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04-08-2009, 10:08 PM
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44 posts, read 147,706 times
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Howdy- We live in a newly constructed home,our back yard has several spots of wheat straw grass that is growing,will it die out or do I need to kill it with roundup in August?.. and put down seed in September. I raked up all the wheat straw around Feb. we built our house in June 2008.
Many thanks,
Robert
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04-08-2009, 10:16 PM
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9,845 posts, read 29,204,063 times
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Uber,
I follow a similar regiment here in the Triangle. I only differ in that I do not apply fertilizer after March 15th per the Turf File folks at NC state.
I also notice you didn't mention anything about applying lime. Here in the peidmont we have acidic red clay soil and it is a good idea to apply lime each year to raise the ph. The balanced ph makes more nutrients available to the lawn among other things. I think it is a good idea for a person who is serious about their lawn to get a soil test done (often free through your local extension office) to see what nutrients your soil is lacking and how much lime you need.  |
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04-08-2009, 10:33 PM
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2,152 posts, read 6,529,321 times
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AWESOME!!! Will you do seminars? My community can use your knowlege!!!
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04-08-2009, 10:34 PM
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Location: Wouldn't you like to know?
9,116 posts, read 17,033,877 times
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Uber,
Sweet post....much appreciated...
Question: My front lawn is 2 yrs old. Not many weeds at all. The problem is my grass is extremely WEAK...blades are real thin in spots and droopy....some bare spots....the lawn looks decent from far away, but up close it is very weak...I've been following the 4 step scotts prg...just limed and fertilized about 2 wks ago. Its been weak since it was put in by the builder. We had a bad drought 2 yrs ago and my lawn never recovered...
Only other problem was last year I had fungus, but got rid of it after about 2 wks...
thanks
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04-09-2009, 07:20 AM
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Location: Autumn Cove, Lake Wylie, SC
393 posts, read 1,138,321 times
Reputation: 284
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robster
Howdy- We live in a newly constructed home,our back yard has several spots of wheat straw grass that is growing,will it die out or do I need to kill it with roundup in August?.. and put down seed in September. I raked up all the wheat straw around Feb. we built our house in June 2008.
Many thanks,
Robert
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Been there...my back yard was the same way. It most likely will not die on its own. You could use Roundup and start fresh or just go with what you have and plant new grass on top of it. Regardless, I would also aerate first and put down a thin "dusting" of topsoil prior to seeding, then follow the steps listed. |
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04-09-2009, 07:29 AM
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44 posts, read 147,706 times
Reputation: 33
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Thanks
Quote:
Originally Posted by uber_bwnage
Been there...my back yard was the same way. It most likely will not die on its own. You could use Roundup and start fresh or just go with what you have and plant new grass on top of it. Regardless, I would also aerate first and put down a thin "dusting" of topsoil prior to seeding, then follow the steps listed.
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MANY THANKS!! that makes sense.. I'll do that in the fall.
Cheers,
Robert |
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04-09-2009, 07:29 AM
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Location: Autumn Cove, Lake Wylie, SC
393 posts, read 1,138,321 times
Reputation: 284
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CouponJack
Uber,
Sweet post....much appreciated...
Question: My front lawn is 2 yrs old. Not many weeds at all. The problem is my grass is extremely WEAK...blades are real thin in spots and droopy....some bare spots....the lawn looks decent from far away, but up close it is very weak...I've been following the 4 step scotts prg...just limed and fertilized about 2 wks ago. Its been weak since it was put in by the builder. We had a bad drought 2 yrs ago and my lawn never recovered...
Only other problem was last year I had fungus, but got rid of it after about 2 wks...
thanks
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Your lawn is perfect for renovation. You most likely have compacted soil and weak roots. Aerating will fix this. Just follow my steps starting with Late September. Aerate, overseed, and fertilize, and water. You'll be good by spring.
As far as this summer, I wouldn't try to fix anything until late summer once the heat breaks. Just keep watering, mow high, and try to keep the damage from getting worse.
In regards to the fungus, I'm guessing you water your lawn in the evening or at night? Don't do it! The best (really only time) to water is in the early morning, like at dawn. Get a timer if needed and set it to run at 6am twice a week for about an hour. You can get a basic manual timer for like $15 at Lowes or Walmart. |
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04-09-2009, 08:18 AM
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45 posts, read 187,442 times
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This is a great post. If I could add anything, it would be to test your soil with a ph tester (couple bucks at lowes). If your ph level is on the acidic side, pick up some lime and throw it down in the fall.
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04-09-2009, 08:23 AM
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13,808 posts, read 25,944,879 times
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Attached is a tall fescue info sheet from the University of Arkansas. It is the best guide I have ever seen for tall fescue.
On a side note I find it funny when you go to home shows and they all recommend a warm season grass and downplay tall fescue. Tall fescue actually has really good drought qualities and will stay green almost year round even in direct sunlight with minimal watering.
For anyone seeding I recommend "Southern Gold" fescue seed. Ditto on the ph test, however the cheap ones aren't accurate. There is a place that you mail it into here in NC that will do it for free. I picked some samplers up at the home show last weekend.
Also look into natural fertilizer, corn gluten meal. It also controls weeds. And if you do spread fertilizer for god sakes sweep it off of the sidewalk. I can't stand walking my dog over that POISON! Think of others please.
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04-09-2009, 08:41 AM
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Location: Charlotte, NC
973 posts, read 3,194,093 times
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I'm glad I found this thread as I need lots of help. DH and I are "lawncare challenged" and need the help of those are are much smarter than we are.
We bought a house here in Charlotte in March and the lawn has been sadly neglected. 3/4th's of the yard will be in deep shade once the leaves are fully out. Fortunately, there are few weeds. (Knock on wood!)
The previous owner had 5 large dogs and 1/2 of the backyard is bare due to the wear and tear. I suspect the soil has not been aerated or ammended with lime in many years. When it rained, it was a huge mud bog.
We put down sod in the totally bare areas a couple weeks ago. We plan to arerate and overseed the remaining parts of the yard that are spotty and weak looking in the fall.
The advice from the lawn dept. manager (Lowes) was to water the sod daily for a month then water every few days after that. I watered daily for a week and have started watering every few days since so far, the sod looks great.
Any thoughts on my plan so far? Advice? Mistakes I've made?
Also, we have already purchased some grass seed for the fall. We have "Pennington" Tall Fescue (For deep shade) and "Scotts Southern Gold" Tall Fescue. It appears to be the same seed but one says it's for deep shade.
Any thoughts on the brands? Do I really need one designated for Deep Shade when it appears to be the same grass seed as the other one? Both Tall Fescue and 99.9% weed free. |
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