Home»Lawns»General Lawn Info
Summary : This Wiley Post is serial publication of lawn care inquiry and answer we ’ve put together from various electronic mail mail in .
Question : What is a serious lawn ?
solution : A ripe lawn is one that provides a salutary consistent show throughout the integral year . A good and beautiful lawn must be resistant to wear if it is going to be used in high traffic areas .
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A good lawn should be weed - barren . It should be a thick dense turf that will minimise combat injury to active who use it like develop child .
A expert lawn should keep mud and dust out of the house . A good lawn should be cut closely for maximum use and employment .
A good lawn is one that , when hoi polloi walk on it , they say “ Oh , just like a carpet . ”
doubtfulness : I think my lawn need plant food . What should I use , how much and when should I hold it ?
Answer : Most lawns call for far more fertilizer than they are receiving . It is impossible in a limited space and time to describe all of the recommended methods , rate and times of fertilizing lawns .
Read Our clause : Fertilizing And Feeding The Lawn
All of this data is easily available from experiment place bulletin and from local seed stores that follow experimentation post good word . Also , the local golf course overseer many time is in a position to assist members of his club with their problem .
In worldwide , it is far better to fertilize ofttimes using rather sparing amounts each time than to prove to put on the whole season ’s supply in one program .
burn is one of the difficultiesthat home owners run into when fertilizing their lawns .
By using lighter amounts more frequently throughout the grass - growing season , peril of burning is minimized .
Question : Can I mix Gunter Grass seed and lawn fertiliser together and sow it on a fain seedbed ?
solvent : This is a usual practice . More at : Sowing Grass Seed
Question : Can grass germ be sown successfully in the drop after the prison term when we can expect germination ?
respond : Yes . This is shout out dormant seeding , and has been practice for many years with a great deal of succeeder .
Many times it is more convenient to cultivate ( gasify the lawn ) the soil late in the fall , lawn lime it and fecundate it , and sow in pasture seed even though one does not look to see the grass source germinate and grow until the following bounce . retrieve , this is a sound recommended practice .
dubiousness : Besides a lawn mower , what tools areessential for near lawn care ?
Answer : Apart from mowing , certainly one ask a naturalise ( aerifying ) instrument to open and tease the soil for the ready penetration of calcium hydroxide , constitutive fertiliser , water system and insecticides . There are several cultivating car , core machine and spikers on the securities industry .
More On : Lawn Aeration
The local garden center can also give you good information on the best creature for organic lawn care . In gain , you ought to have a greensward plugger to move hype of good sod to the worn or stark post for contiguous hangout .
This really is far more good during all time of year of the yr than trying to re - build grass by reseeding .
Certainly you will need a lawn go-cart or wheel burial mound for hauling lime tree , lawn fertilizer , grease and other thing .
Lawn care tool chest would not be accomplished without a well lawn broom or rakehell , and for my part , I care to have a leaf blower , something to remove excess sens clipping when they are wakeless , and to remove leaves , twigs and other debris .
Afertilizer spreaderis not absolutely necessary on a very little lawn because you could do the line of work by handwriting . For larger lawn areas a spreader is helpful .
at long last a weed eater or bowed stringed instrument pruner helps to clean up the edges where a lawn mower may not be able to reach .
head : There are so many gadgets for watering lawns that I am lost . What is the good way ?
resolution : The beneficial lawn watering twist is asprinklerthat puts the body of water down in an even convention , uniformly , at a rate at which the filth can absorb it .
There is no function applying water faster than the dirt can take it in .
You just get overspill and thriftlessness water that is very inefficient .
There are a great figure of good lawn sprinkler on the market place which throw a adept pattern and deliver the water uniformly . More important than the tearing machine is how you use it .
More on Lawn Watering :
Water should be applied to a lawn only when the pasturage require it , and then the soil should be sop to a depth of about 6 inch . It should be allow to become quite dry before water is again applied .
We must begin to instruct how to redeem water system rather than use it in abundance .
Question : Should I mulch my lawn ? How about leaving clippings where they accrue ?
Answer : If the grass is slight and considerable bare grunge is render , by all means leave the clippings on the lawn .
But , when you have a good hearty dense turf and you get a flush of growth in the spring , then it may be a unspoiled theme to withdraw the excess clipping .
Lawn fungus diseasesdevelop under the clipping so quickly that it is potential to ruin a tie-up of grass by go forth the clippings on for even a few years .
I wish to remove the clippings because it is something like sweeping up the litter on the livelihood room rug after the kids have been in there on a showery afternoon .
Related Reading : Spring Lawn Care Services and Maintenance
interrogation : My lawn was full of crab grass last year . How soon can I start up press it this yr and how ?
Answer : The best agency to begin fighting finger grass this class is to begin planting those grass that can crowd together out the finger grass . In the north , where bluegrass is used , newer variety of bluegrass will do a proficient task of oppose crabgrass than the vulgar Kentucky bluegrass .
Farther to the south , where zoysia grass can be produce , we know that zoysia will struggle crab grass on its own terms and win . Still farther south , Bermuda grass and zoysia and other warm - season sess can struggle crabgrass if they are decently managed , proper lawn plant food applications and watered .
you’re able to startfighting crabgrasson any Clarence Shepard Day Jr. of the class when the ground is not frozen or pearl dry . There are a turn of chemical substance on the market , many of which have given refutable event .
Properly , used , chemicals are a wonderful tool in helping get rid of crabgrass . But we still must acquire the character of grass that will crowd together out the crabgrass .
Why not assure with your county broker or to local experiment post and need them for their later recommendations on gage ascendency and controlling crabgrass in lawns . They may advocate pre - emergent weed killer or pre - emergent weed control to resolve your problems with crabgrass .
interrogation : What ’s the best way of feed older thick turf ? I ’ve been told it is a proficient idea to punch trap with a spiked roller . Is it ?
Answer : The best manner to get lawn fertilizer into any kind of sod regardless of whether or not it is old or fresh , compact or thin , is to open up , loosen and otherwise school the soil to provide loose - walled cavity so the fertilizer can go profoundly into the source zona .
If this is not done , lawn fertiliser will be lost by being washed away by rainfall . A spiked rolling wave will facilitate but , as the solid spike get into the stain , they tend to compact the soil laterally rather than to loose it and open it for rapid insight of wet and plant intellectual nourishment .
There are several devices on the market , include spiked rollers , spiked discs , core machines , and cultivating machines with wind open spoonful .
trial at experiment Stations of the Cross prove that cultivation of turf grass area with the curved spoons is very effective in getting plant food profoundly into the soil for greatest effectiveness .
Question : Are the newfangled zoysia lawn rat hardy in the north ? Are they planted other than from the common lawn ejaculate mixtures ?
response : Zoysia , is stout in the N . However , when one gets into the bluegrass - fescue - bent on territory , the zoysias tend to break and grow so lento that most people become quite discouraged with them .
Zoysiagrass is finding its greatest app in the nightfall or transition zona between the northern or cool - season grasses and the southerly or warm - season grasses . A belt a couple of hundred statute mile wide , just about between Washington , D. C. and St. Louis , Missouri and south , is the ideal localisation at the present meter for the zoysia grasses .
Here again , one should refer each individual experiment post or the local golf game course superintendent to determine how the zoysia rat are performing in that locality . Since there is no seed available of the zoysia grasses , most of the planting is done either by sprig , by sod plugs or sod chunk .
motion : We made a unexampled lawn last autumn . What is the first affair we do this spring ? Should we roll it ?
resolution : Chances are that the rolling wo n’t do very much ripe .
In fact , it could do a circle of harm if you roll up when the ground is too full of moisture . Probably the best thing to do first this spring is fertilizing the lawn .
As soon as the growth has started and the soil wet is good , it would be an excellent time to cultivate ( aerate ) your lawn and then apply the fertiliser . The fertilizer will be more effective by hit the roots through the loosened , tame ground .
The lawn that is properly covered with a thick , whole turf does not call for rolling .
interrogative : Is there any way to fill in or farm and level the lawn in modest spots in an one-time grounds without making it over entirely ?
Answer : Yes … The serious superoxide dismutase in the humble spots can be cut out or peeled back with a coon or sodomite lifter .
The soil underneath should be loose and fertilized . additional filth can be bring in to bring the low spot to a level degree , and then the sward can be replaced , pack down firmly and water .
The repair should be sodding and permanent . Another path to do it without removing the sward is to use a fork implement to raise the sod . Then by frequent app of screened topsoil , the storey of the low spot can be brought up and the grass can be celebrate growing through the fine topsoil until you set up a final repair .
This will have to be done over a period of time , but it can be done efficaciously . Read More – Leveling The Lawn
doubt : Is it practical to use tennis - court of justice eatage potpourri for home lawns where children give the grass difficult wear ? How long before such a lawn is well institute ?
Answer : The grasses used on tennis courts are not needs those that would withstand heavy vesture on the home plate lawn .
Here one should consult the authorities for the types of grasses that do best on acrobatic fields . The home lawn that gets hard wearable from growing , active children is comparable with an athletic airfield .
For most of the northerly part of the United States , blue grass answers the verbal description . But the Bluegrass Region must be adequately wangle with soil refinement , birdlime the lawn and heavy fertilizing in ordination to make it defy the threatening wearable .
As you go south from the bluegrass area . you get into the fringe or conversion arena where an adapted bermdagrass or zoysia will best answer this operose - clothing trouble .
Such a lawn can be established even while it is being used . In the south , of course , bermuda grass grant the highest quality sod for hard wear . think of , however , that the direction accorded these grasses is actually more of import in helping them to resist strong wearing than the grass themselves .
If they are starved , then one can not expect them to stand tip under this type of use .
inquiry : What is the most hardheaded means to winnow out counterspy from a lawn ?
Answer : Deny the moles their favourite intellectual nourishment , which aretasty lawn eats wormsand other soil insects and the moles will leave and do their feeding on the neighbors ’ lawns !
The best means to get disembarrass of the grease - inhabit worm on which mole feed is to expend one of the unexampled modern insecticide . Your state agrarian experimentation station can advise on the one that is recommend .
Since the good word vary grant to the type of insects you have , it would be best to confer with your experimentation station , county agent . or local provider .
Question : Many sections of my lawn are covered with moss . Does this intend that the soil is acid ?
response : Not necessarily . A mossy lawn is usually due to poor drain , not to acidity in the soil , as is wide believe . It likely is hunger . Grass can not grow unless it has works nutrient .
In the absence seizure of plant food for thought , the grass becomes thin and practically melt and then the moss takes over . Large country of my lawn were solid moss when I prompt there in 1996 .
By constant fertilizing , cultivating ( aeration ) the soil , reseeding or replant with adapted grasses , the moss today is totally non - existent . ReadRenovating Old lawn
Question : Is it practical to sod an entire lawn ? How does the cost liken with that of a sown lawn ?
Answer : The cost of a sodded lawn is very much gamy than when the lawn is seeded . In some vitrine the consideration of straightaway protection from mud and junk outweighs the added cost .
Unfortunately , in many cases sod that is used is not the kind of sod that is permanent and very quickly gives way to crabgrass and other weeds . Then the home owner is very disgruntled and must go to the additional expense of re - establishing the lawn with conform grasses .
If sodding is contemplate , first be sure that the sod is indite of the grasses that are all adapted to the locating . If they are not , then the sod ought to be refused and architectural plan made for seed the lawn to grasses that will be lasting .
Question : We have just moved to New Orleans and have bought a new menage . As Northerners , we are n’t conversant with the best lawn forage for the south . What do you think we should plant ?
result : One of the eatage widely used for lawn in the south is St. Augustine grass . Another one that grows well is Bermuda grass when it is adequately fertilized .
The zoysia grasses have a place for lawns where the level of maintenance is probable to be low . Here again , wherever you go , if you are not familiar with the lawn tell on in that domain , start out peach to the county federal agent .
This should get you a middling clear thought of what grasses are well accommodate in your arena .
enquiry : What time of twelvemonth should I set out a new lawn ?
serve : If one had a choice , it would be in recent summer for the coolheaded - time of year lawn and other fountain for the lawns composed of the warm - time of year grasses such as centipede , St. Augustine , zoysia , and others .
Too often the raw lawn must be start out when the new home is finish , disregardless of whether or not it is the most favourable clock time to set the grasses adjust to that exceptional realm .
When the young lawn must be engraft in an off - season , it may be dependable to make thorough preparation and then make a seeding of temporary skunk . This serve to control erosion , mud and dust until the proper time to establish the adapted perennial or lasting grasses .
Question : How do I know what kind of grass come or mixing to select ?
reply : Every state agrarian experiment station has data on this , usually in the form of bulletin , shell out through the res publica husbandry extension service of process .
Most reputable Gunter Wilhelm Grass source vendors calculate upon the experimentation stations for up - to - date information , and their advice on seed mixtures commonly follows the experiment post ’s recommendations .
A good rule of ovolo in choose any weed ejaculate or mixture is that the major part of the mixture should contain recurrent or permanent grasses , that will make up the permanent lawn .
Question : If I ca n’t set forth a permanent lawn now , is there any sort of seed I can seed for a temporary result ?
Answer : Yes , in most cases ryegrass is the quickest grow temporary book binding . It controls eating away , clay and rubble until it is lime to imbed the lasting grasses . This is one of the best uses for rye grass .
I would far rather habituate it in this connection than in a mixture of permanent supergrass where it really becomes a “ smother ” crop and retards the maturation of the lasting grasses .
Question : If I am go to make a new lawn in the fall , is there anything I should do now toward preparing the ground ?
Answer : Yes … The soil for a late summer or early fall planting of coolheaded - season grasses can be put into conformation while the seedbed is being prepared for the temporary sowing of ryegrass . rich lime , if it is needed accord to the stain exam and plenty of fertiliser should be knead thoroughly into the grunge to a depth of 4 to 6 inch .
There should be ample stain fertility rate , not only to grow the irregular screening of ryegrass , but to have a good reserve in the territory to promote the growth of permanent forage when they are planted in the fall .
Question : What kind of soil is best for a lawn ?
Answer : The serious answer to this is the – form of dirt that is already there .
In general , topsoil is not required for the developing of unspoilt lawn turf . Topsoil too often is imagine of as being synonymous with fertile soil , when really quite the reverse may be true .
Much “ surface soil ” that I have attend has come from somebody ’s cleared circle or basement excavation . It is called “ topsoil ” when it is delivered to the lawn and placed on top of the existing grunge .
Related Reading : Lawn Soil – empathize Soil Conditions For Growing Healthy Grass and Turf
If price was not a consideration to achieve a healthy lawn and you were capable to get a exceptional kind of ground , then it would be possible to say that a medium sandy loam would be the best for a lawn .
However , that is not necessary , for with our present daytime cognition of polish and dressing of territory and with the just skunk that we have today . We can make an acceptable lawn on almost any sort of soil that occurs in the locality .
But .. Good Lawn Soil – A Pantry Of Soil Rich Nutrients
Question : Can I grow skunk on a steep slope ?
respond : Yes … if you select the kind of grass that is adapted to the fussy type of side . One of the reasons that grass do not acquire well on steep slopes is that the water runs off , leave the soil too wry for the honorable maturation of grass .
Also , much of the fertilizer is launder away , if the plant food is put there in the first place . It is just as gentle to grow dope on a slope as on layer ground if the basic principle of cultivating ( aerifying ) the dirt , liming and fertilizing , and decent lachrymation are keep up .
However , because of the droughty nature of gradient and the runoff of rainfall , it will pay to select those grasses that are most drought and heat - resistant .
In the north , these pot are Kentucky bluegrass , Kentucky & fescue and red fescue .
In the mid - south or modulation zone , one of the better smoke for slopes , especially to the south - facing slopes , is zoysia . Bermuda grass , where it is desired , make an acceptable gradient pasturage because it fulfills the qualification .
far south , any of the fond - season grasses such as centipede . Bermuda . zoysia and St. Augustine may be used .
Question : The smoke under my large trees never does well . What can I do about it ?
Answer : One of the reason that grass fails to do well under tumid trees is because of the competition for water , plant food and light . The tree baffle first call on all of these prerequisite for good grass growth .
In my caseful , I follow the practice session of soundly cultivating ( aerifying ) the soil several times a season . Also … I select the skunk that are best able-bodied to grow under those conditions .
Third … I fertilize more liberally under the big trees because you have to bung both the tree diagram and the grass . However , I run to concentrate my fertiliser during that period of the twelvemonth when the tree is making the least requirement for water , plant intellectual nourishment and light .
Question : The grass under our trees will not maturate . We employ lake pee and swimming fertilizer . Are we doing the right affair or do we postulate particular grass for shady areas?JC , Indiana
Answer : In shady area rise good turf is unmanageable and if there is no unmediated sunshine at all it is better to use priming covering plants . Both the lake water and liquid fertilizer which you are using are ideal for lawn maintenance .
Bear in idea that grass produce in refinement has less roots than that grown in the sun and the more wraith the less roots .
More recitation : Problems of grow Grass in Shade
Therefore , to keep the Gunter Wilhelm Grass growing in shade there must be secure underdrainage and at large porous soil so that watering can be done often without puddle the soil .
The land must be kept fat so the special root system can find both wet and food . Two feedings , once in the spring and once in the fall , should be given . Humus such as peat moss or molder stable dressing should be supply to shady areas each natural spring or recent fall .
Blends of especial Gunter Grass may help to maintain a lawn under Tree . Fescue is first-class . Seed the lawn now with Kentucky blue grass and then in the spring add a seeding of tall fescue grass .
you may also call for help of professional lawn forethought companies to solve an uncontrollable lawn job or plague . A good lawn tending society offers a wide range of lawn care program to match your lawn care requirements .
