The yard & garden line is OPEN

[Spring~Fields]

Originally Posted by SunDeck

I stilly think it makes sense to use a variety in the lawn, a mixture of fescue, ryes and bluegrasses. The problem with using only one type of grass is that it's a monoculture, which is less resistant to specific pathogens, and environmental stresses.

Looks pretty cool though.

I think that our yard with its various micro climates (light shade-dense shade to no shade with intense sun, high traffic-no traffic, flat to hilly) proves you correct, whenever I have not considered the differences this year I have received an expensive education that supports what you are telling me.

So if I overseed in September or October with a mix of good fescue, blue grass and perinial rye would it cover my learning mistakes by next spring?

[RANDY IN INDY]

What kind of seed mix would you recommend here in the South Charlotte area, SunDeck? Mine is mainly fescue, but around here, with the lack of rain, it gets ugly and burnt this time of year. Any particular brand I could look for that you think would do well?

[SunDeck]

Randy,

Well, the short answer is "no one knows". The difficulty with the Carolinas is that you're in a weird place where both cool season and warm season grasses thrive at certain time of year. However, the tradition has almost always been to prefer cool season grasses for residential neighborhoods, but straight bluegrass just doesn't really stand up to the stress. That's why there is so much fescue used. Happily, fescue has developed very well over the years, to the point that there are great varieties available that are quite tough in the heat of the summer. My recommendation would be to contact your local extension office. This is a plug for my former employer...but the extension offices are great. If anyone will know what type of turf to plant, they will. Chances are there is something they know of that was hybridized right over in Raleigh.


And check this out...it's the motherload of turfgrass info for North Carolina.

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by SpringfieldFan

I think that our yard with its various micro climates (light shade-dense shade to no shade with intense sun, high traffic-no traffic, flat to hilly) proves you correct, whenever I have not considered the differences this year I have received an expensive education that supports what you are telling me.

So if I overseed in September or October with a mix of good fescue, blue grass and perinial rye would it cover my learning mistakes by next spring?

That's a good thing to do every year, but I like to do it earlier. If you overseed when the daytime temperature is still reaching the low 80s, then it will germinate and have the entire fall to thrive. If you wait too long, it won't and then it's really no different than seeding in the spring. A lot of people seed late, but I think the best time to repair your lawn is at the end of summer, like late August when it's still warm but late enough that weeds are no longer germinating.
And I would recommend aerating. It will help create a better grow zone for your turf roots....and when your neighbors see you walking behind the aerator, they will be mighty impressed. You might even consider splitting an aerator with a neighbor, since you can rent for a half day, but it only takes an hour or two to aerate. Also helps with lugging the thing.
I aerate in the fall because the rains will have softened up the turf a little and make the process more effective.

[gonelong]

Originally Posted by LoganBuck

I have a buckhorn infestation. What should I be doing at this time of year? Should I just wait till fall, and then spring to deal with it?

You need a bucket and a straight (not curved) claw hammer ... and wait for a bit of rain.

The day of or after the rain, grab your bucket and claw hammer. Swing the claw hammer down, claw first at ground level. You want the claw to pinch the root a bit. Pull with an even pressure, and you'll pull the root system out. Put the buckhorn in the bucket. Repeat a few thousand times or until your buckets if full.

GL

/not kidding

[LoganBuck]

My yard is over an acre, I need to be thinking herbicide strategy.

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by gonelong

You need a bucket and a straight (not curved) claw hammer ... and wait for a bit of rain.

The day of or after the rain, grab your bucket and claw hammer. Swing the claw hammer down, claw first at ground level. You want the claw to pinch the root a bit. Pull with an even pressure, and you'll pull the root system out. Put the buckhorn in the bucket. Repeat a few thousand times or until your buckets if full.

GL

/not kidding

Hey Man, the point of this thread is to help people...not to make their neighbors laugh at them.

[Red Leader]

Sun Deck,
(southern Dayton, OH)
I sent you pictures in the Spring of weeds (purplish) that were popping up all over in my grass in the back of our yard. They continued to grow throughout the Spring. The flowering eventually died off, but the weeds still exist to this day and spread over the entire back of our property even after using a weed/feed application and a 2nd application in the Spring. I don't know how to stop them from growing / get rid of it. I was going to aerate the yard towards the end of August and overseed (is that too late around here?). I'm also going to be spraying other weeds that have crept up in the yard. Do you think Round-Up or some other spray that advertises being able to get rid of weeds without harming the grass would get rid of all of the weeds I have in the back of my property, and how long should I wait after applying all of that spray to do the overseeding / aerating? I'm hoping to walk out my backdoor next Spring to see a nice backyard full of grass and free of these weeds that currently blanket the back of my property.

Worse case scenario, I hire a lawn company for next year to get this straightened out because I don't want it expanding any further than it already has.

Thanks for any help / advice in advance.

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by Red Leader

Sun Deck,
(southern Dayton, OH)
I sent you pictures in the Spring of weeds (purplish) that were popping up all over in my grass in the back of our yard. They continued to grow throughout the Spring. The flowering eventually died off, but the weeds still exist to this day and spread over the entire back of our property even after using a weed/feed application and a 2nd application in the Spring. I don't know how to stop them from growing / get rid of it. I was going to aerate the yard towards the end of August and overseed (is that too late around here?). I'm also going to be spraying other weeds that have crept up in the yard. Do you think Round-Up or some other spray that advertises being able to get rid of weeds without harming the grass would get rid of all of the weeds I have in the back of my property, and how long should I wait after applying all of that spray to do the overseeding / aerating? I'm hoping to walk out my backdoor next Spring to see a nice backyard full of grass and free of these weeds that currently blanket the back of my property.

Worse case scenario, I hire a lawn company for next year to get this straightened out because I don't want it expanding any further than it already has.

Thanks for any help / advice in advance.

I don't have that email anymore...what did we decide that was- henbit?


Anyway, you can apply broad leaf weed killer right now, but since the stuff is well established it may not be as successful. Doing so in the spring and early summer is usually more effective because the plants are not as tough.

Roundup is SYSTEMIC. It kills everything, grass and broadleaf weeds, so don't spray it in your yard becaue you will end up with dead spots everywhere you put the stuff. There are some sprays that say they don't kill grass, in which case they are broadleaf herbicides. With a large yard, it's expensive to do it that way, but you could apply now.

Aerating and overseeding are great ideas. I posted my opinion earlier about doing the overseeding while there is still some warmth, like late summer so that you will get germination and growth for the fall (which is when cool season grasses thrive). Aerating, I do that later, after some rains have shown up and softened the yard. Makes the job a lot easier for you and the aerator.

[Red Leader]

Originally Posted by SunDeck

I don't have that email anymore...what did we decide that was- henbit?


Anyway, you can apply broad leaf weed killer right now, but since the stuff is well established it may not be as successful. Doing so in the spring and early summer is usually more effective because the plants are not as tough.

Roundup is SYSTEMIC. It kills everything, grass and broadleaf weeds, so don't spray it in your yard becaue you will end up with dead spots everywhere you put the stuff. There are some sprays that say they don't kill grass, in which case they are broadleaf herbicides. With a large yard, it's expensive to do it that way, but you could apply now.

Aerating and overseeding are great ideas. I posted my opinion earlier about doing the overseeding while there is still some warmth, like late summer so that you will get germination and growth for the fall (which is when cool season grasses thrive). Aerating, I do that later, after some rains have shown up and softened the yard. Makes the job a lot easier for you and the aerator.

Well, to be honest, I don't remember what we had decided that it was. Even with the pictures, you weren't completely sure, IIRC. I know henbit was in the discussion, but there were others we discussed as well. We have a pretty decent sized yard (~1 acre). I might buy the broadleaf herbicide for the normal weeds that pop up in our lawn. I'll probably wait until the spring to kill off the stuff that is blanketing my backyard. I thought it would be smarter to aerate before overseeding so that the new seeds had room to settle in and more oxygen / nutrients could get to it? You're saying just go ahead and overseed now and then aerate after?

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by Red Leader

Well, to be honest, I don't remember what we had decided that it was. Even with the pictures, you weren't completely sure, IIRC. I know henbit was in the discussion, but there were others we discussed as well. We have a pretty decent sized yard (~1 acre). I might buy the broadleaf herbicide for the normal weeds that pop up in our lawn. I'll probably wait until the spring to kill off the stuff that is blanketing my backyard. I thought it would be smarter to aerate before overseeding so that the new seeds had room to settle in and more oxygen / nutrients could get to it? You're saying just go ahead and overseed now and then aerate after?

Okay, this is where it gets a little complicated.
The BEST possible thing to do is this:
aerate, topdress, fertilize and then overseed

However, most homeowners don't want to topdress, which is a pretty labor intensive process. But topdressing is the thing that puts your seed into contact with some kind of medium that will be conducive to germination. Additionally topdressing with organic matter is great because that stuff falls down into the holes created by the aerator...which is like injecting your lawn with a soil conditioner.
But, like I said, most homeowners don't want to take this on, and you will need a way to create a good environment for the grass seed to germinate. So, I tell them to rough up the brownest patches, then overseed, then mow with a mulching mower. It's a cheat, basically. The mown grass will provide a mulch cover in which the seed can germinate. If you keep it watered then that grass will take root. For the brown spots, I recommend roughing up and leaving the dead stuff. Overseed then rake lightly, just like planting new seed. But keep it watered- newly germinated grass needs water.

Still, I think it's best to do this before the temperature drops below the 80s in the day time. You could aerate before you do this, but if you are not topdressing, I'd aerate after the new grass has been mowed a couple times.

[TeamCasey]

Sundeck,

Can you please make it a little cooler here tomorrow.

Thank you.

[SunDeck]

Here ya go...



A little cooler.

[Red Leader]

Originally Posted by SunDeck

Okay, this is where it gets a little complicated.
The BEST possible thing to do is this:
aerate, topdress, fertilize and then overseed

However, most homeowners don't want to topdress, which is a pretty labor intensive process. But topdressing is the thing that puts your seed into contact with some kind of medium that will be conducive to germination. Additionally topdressing with organic matter is great because that stuff falls down into the holes created by the aerator...which is like injecting your lawn with a soil conditioner.
But, like I said, most homeowners don't want to take this on, and you will need a way to create a good environment for the grass seed to germinate. So, I tell them to rough up the brownest patches, then overseed, then mow with a mulching mower. It's a cheat, basically. The mown grass will provide a mulch cover in which the seed can germinate. If you keep it watered then that grass will take root. For the brown spots, I recommend roughing up and leaving the dead stuff. Overseed then rake lightly, just like planting new seed. But keep it watered- newly germinated grass needs water.

Still, I think it's best to do this before the temperature drops below the 80s in the day time. You could aerate before you do this, but if you are not topdressing, I'd aerate after the new grass has been mowed a couple times.

Sorry SunDeck. With the trade deadline yesterday and the site crashing I didn't get a chance to respond to you, but thank you very much for all of your help and advice. It is very much appreciated.

[gonelong]

Originally Posted by LoganBuck

My yard is over an acre, I need to be thinking herbicide strategy.

An acre? What a pansy!

My parents place had about 3 acres. We had buckhorns everywhere and my Dad's solution was to send us kids out with a hammer and a bucket. It actually worked pretty well.

If I had to do it again today, I'd probably just fill a squirt bottle with Preen.

GL