What is your lawn fertilzer regimen? Milorganite is great for spring summer but the money is in the fall. Make sure you fertilize liberally. By Midwest, where exactly?

I think phosphorus is not so big in an established lawn unless it's really low. I'd focus on nitrogen and potash, both of which can be easily remedied. For sure you should add potash to Milorganite. In the fall you can use "winterizer" fertilizer, typically nitrogen with potash, or you can do the potash separately also.

Thanks for the feedback. I am in the St Louis region. For a fertilizing regimen, I have been ignorantly putting down the Scott's stuff.

First green-up: Turf builder
Late April or so: Weed and Feed
Mid-summer: Summerguard
Early November: Winterguard

You are low in phosphorus and potassium and the easiest way to get more of both of them is to use a balanced fertilizer like 10-10-10 or 20-20-20. You would aim for 1 lb/k of each nutrient, so if using 10-10-10, use 10 lb/k. If using 20-20-20, use 5 lb/k. For other NPK numbers, divide the N number into 100. You should do two applications this year to make up the P and K deficits, so you could do one now and one in the fall. If you prefer to use Milorganite at 5-4-0 (now and in early fall), using 20 lb/k will get you 1 lb/k of nitrogen and 0.8 lb/k of phosphorus but no potassium. You could use 2 lb/k of SOP, potassium sulfate, 0-0-50 in addition to the Milorganite. Do one application now and one in the fall. That's if you choose to use Milorganite instead of the balanced fertilizer.

Do not use any kind of lime. Logan is saying you are low in calcium. You have enough for nutrition but the calcium/magnesium balance is off (you have too much magnesium) and with too much magnesium, your soil may feel hard. Does it? Definitely avoid any kind of magnesium. To get the calcium and magnesium into better balance, it's possible to use gypsum but I don't know how much you would need. Adding calcium from gypsum would reduce potassium as well as magnesium, and you need to keep the potassium. So maybe it would be better just to add potassium this year and not worry about trying to do anything about the magnesium until later on (see how it is next year).

Is the soil test from both the front and back yard? Does the soil seem different to you in the two yards? Fescue generally does not develop thatch. Were you dethatching because of thatch or just to prepare for seeding?

Thanks again for the great advice. A balanced fertilizer may be what I go with, for this year anyway. Would you recommend a Lesco product? Is the lack of Potash really cause such a significant shallow root for the front yard?

The soil is very hard, yes. I never thought that an abundance of magnesium would be an issue but our clay soil is definitely on the hard side. The soil test was a mix of both yards, yes. I dethatched last year (and pulled up a ton) just to make the overseeding more valuable. Unfortunately it really didn't make any difference this spring.

Is there any regiment I should consider for the fall to ensure a better lawn next spring?

Any brand is fine. I don't know why one yard is worse than the other. If you're concerned that the soil in the two yards are different, you could do separate soil tests for the yards next year and see if they are different or about the same. Could there be debris (rocks, construction stuff, etc) under one yard but not the other? Try putting a screwdriver into the ground in various places and see if you hit anything hard. Since you have a tight soil, try this after it has rained when the soil is softer. Speaking of softer soil, it would be good to spray baby shampoo over the yard and then water it in (or do it before rain). Use 3 oz/k in a hose end sprayer and there is no need to be precise, just spread it around. It is a surfactant and could help the soil absorb water better. Easy and inexpensive to try. For the fall, overseed in late August if needed. In late fall use a fast release nitrogen fertilizer after the grass has stopped growing but before the ground freezes. How far north or south are you in the Midwest? If you're in the southern part and have brutal summers, put off the balanced fertilizer until late August. Do one application then and one a month later. If your summers aren't too bad, you could do one now and one in the early fall or maybe just a half application now and then two 3/4 applications in the fall. Fescue needs 2-3 lb/k of nitrogen a year and most (or even all) should be applied in the fall. I don't think you have clay soil. Your TEC is 12.14 which is a good number to have. It holds nutrients well. Clay soils would have a higher TEC.

Agree with becky as usual. The TEC would be up towards 20 if you had any serious amount of clay. High magnesium soils are always, Always, ALWAYS confused with clay soils. Your job, then, is to get the salt balance back in order. Magnesium absorbs dew and humidity keeping the soil moist and even sticky. Magnesium comes in some fertilizers, Epsom salts, Sul-Po-Mag, and a common winter road spray called "Mag" but it contains magnesium chloride. Mag is commonly use in the West to hold dust down on dirt roads. Be sure to avoid those products in the future.

The shampoo should help get moisture through the surface to the base.

I am going to try to make a gypsum recommendation. Keep in mind this is out of my range of expertise, so I will detail how I'm doing it. Logan says your calcium is short 107 lb/ac. Dividing 107 by 43.56, the shortage is 2.46 lb/k. Gypsum, from what I'm reading, is about 22% calcium. Dividing 2.46 by 0.22 is 11.18. So 11 lb/k of gypsum should yield almost 2.46 lb/k of calcium. Gypsum will give you calcium (and sulfur) withiut raising your pH.

Logan says your potassium is short 198 lb/ac. That is 4.5 lb/k. (198÷43.56). Potash (K2O) is 83% potassium. Dividing 4.5 by 0.83 is 5.4. So 5.4 lb/k of K2O (which is the K in NPK) would yield 4.5 lb/k of potassium. That is more than twice what I had first recommended. I was using a different method. I figured the ppm reported (180 /b/ac÷2 at the 6 inch depth reported): 90 ppm. The SLAN method says 120 ppm (Mehlich 3 test) is sufficient. Your shortage of potassium is 30 ppm or 60 lb/ac. Shortage of K2O is 72 lb/ac (60÷0.83) and dividing by 43.56 is 1.65 lb/k. So two applications of K2O at 1 lb/k would suffice. If you apply the gypsum, it will likely displace some potassium as well as magnesium, so it would be better to use more potassium. The way to use extra potassium without overdoing nitrogen and phosphorus is to use potassium sulfate, 0-0-50.

Adding calcium should displace some of the magnesium (and potassium) to bring your calcium to magnesium ratio into better balance. You don't need the extra calcium for plant nutrition, just to better balance the calcium and magnesium. It should make your soil less tight. Do not use lime. Lime will rise your pH and you don't want to do that.

Maybe someone else will weigh in. I've never made a gypsum recommendation and there may be something I'm not taking into account.

If you decide to use the gypsum, you can apply it all at one time. Water it in. Do the first application of SOP two weeks later at 2 lb/k. Water it in. If you want some more nitrogen now, do Milorganite anytime now, no need to coordinate it with other stuff. If you often get brown patch, you might want to hold off on Milorganite (or any nitrogen) until August. You can do SOP in the summer, just water it in. But if your grass is stressed, hold off. You might aim for three more SOP applications, perhaps first part of August, September, October. That will give you 4 lb/k for the year.. Milorganite in August and September will take care of the phosphorus shortage (it was only 1 lb/k according to the SLAN method).

Becky, thank you for taking the time to make some suggestions. This is all great advice and I'm already looking at how to tackle this with the rest of the summer ahead of me. I cannot say for certain about the clay content, but our area contains thick red dirt, rocks and other material so assumed clay. I appreciate your thoughts about holding off on Milorganite now if brown patch is a problem, as I have had to fight some dollar spot in the past. So no Nitrogen now? I am sure the picture is hard to show, but the yard is more yellow than green. I'm just worried about a summer that 'burns' the grass since it is not thick at all and very exposed (we have hot and humid summers).

I've spent a bit of time researching your recommendations and am thinking the following:

- Apply some baby shampoo (may try this weekend yet)
- Put down 11 lb/k of gypsum (will likely tackle this next weekend)
- SOP two weeks later, then again in August, Sept and October? Or only three applications total?
- Milorganite in August and again in September
- Early fall - overseed
- November - fast release nitrogen fertilizer

What about the K20? (Sorry my research isn't helping me out there).

Thoughts? Is this the better plan than your first recommendation of a balanced 10-10-10 now and another later in the summer?

Thank you very much again,
Don

Can you find gypsum and SOP? If so, the second plan should be better. SOP is sulfate of potassium, which is 0-0-50 fertilizer meaning it has no nitrogen or phosphorus and 50% of it is potash. Potash is K2O. The K in NPK is actually K2O. So SOP is a good way to get potassium, especially when you don't need much phosphorus. You want a granular product, not a powder. Yes, four applications.

If you think you have a nitrogen deficiency (yellow grass, not growing), then use the Milorganite. You have already used fertilizer this spring so I wouldn't think you would have a deficiency but you are the better judge of that and should do what you think best. Two years ago I used Milorganite in late May on my tttf which had been doing great all spring and by the end of June brown patch had wiped it out. I (fairly or unfairly) blamed the Milorganite. I had had brown patch before but never that bad. I am wary of any nitrogen in hot weather. You are in the Midwest and I am in hot, humid Virginia so you may not have the brown patch problems we have here.

Hi there again. Just as I was about to tackle the recommendations above, and got out the shampoo and SOP I picked up separately after the weekend away, I get up close and personal with the yard and notice more of a fungal issue than other deficiencies mentioned. I have done nothing yet. Am I now looking at a brown spot or similar infestation I need to tackle first?

I can't tell. Usually brown patch is circular. Are there lesions on leaves? Look on neighboring leaves that are still green. Do you see discoloration on some of the leaves? There are other fungal diseases besides brown patch but brown patch seems to be tttf's nemesis. It might also be poa annua in the process of dying. In any event, to my knowledge, shampoo, SOP, and gypsum do not affect the diseases. But nitrogen has been implicated in making fungal diseases worse.

Hi again Becky. After looking this morning, I think I am facing dollar spot. I can definately see the fungus hanging on the dew early in the mornings in various spaces in the grass and took the attached pic of one of the blades itself. Would you recommend treating this with fungicide (Immunox is what I have) This stuff is spreading like wildfire just over the last few days. This time of year we have heavy dew in the mornings. Despite my April treatment with the Scotts stuff, I truly think putting down some nitrogen would help both problems I am experiencing in this yard.

Thoughts?

Looks like you have a mix of fescue and bluegrass. Brown Patch looks very similar to Dollar Spot in KBG. Since this is a new seeding, you probably stand a good chance to lose the entire lawn if you don't act immediately.

Thanks j4c11, that is my fear. My sides and backyard looks wonderfully green. Not really new seeding, this is sod put down in late 2013, but I did overseed in the fall. Would you suggest the fungicide?

Yep, spray immediately with what you have. Get yourself a bottle of Patch Pro and continue spraying at 1oz/K every 2 weeks through summer. Once you stop it will come back if favorable conditions remain. My suggestion would be to extend the fungicide regimen to non-affected areas as well as a a preventive. Bag clippings, wash your mower deck and sterilize your mower blade before mowing areas not yet affected.

Got it. I have Immunox but will get my hands on the Patch Pro for the next treatment. Good advice on cleaning the mower; will do!

If it's dollar spot, slow release nitrogen in late spring (now) would be helpful: dollar spot

Milorganite is mostly slow release. There is also some fast release in it to spur some growth.