took it in.

Spring has been off to a great start. I last applied a fertilizer application in December 2015 as a winterizer and plan to apply my first fertilizer application of 2016 sometime at the beginning of May 2016 (using soybean meal).

Thanks, Morpheus, for your recommendations!

I can say that the soil amendments along with following the recommended feeding schedules on this forum have helped tremendously with the lawn.

I do not irrigate the lawn given the large lawn size (and I'm on well water) so I am somewhat limited in how frequently I may water the lawn except when nature decides to supply its rain. However, I've been ecstatic by the outcome of the soil amendments and feeding schedule gathered through the forum.

Below is a before and after set of pictures of the front lawn and back lawn. The before pictures were taken almost exactly 2 years ago today (April 14, 2014) while the after pictures were taken today (April 20, 2016).

-tph018

That looks WORLDs better and very nice as it stands! I'd schedule a soil test for May or June this year just to make sure you're up to speed (there are almost certainly some corrections remaining when you start off as tapped as you were).

Watering is really optional. With the projected summer we have coming up, I've already made the decision to let the lawn go dormant--I can't fight a much warmer than average summer with lower than average rainfall and we'll probably have minor water restrictions by August anyway.

Below is my updated soil test from Logan Labs conducted in May 2016.

Overall, my lawn has performed much better since the 2015 amendments made based on morpheuspa's suggestions from June 2015.

It looks like my pH has gone up appreciably from 4.9 in the June 2015 soil test to 5.6 in the May 2016 soil test although it's still on the lower end. I presume any recommendations will call for additional applications of fast acting lime.

I would greatly appreciate a soil interpretation and suggestions for amendments moving forward.

-tph018

Lawn looks great! It is nice seeing people update with pictures and new soil test. I'm currently waiting on the results or my lawn soil test.

I like how this is coming along! We still have some ways to go yet, but it's developing very nicely. pH and calcium levels improved quite nicely, OM is holding, CEC is essentially the same, and so on.

Calcium should still come up a bit. We're done with magnesium, and potassium is showing short after showing very high last time--I'm going to ride that until the next test as I'm not sure which to believe!

I've included the recommendations below, and they're a lot shorter than last year. The boron recommendations are the same as my original, your levels are just nudging along. Although not critical, proper boron levels do enhance grass performance a bit, so I think they're important.

Recommendations:

Now: Apply 7 pounds per thousand square feet Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime.

June 15: Apply 4 tablespoons 20 Mule Team Borax as outlined above. Try to time this before a rainfall.

September 15: Apply 7 pounds per thousand square feet Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime.

Thank you, Morpheuspa, for your assistance! It is always appreciated...

Fortunately, I still have lots of these key ingredients (borax, both Pennington Fast Acting Lime/Jonathan Green Mag-I-Cal, and Milorganite) stocked in my garage so my wife shall not be getting on my case for buying more lawn care products ;-)

For the June 15 recommendation of 4 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax per 1k square feet, is it possible to use soybean meal as the "carrier" or "vehicle" rather than Milorganite? I believe Milorganite contains much more iron at 4% versus the 1.5% of iron in soybean meal... but just had to ask out of curiosity since I have lots of soybean meal in my garage at this time and wouldn't mind putting it to use.

-tph018

I've never tried to use soybean meal...but I can't imagine it would be a problem. Treat it the same way, damping the stuff slightly. It might cake a bit more, but you can break those up very easily.

There's no chemical interaction with either soy or Milorganite (or, indeed, most other things you'd ever consider using as a carrier for this), so there are certainly no restrictions there!