Mixed lawn - Questions for the grass experts
Nicholas Contos
4 years ago
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4 years agoNicholas Contos
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Converting lawn to veggies; bermuda grass question
Comments (6)Sheet mulching is my favourite way to suppress grass and weeds and start a new bed. My approach is: first, a layer of cardboard, overlapping such that there is nowhere for grass to penetrate; next a layer of well-rotted manure; then a layer of straw--NOT HAY, (you'd be amazed how many people mistakenly use hay, as opposed to straw!); finally a layer of good topsoil, or my favourite, SeaSoil. You can then plant directly into this top layer. Not only do you avoid all the work of tilling, but you promote a much healthier soil ecology, and subsequently better plants. Be careful of your topsoil sources--I have seen a lot of properties unwittingly import horsetail, morning glory, and other nasty beasts by purchasing cheap material. That will leave you longing for bermuda grass! There is a lot of info on the web about sheet mulching, or 'lasagne gardening', as it sometimes called. A soil test is always a good idea. It will inform you of any deficient or toxic mineral levels, and if you need to adjust your soil pH. Personally, I think you will never make a better investment in your garden. I would mention that using pressure treated lumber for a vegetable garden is not advisable. I would replace it with rough cedar, which is relatively cheap, and will last years....See MoreMixing Bermuda grass with St Augustine for one continuous lawn
Comments (9)Oh yeah, St Aug will absolutely take over if you water weekly, mow it at the highest setting, and only fertilize 3x per year. I absolutely rely on that fact in my back yard. We got some bermuda in it a few years ago during a drought period when I was not home to water right. The St Aug died from the drought and common bermuda filled right in. Two years after that, with some TLC, it's all St Augustine again. Now we have a new puppy so all bets are off. One area will be mulched so he's not a muddy mess all summer, but we're hoping to keep the sunny area green with St Aug. If you inset the stepping stones enough to keep them below the mower, then you will be good. Many years ago my dog wore a path from our back deck to the garage. I had a local decking guy build a wooden walkway, deck style, following the curving dog path. It turned out beautiful, much better than we pictured at first, and lasted 15 years until we remodeled the yard again. The dog was very happy to walk on the wood, too, so everyone was happy....See MoreNew Grass Lawn (From Woods to Grass)
Comments (4)There is another concern, that you may or may not have heard of, and that deals with the soil's natural bacteria and fungus. If you have a woodland, there is a type of fungus that grows naturally, and a type of bacteria that grows naturally, let's call them Type A. On an established lawn, there is a natural type of fungus, and of bacteria that grows naturally, but the problem is that they are Type B. Now that the woods are torn down, there is plenty of Type A fungus beneath the soil, but not Type B, which you need. Mycorrhiza is the specific type of fungus that you need: it attaches (grows from) the plant roots, outward into the soil, and helps the roots do a better job. Google that word, and you can find a lot of articles about it. Here's a link to Bio-Vam, which is a product that I have used, with great success. My office lawn was installed with topsoil that had apparently been sitting around in a bin somewhere for a year or two, and nobody could grow a lawn on that soil. I had just moved into the office, and, purely coincidentally, had just read an article on mycorrhiza fungus, and a highway project, and the difference it had made. Short version of the story (I'm leaving out the secret spray of the product in an evening, then openly declaring, next day, that no one had ever toasted the lawn gods with Irish whiskey, and made the partners come out to do it with me) was that there was a noticeable difference in seven days, and an outstanding difference in three weeks. I am convinced, totally, on the subject of mycorrhiza. I recommend Bio Vam only because it's the only product that I have used. I don't know if it's expensive, nor if it's cheap. It's the only one I have used. But I would seed the lawn, let it sprout, and spray the mycorrihiza. I would also fertilize with Milorganite, or some other sewage-based fertilizer product (there are several brands available on the East coast), as they won't burn the lawn. It's true you're going to lose some percentage of that seeded lawn. Fifty percent? Twenty Five? Ten? If you planted in the fall, you would also lose some percentage of that lawn. A lower percentage? Probably. But it's a function of how well you are able to keep the seed, and then those seedlings, moist but not wet. Keep the hose and nozzle moving, no puddling allowed. No puddles. But most new grass plants are lost when they're about the height of a dime (the ten cent coin) laying flat on the ground. At that height, they can dry out in an hour or two, less if there's a hot sunny, windy day. There's no root to let it grab moisture (the root hasn't grown yet) so there's no sense in any 'deep' watering. Just mist it. But if you do that, then when tomorrow gets here, that little plant will be a little more healthy, a little more tall, with a root a little more deep. And the next day. And the next day. Good luck with it. Here is a link that might be useful: Bio Vam mycorrhiza fungus...See MoreHelp! Lawn expert advice needed on fungus in October
Comments (35)>>The fertilizer I used was 18-0-18 so do you think 10 pounds for 4000 sq ft was the correct amount? 10 pounds per 4K is 2.5 pounds per thousand. That's 0.45 pounds of nitrogen (and potassium, but that doesn't matter so much). It's on the low side. 5.5 pounds per thousand square feet, or 20-22 pounds on 4K, would be the amount to target 1 pound of nitrogen per thousand. For a feeding in the lull period, though, 0.45 pounds of N is fine. The grass isn't particularly demanding in mid to late October. When you winterize, plan to target 5 to 6 pounds per thousand square feet, though. That feeding goes directly into carbohydrate storage after processing. One thing. Potassium's pretty harmless, but there's no need to pay for it or use it if your potassium levels are good. If you're not sure, or if your soil test shows a good K level, purchase nitrogen fertilizers that have numbers like 29-0-5. They tend to be cheaper per pound and don't add things your soil doesn't require. However, even potassium overapplication isn't much of an issue until it gets extreme. A pound or two of potassium per thousand square feet per year isn't extreme. >>I'm going to try the soybean meal and cornmeal next Spring - what does it specifically do and what am I replacing by using it? (The cornmeal is good to help prevent fungus right?) Each organic has its advantages and disadvantages! Corn meal or cracked corn (I like cracked as it flows more easily, but my local grain mill's idea of corn meal is powder-fine) are a poor feeding of the lawn at 1.65-0.65-0.40, but help with fungal resistance for the season. Corn can be applied in fantastically high amounts as a soil conditioner without doing damage and without generating nearly as much stink as other things will (due to the low nitrogen levels). Corn was my go-to when I was adding organic material to the lawn. At the time, it was very cheap, and I regularly dropped 60 pounds per thousand. Soy is a fantastic feed at 7-2-1, but at the amounts used it's not as good a soil conditioner (it works as well, by weight, as corn, but you use a lot less weight). Application of 15 pounds per thousand square feet four times yearly will feed your lawn completely with no other feedings (except winterization, which is special) required. Soy has no other specific advantages, but since it's the heaviest hitter in terms of protein (which means nitrogen), it tends to be the primary feed used by organics people. Soy will replace the feedings you're currently doing if applied in early to mid May, August first, September first, and October first. Your late summer and fall dates may back up a little bit from mine as your climate is a bit colder. Southerners use cottonseed meal instead of soybean meal. Same difference. Alfalfa might be nice once per year in mid September at 10 pounds per thousand. If you wish. It contains growth hormones that will encourage the root density of the lawn to increase. Don't overdo alfalfa as too much in the way of growth hormones actually stops growth. Milorganite is a nice fill-in if your lawn's color is paler than you like. It has good nitrogen levels, some phosphorus, and at 4%, a ton of iron (iron is a minor element and not used in large amounts). Constant use can raise iron levels in the soil and even out the color so it's always the darkest green it can be for the season, weather, and watering levels. Most other things that you can get, like oat hulls, rice hulls, brewer's grains, and so on are comparable to corn in terms of nitrogen and good as soil conditioners if you can get them cheap. Used coffee grounds. These are comparable to corn, although they're exceptionally attractive to worms. Their advantage is that most Starbucks' and many other coffee shops save their spent, pressed grounds for people who want to use them in composting or soil conditioning. Call around and you can sometimes get loads of these for free. Compost is great, and a wonderful soil conditioner, but essentially does nothing to feed the lawn. Worms like it, and it also puts back bacterial and fungal species that have been wiped out by chemical use or flooding. It's not on my recommended list due to the weight, cost, and the fact that you can do all of this with other stuff--but there's an exception to that rule, which doesn't apply here....See MoreNicholas Contos
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4 years agokimpa zone 9b N. Florida.
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