Lawn Maintenance

What is the best grass for:

• Shade?

• Summer sports fields?

• A fine looking lawn?

• A quick green-up of a lawn?

• A year round easy care lawn?

Aeration

• Lawn aeration involves the removal of small soil plugs or cores out of the lawn

http://www.earthpoint.us/Shapes.aspx

Aerators

• Self-propelled

• Towed

• Manual

Aeration

• Grass recovers very quickly & then grows better

• Increases oxygen availability to roots

• Reduces compaction – roots can expand

• Lets soil take up water better

Aeration Video

• Aeration Video

Lawn Maintenance

• Mowing– Mow at correct height for the grass

• Fertilizing– Schedule depends on grass, soil texture & soil test result

• Liming– Do a pH test to determine if it is required. Apply according to

results.

• Weeding– How many weeds are you willing to tolerate

• Aerating– Not required often

Decide how “organic” you want to be

Mowing Height & Frequency

• Never remove more than 1/3 of the grass length in a single mowing.

• Longer grass can handle stress better than short grass

• Longer grass outcompetes weeds• Leave longer during hot midsummer• Okay to cut shorter spring and fall• Alter the mowing path

Mowers

• Rotary • Reel

Fertilization

• Soil test first!!!• Never fertilize dormant grass• Feeding the roots – not the blades• Soil texture

– sandy soils need most, Loamy soils need least• Grass species

– Vary in their fertilizer needs• Organic option

– Urea– Compost

• Use high nitrogen, low phosphorus, medium potassium– 20-4-8

• Note: Changes coming due to Chesapeake Bay Legislation

Fertilizer

• Cool Season– 1 lb in Sept– 1 lb in Oct– 1 lb in Nov– ½ lb in May

• Warm Season– 1 lb in April– 1 lb in May– 1 lb in June– 1 lb in July/Aug

Never apply more than 1 lb of N per 1000 sq ft.

Lawn fertilizer

• Follow directions on the bag

• Add 1 lb N for 1000sq ft

• Fertilizing a 2000 sq ft area

• Our fertilizer mix is 28 – 3 – 3

• ? Lbs of fertilizer

Soil pH

• Grasses favor high pH (alkaline soil)• Trees and forests leave low pH soil (acidic)

• Virginia has a limestone rock base that results in acidic soils

• Poor grass growth in low pH soil

• Lots of moss in low pH (acidic) soil

Lime

• Calcium hydroxide: Ca(OH)2.

• It is a white powder

• Also called slaked lime, hydrated lime

• A lot of new forms available that are easier to spread

• Increases the pH of soil – – Makes them “sweeter” or more basic

• Takes several years to work

Weeds

• Broadleaf weeds – Early spring – fall problem– Dandelion– Ground Ivy– Plantain

• Grassy weeds – Hot summer problem– Bermuda grass– Crab grass– Annual Bluegrass

Herbicides

• Pre-emergence – prevents germination.– Apply in the early spring– Don’t apply before seeding

• Post emergence – kills growing weeds– Broad leaf – only kills weeds– Broad spectrum – kills all plants

Grass ID

• Use the key to identify the grasses from the turf areas:

• http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/TOOLS/TURF/TURFSPECIES/index.html

• Tall Fescue

• Kentucky Bluegrass

• Perennial Ryegrass