Spring fertilization of cool season grass in transition zone
7 years ago
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- 7 years ago
- 7 years ago
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Help me select a seed mix of cool season grasses
Comments (3)In Wyoming, zone 3, I would probably discourage using PR or TTTF if you have very cold winters. TTTF and PR can suffer cold kill in very low temps. Also if you have a lot of snow cover, then TTTF will probably have snow mold every year, which can also kill areas of turf. Fine fescues are very hardy once established, requiring little in the way of fertilizer or water but dormancy can be expected in hot, dry summers. If you go that route then I would probably use mostly creeping red fescue as it spreads, but be sure and get a named cultivar, not boreal which is actually common CRF. Kentucky bluegrass is also a good choice, but for your area you would need to choose a cultivar(s) that have very good spring green up and good cold tolerance. Many cultivars that do very well in lower latitudes will be dormant well into spring in your climate. -Can I mix a tall fescue mix with a fine fescue mix for more diversity or would this create all sorts of problems? You can mix most grasses, but you may not like how they look, and again, TF might have issues with cold kill/snow mold. -Will the KBG eventually out compete the Tall Fescues in the Defiance mix? No, but any areas of TF that die will probably fill in with KBG and or weeds, so over time you might have a predominantly KBG lawn. -Is it a problem or a benefit to have the perennial rye mixed in with the fine fescues? I have read perennial rye needs more water and fertilizer than fine fescues. Most seed mixes have some PR in them. The main reason is because it acts as a nurse grass, and makes consumers happy because they see germination in such short order. Unfortunately PR grows very fast when mature, and will not give you a consistent lawn. It does require more water and fertilzer than CRF too, as well as more frequent mowing....See Morecool-season grass (kbb & tall fescue) - Summer fertlizing?
Comments (7)I wouldn't. In fact, our Extension only promotes fertilizing lawns in fall, late fall...and possibly a light feeding in the spring. If you are having hot temps, your lawn is stressed. Never fertilize a stressed lawn. Wait until Labor Day and then give the lawn a good shot of nitrogen, and again in mid to late November. Don't use a slow release at that time. The plants need to take up as much N as they can and as quickly as possible to store in their roots over winter. That will ensure a really nice show come springtime. Also, your fescue creates new blades from little nubs, called tillers, at the crown of the plant. If there is ample nitrogen in the roots over winter, those tillers will keep multiplying as long as the ground isn't frozen, giving you a much thicker lawn in spring....See MoreGoodbye, Cool Season Grasses
Comments (34)hawksster: I completely disagree with that statement. There is so much science/research is false, fake, unfounded, and/or fraudulent - it's mind blowing." Gary S: I actually found your above statement, insulting. In any case, we have peer review, to try and avoid such introduction of fabrications No, he's right. Latest example: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/sugar-industry-artificially-sweetened-harvard-research/ There are real life (and death) consequences to that. Another example is the peanut issue - scientist claimed for the longest time that one should avoid feeding peanuts to infants because they would develop allergies. Just a couple of years ago, they changed their mind, you actually should feed the peanuts early on to prevent peanut allergies later in life. There's real life consequences to that too, there are now multiple generations of people allergic to peanuts as a result. Another one is the cholesterol issue, for the past 50 years people have been told that cholesterol rich foods like eggs should be avoided. Again, just a few years ago they changed their mind, cholesterol that's ingested has very little effect on cholesterol levels in the blood, the liver controls the vast majority of that. Yet another blooper with huge consequences, altering people's diets for half a century and depriving them of nutritious foods unnecessarily. I'm a big fan of science but there's major issues in the way research is peer reviewed, and the self-correcting mechanism appears to be flawed. Or way too slow. Many people have paid the price....See MoreCool season grasses starting to seed
Comments (4)Just think of me as the Bob Ross of grasses. There are no bad grasses. It's all Happy Mistakes on the grass' part (the grass owner, on the other hand, can be a real PITA). And I even like to paint grasses, too. But seriously, my lawn seems to be having a banner year in terms of seeding, with extensive seed production happening across the lawn. I suspect it's the drier, sunnier, cooler spring we just had. There are grass seed heads everywhere, so the grass is Very Happy. It certainly wasn't from feeding as I fed late and on the low end....See MoreRelated Professionals
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