Lawn Regimen
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
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Need help finding organic products
Comments (5)I think the commercially bagged materials are better IF (and only if) they have a variety of ground up grains in them. Otherwise you may as well stick to the feed store. If money is an object, definitely stick to the feed store. If money is a very serious object, then make friends at all the Starbucks within driving distance. They give used coffee grounds away for free. Ask for rabbit food. Rabbit food is alfalfa pellets. Disease in zoysia is par for the course, so to speak. More people are driven away from zoysia by disease than any other reason. Why? The grass dies fast and without warning but then takes at least a full season to recover. Too often several seasons are needed to recover. You might consider trying a St Augustine conversion. At least if St Aug is taken out by disease it will recover in a couple months. I would not be hasty to aerate. It won't do any harm but it sure is a lot of work. Once you start on an organic program, your soil will improve. Will it get soft? Maybe but I'm not convinced that having a hard surface is a problem. Serious compaction is caused by mechanically massaging the air out of the soil. The only places this happens is at the edge of a pond where livestock drink. Sometimes machines do the same thing by mistake but if you have had a normal lawn there for a long time, all you have is soil lacking organic matter. Once you get on the 1-2-3 plan for good cultural practices and start using organic fertilizer, your soil will improve whether you aerate or not....See MoreOrganic Solutions to Oxalis, Bindweed and Bermuda Grass?
Comments (8)Thanks for the input, lazy_gardens. After your suggestion, I went on to YouTube and examined some videos showing Buffalo and Blue Grama grasses as lawns. Apparently they require much less water, and that's a definite plus, but I can't say I care for how it looks. I wonder how good it would look well-manicured? I am pretty partial to an emerald-green fescue lawn. If worse comes to worst, I'd probably replace the grass with a different kind of garden altogether as opposed to replacing it with a grass that goes brown in the winter. But I appreciate the suggestion....See MoreLawn care regimen is in need of some guidance
Comments (2)As long as those soil samples have been kept dry they should be okay. Contact your local office of the University of Missouri Cooperative Extension Service and they can advise you better. I think you will find the UMCES people of more help than a commercial lab. When mowing, if the grass clippings tend to clump you are trying to mow too fast, especially if you are mulch mowing, and/or cutting too much grass at one time. Cut more often, if possible, and maybe raise the mower deck and cut less grass off. Some simple soil test you can do that may be of some help. 1) Soil test for organic material. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top. 2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drains’ too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up. 3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart. 4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell, to a point. Too much organic matter can be bad as well. 5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy. kimmq is kimmsr...See MoreMilorganite.......good or bad/safe or unsafe?
Comments (8)It is a biosolid - a fertilizer made from human waste (sewage) - and no biosolid is considered organic according to OMRI. But as to any heavy metals it may contain, they are all well within EPA limitations. In fact, this product is more heavily tested and regulated compared to most fertilizers for just that reason! I personally would not use it on edibles but on lawns or other ornamental landscape plantings, it is a perfectly acceptable and safe product. Milorganite and Heavy Metals...See MoreRelated Professionals
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