Recommendations for VA TF Lawn (Soil Test & Picts. attached)
Jayson H.
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
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Need advice on restoring lawn
Comments (13)First a disclaimer, seeding in spring is not the best time to do so. You will be much more successful in late summer/early fall. In spring you will be fighting weeds, and your young grass will have to face the heat and humidity of summer as well as the lawn disease that can accompany it. If you choose to seed now, you were warned. Moss in your lawn typically means you get a good deal of shade, the area is damp, and your soil is possibly acidic. You say you had a soil test and your pH was around 7. I have a problem with this number. It is the rare soil in the east that is perfectly neutral unless it has been getting regular liming. If it is 7, then that's fine, and no liming is necessary, cool season turf actually prefers soil to be slightly acidic 6.3-6.8 is a nice range. Also your soil test should have included many more things, pH is only part of the problem. A lot of people think they have compacted soil. You might have it, but odds are it is just unhealthy soil that has an imbalanced Mg:Ca ratio, or very low organic matter, or a combination of things. Aeration is good for compacted soil, but it's not the end all be all. A lot of people prefer to use liquid aeration treatments that contain Yucca, surfactants, kelp, and a few other things. You can buy these solutions or make your own. If you do core aerate or don't, I recommend power raking your yard. If you core aerate, the power rake will break up the cores and fill in the holes to a degree with loosened soil. If you don't core aerate, the power rake will loosen up the top layer of soil, and remove thatch and the dead moss. Yeah, dead, you will want to kill the moss with Moss Out, which is a cheap and effective solution of ferrous sulfate, basically an iron solution. If you do core aerate you will likely bring up some dormant weed seeds, so be forewarned now. If you want to add organic matter there are many ways, one of the easiest is using Milorganite. Using it after core aeration will add it directly to the soil as it should fill up the core holes. The power rake will also help incorporate it. KBG and perennial rye is not a very shade tolerant grass in general. Tall fescue is probably your best choice, since it germinates and establishes fairly quickly, does better in the transition zone, and is the most shade tolerant of the three. It would be advisable to pick cultivars that do best in your area and in shade (the current NTEP trials have a shade trial and it takes place in fairly dense shade). You can use any starter fertilizer you want, I like to do half amounts at seeding, and the other half after the second mow. Also, if you can afford it, I recommend putting Tupersan down at the same time. It will prevent crabgrass germination, but it only lasts 4-6 weeks, so you will have to apply it a few times to get the protection you want. The most important part of the process is watering. You have to keep your seeds moist for at least 2 weeks, and your young grass well watered. This means lightly watering 2-3 times a day for the first two weeks. Then you can lessen the frequency as the grass gets older. Personally I think you are rushing the whole process. If you can live with what you have now till late summer, you will have more time to get everything squared away. A new soil test is in order if you can't find the results of your previous ones....See MoreStarting over, from scratch (Lawn)
Comments (10)So you actually live in southeast NY, Portchester. We are only about thirty miles apart. You can still go with KBG if you want, but the shade issues you have means cultivar selection is very important. 1/3 of an acre is a lot of area to cover, especially when you should be dropping seeds in about 3-4 weeks. It might be easier to do either the front or the back, but not both. If you do so I would recommend doing the back first so you can get your feet wet and learn from your mistakes for next year. Also once you get your soil test back (you sent that out already, right?) you can begin working on getting your soil ready in the front for next fall. I know it's hard to wait a whole year, but grass renovations are marathons, not sprints. Also, a sprinkler system will make it much easier to keep your seeds wet, but it's not necessary. If you decide to get one, time is of the essence. Since the clock is ticking here's what I would do: Soil tests today if you haven't already done them. Round-up the areas you are going to do tomorrow, but once you do that, there's no turning back. Schedule the sprinkler system to be put in a week after the Round-up (if you are going to do that). When everything is brown and dead, mow it as low as you possible can, using the bagger attachment to get all the dead grass up. Then I like to core aerate, north-south, then east-west. Follow this with a good power raking. This will break up the cores, fill in the holes and break up the remaining dead grass. After this (if your arms haven't fallen off) then a final manual raking will smooth is all out and you can remove any dead loose grass. Now it's time to seed. Use a rotary spreader. Apply half the seeds in a north/south direction, the other half east/west. Shoot for the middle to lower seeding rate, don't think more seed is better. More seed equals trouble. Use a water filled roller to press the seeds into the soil. Now you can top dress with a very thin (1/8") layer of peat moss or fine topsoil or compost, but it's not entirely necessary. Apply some starter fertilizer (I use half the recommended rate) and then keep it all moist (not wet) for three weeks. This usually entails 2-4 five or ten minute waterings every day. No one, kids or pets, can use the yard for at least two months, another good reason to do the front and back separately....See MoreClay soil - how do I fix it? Or do I have to?
Comments (63)In case the link is ever broken, cut and paste the PDF file here: Linda Chalker-Scott, Ph.D., Extension Horticulturist and Associate Professor, Puyallup Research and Extension Center, Washington State University The Myth of Gypsum Magic âAdding gypsum to your yard or garden will improve soil tilth and plant healthâ The Myth Upon continued prodding from one of my university extension colleagues, I recently watched several episodes of a well-known gardening program on television. My kids joined me, alerted by my animated responses to the hostâs non-stop torrent of advice. Among many amazing discoveries I learned that by adding gypsum to my yard or garden I would improve my problem soils by changing the particle size and loosening compaction. Further searching on the web revealed that gypsum would also improve drainage, decrease acidity, and eliminate soil salts. Previously, I had heard of gypsum for use in soil reclamation projects, but not for a typical urban landscape. Since gypsum is simply calcium sulfate, could this chemical truly transform soil structure and serve as a fertilizer for yards and gardens? The Reality This myth falls into the category of agricultural practices misapplied to ornamental landscapes. Gypsum effectively changes the structure and fertility of heavy clay soils, especially those that are heavily weathered or subject to intensive crop production. Gypsum also improves sodic (saline) soils by removing sodium from the soil and replacing it with calcium. Therefore, one can see improvement in clay soil structure and fertility, and desalinization of sodium-rich soils, by using gypsum. What other effects will gypsum have on soil and plant health? There are a number of scientific studies on gypsum usage both in the literature and on websites. Briefly, researchers have found: ⢠Gypsum does not usually change soil acidity, though occasional reports of both increasing and decreasing pH exist; ⢠Gypsum can increase leaching of aluminum, which can detoxify soils but also contaminates nearby watersheds; ⢠Gypsum can increase leaching of iron and manganese, leading to deficiencies of these nutrients; ⢠Gypsum applied to acid soils can induce magnesium deficiency in plants on site; ⢠Gypsum applied to sandy soils can depress phosphorus, copper and zinc transport; ⢠Gypsum can have negative effects on mycorrhizal inoculation of roots, which may account for several reports of negative effects of gypsum on tree seedling establishment and survival; ⢠Gypsum is variable in its effects on mature trees; ⢠Gypsum will not improve fertility of acid or sandy soils; ⢠Gypsum will not improve water holding capacity of sandy soils; and ⢠Gypsumâs effects are short-lived (often a matter of months) With the exception of arid and coastal regions (where soil salts are high) and the southeastern United States (where heavy clay soils are common), gypsum amendment is just not necessary in non-agricultural areas. Urban soils are generally amalgamations of subsoils, native and non-native topsoils, and - in home landscapes - high levels of organic and non-organic chemical additives. They are also heavily compacted and layered (and gypsum does not work well on layered soils). In such landscapes, it is pointless to add yet more chemicals in the form of gypsum unless you need to increase soil calcium levels. This nutrient deficiency can be quickly identified by any soil testing laboratory for less than a bag of gypsum costs. (If you need to improve sulfur nutrition, itâs wiser to use ammonium sulfate). To reduce compaction and improve aeration in nearly any landscape, application of an organic mulch is more economically and environmentally sustainable. The Bottom Line ⢠Gypsum can improve heavy clay soil structure and remove sodium from saline soils ⢠Gypsum has no effect on soil fertility, structure, or pH of any other soil type ⢠Most urban soils are not improved by additional gypsum ⢠Before adding gypsum or any chemical to a landscape, have soil analysis performed to identify mineral deficiencies, toxicities, and soil character ⢠Adding gypsum to sandy or non-sodic soils is a waste of money, natural resources, and can have negative impacts on plant, soil, and ecosystem health For more information, please visit Dr. Chalker-Scottâs web page at http://www.theinformedgardener.com....See MoreIt's still too hot to kill all this crabgrass & reseed w fescue (NoVA)
Comments (59)>> He reminded me about the migratory Junko birds that ate much of our bare April fescue seeding last year. You get those too? Around here, they're year-round residents (sometimes). The average Junko (as well as other sparrows) are incredibly lazy. If you scatter just a bit of peat moss atop the blank areas when you dormant seed, they won't be very effective at finding the seeds and tend to do the job of burying them for you. No protection is required when seeding into a partially sprouted stand of grass. You can certainly add KBG to the mix if you like, but keep in mind that it'll tend to take over the lawn over the very long term (many years). Personally, I liked the resulting Abbey/Kenblue bluegrass lawn more than I liked the tri-mix that spawned it. So much so that I renovated to nicer bluegrasses! Under normal circumstances, pre-emergents for incidental weeds go around the time the forsythia blossom (or, when soil temperatures rise over fifty degrees). That takes care of most oddball stuff. You won't be able to apply any pre-emergent at this time as your new grasses will still be sprouting and have to be three mowings old before you use any pre-M or herbicides. Crabgrass sprouts warmer, but may get started in any warm snap in April or May. For that, I'd apply pre-emergent (Dimension, Barricade, most of them work on CG) around June first and realize that it's not going to be perfect. Spot treat any sprouted CG with Weed B Gon Crabgrass Control in July or so when you see it--the lawn will be old enough by then and more....See MoreJayson H.
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoJayson H.
7 years agoJayson H.
7 years agoJayson H.
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6 years agoJayson H.
6 years agolast modified: 6 years ago
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morpheuspa (6B/7A, E. PA)