Lawn Care Tips (3 Viewers)

[Al Czervik]

I've got a text book example of how mower height makes a big difference.

My neighbor mows her lawn extremely low (gotta be close to the lowest setting). I mow my lawn high (two notches from the highest setting).

Here is a pic of where our lawns meet:

Lawns Pic

(Mine is on the left; her's is on the right.)

This picture was taken the end of May... no way a lawn should be turning brown in some areas like her's is this early in the season. She also leaves way too many clumps of mulched clippings on her grass.

 

[KTM]

I've got a text book example of how mower height makes a big difference.

My neighbor mows her lawn extremely low (gotta be close to the lowest setting). I mow my lawn high (two notches from the highest setting).

Here is a pic of where our lawns meet:

Lawns Pic

(Mine is on the left; her's is on the right.)

This picture was taken the end of May... no way a lawn should be turning brown in some areas like her's is this early in the season. She also leaves way too many clumps of mulched clippings on her grass.

Is that huge rock there to keep the hose reel from falling over? God I hate those stupid boxes.

 

[JerseyToughGuys]

I've got a text book example of how mower height makes a big difference.

My neighbor mows her lawn extremely low (gotta be close to the lowest setting). I mow my lawn high (two notches from the highest setting).

Here is a pic of where our lawns meet:

Lawns Pic

(Mine is on the left; her's is on the right.)

This picture was taken the end of May... no way a lawn should be turning brown in some areas like her's is this early in the season. She also leaves way too many clumps of mulched clippings on her grass.

Is that huge rock there to keep the hose reel from falling over? God I hate those stupid boxes.

I have two, one looks identical to the one in the picture. Complete POS, bought this year (Lowes).The other one I have had for years. MUCH better design. Lesson: actually pay attn to the weight/center of gravity and quality.

 

[lod01]

Dont' get Zoysia grass, it's the worst.

Best grass for down south. Empire turf Zoysiagrass. Weed resistant, drought tolerant, bug resistant. Great in shade and full sun. I'm installing it currently. Absolutely amazing grass. Smokes St. Augustine.

 

[Da Guru]

I've got a text book example of how mower height makes a big difference.

My neighbor mows her lawn extremely low (gotta be close to the lowest setting). I mow my lawn high (two notches from the highest setting).

Here is a pic of where our lawns meet:

Lawns Pic

(Mine is on the left; her's is on the right.)

This picture was taken the end of May... no way a lawn should be turning brown in some areas like her's is this early in the season. She also leaves way too many clumps of mulched clippings on her grass.

I screwed up last week. My lawn was looking great. We were having a party so I wanted it to really look neat and clean so I cut it real low. About halfway through it seemed the lower I cut the browner the lawn was..I cut off most of the healthy dark green tops of the grass. It did not look nearly as good cut short.

 

[ConstruxBoy]

Anyway to get rid of the bright green, weedy "grass" that comes from putting straw down? Made that mistake 4 years ago and it finally went away last year. But now it's back. If I kill it, I'll just have spots there, right? Do I need to wait for Fall and just overseed the hell out of that area?

 

[The Commish]

Anyway to get rid of the bright green, weedy "grass" that comes from putting straw down? Made that mistake 4 years ago and it finally went away last year. But now it's back. If I kill it, I'll just have spots there, right? Do I need to wait for Fall and just overseed the hell out of that area?

This is what I'd do.....take a sponge mop, soak it in roundup and walk around the yard brushing over the tops of the straw grass (sounds like what you are describing). That way you can kill it without killing the lower lying grass. This might require allowing your grass to grow longer than you'd like though.

 

[bmetz]

I have an empty lot next door to us that is left pretty much unmaintained by the owner. As a result I get to fight crabgrass, Johnson grass, clover, and other weeds throughout the year. I've found a product to fend of pretty much everything except the Johnson grass. Currently I have to go around and pull each of those by hand. Anyone know of an herbicide that will kill it?

 

[lod01]

EmpireTurf Zoysiagrass vs Bahiagrass.

http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/2374/1000112ios.jpg

 

[belljr]

Dont' get Zoysia grass, it's the worst.

Best grass for down south. Empire turf Zoysiagrass. Weed resistant, drought tolerant, bug resistant. Great in shade and full sun. I'm installing it currently. Absolutely amazing grass. Smokes St. Augustine.

We're not down south

 

[ConstruxBoy]

Anyway to get rid of the bright green, weedy "grass" that comes from putting straw down? Made that mistake 4 years ago and it finally went away last year. But now it's back. If I kill it, I'll just have spots there, right? Do I need to wait for Fall and just overseed the hell out of that area?

This is what I'd do.....take a sponge mop, soak it in roundup and walk around the yard brushing over the tops of the straw grass (sounds like what you are describing). That way you can kill it without killing the lower lying grass. This might require allowing your grass to grow longer than you'd like though.

That's a damn good idea. You're pretty smart for a Michigan guy.

 

[The Commish]

Anyway to get rid of the bright green, weedy "grass" that comes from putting straw down? Made that mistake 4 years ago and it finally went away last year. But now it's back. If I kill it, I'll just have spots there, right? Do I need to wait for Fall and just overseed the hell out of that area?

This is what I'd do.....take a sponge mop, soak it in roundup and walk around the yard brushing over the tops of the straw grass (sounds like what you are describing). That way you can kill it without killing the lower lying grass. This might require allowing your grass to grow longer than you'd like though.

That's a damn good idea. You're pretty smart for a Michigan guy.

Jack of all trades, master of none

 

[On The Rocks]

I've got chick weed and for the life of me can not get rid of this #### !

Does anyone have any ideas to get rid of it short of tilling the entire lawn and laying down top soil and reseeding the yard from scratch?

 

[saintsfan]

Anybody got any tips for killing grass growing through sidewalk cracks on a patio??

I would prefer not to use chemicals and would like something that would prevent it from coming back for awhile.

 

[shuke]

I've got chick weed and for the life of me can not get rid of this #### !

Does anyone have any ideas to get rid of it short of tilling the entire lawn and laying down top soil and reseeding the yard from scratch?

What have you tried? Ortho makes a concentrate specifically for hard-to-kill weeds like chickweed and creeping ivy. You have to be diligent.

 

[Britney Spears]

Shuke> Next time you come to Seattle, can you live in my basement and make my lawn green?

 

[Dought Man]

Now that we are in July, my lawn is starting to get a little brown in the areas where it sees a few hours of direct sunlight each day. I water for 35 minutes every other morning. Is it worth it to put down Scotts summer guard? Will that help keep it greener? Or has that horse left the barn already?

 

[fsufan]

Now that we are in July, my lawn is starting to get a little brown in the areas where it sees a few hours of direct sunlight each day. I water for 35 minutes every other morning. Is it worth it to put down Scotts summer guard? Will that help keep it greener? Or has that horse left the barn already?

i put Scott's turf builder down every 3 months. never have a problem with brown spots, live in Florida

 

[=Smackdown=]

All of a sudden I got these brown spots all over my front lawn.

I think I got some sort of fungus problem? Dunno what to do.

 

[Random]

I have a bunch of patches of clovers. What is the best way to get rid of this? I already used the scotts w/crabgrass preventer. What is the best way for me to get rid of the clovers and replace with grass? Reseed in the fall or do i have to dig up the clovers and start anew with a patch of some sort? TIA

I had the same problem last year. Tried everything sold at HD/Lowes. Nothing made a dent. Clover is extremely resilient. I ended up going to a farm and fleet and bought Gordons LV400. Wiped it out in nothing flat, without harming the grass. Its 65% 2-4-D (the active weed killer ingredient), compared to .1% in Weed B Gone.

Bumping this for the guys asking how to kill the really tough weeds. Use it and report back.

 

[The Commish]

All of a sudden I got these brown spots all over my front lawn.I think I got some sort of fungus problem? Dunno what to do.

Could be several different things. It could be the "brown patch" fungus. There is a treatment you can pick up at Lowes/HD. It could also be grub worms killing your grass from underneth. Try to pull some of the brown grass up. If it comes up without a fight, it's dead. Probably not brown patch. If the roots seem to still be holding on, get some of the brown patch spread.....goes on your lawn like fert.

 

[beer 30]

All of a sudden I got these brown spots all over my front lawn.

I think I got some sort of fungus problem? Dunno what to do.

Could be several different things. It could be the "brown patch" fungus. There is a treatment you can pick up at Lowes/HD. It could also be grub worms killing your grass from underneth. Try to pull some of the brown grass up. If it comes up without a fight, it's dead. Probably not brown patch. If the roots seem to still be holding on, get some of the brown patch spread.....goes on your lawn like fert.

Some of you may or may not know, grubs and Japanese beetles are one-in-the-same. At least most of the grubs I have are. First year I lived here we were overrun with Japanese beetles. I also had brown spot throughout the lawn so I put down Grub-Ex. Last year not so much with the beetles, this year, hardly any but I have the brown spot returning so I'm getting ready to put down the Grub-ex again.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_beetle

 

[The Flying Turtle]

Now that we are in July, my lawn is starting to get a little brown in the areas where it sees a few hours of direct sunlight each day. I water for 35 minutes every other morning. Is it worth it to put down Scotts summer guard? Will that help keep it greener? Or has that horse left the barn already?

I just had my lawn guy out and got great information on brown spots.My front lawn has brown patches because of drought so increase the water.My back lawn has brown patches because of a disease (brown patch) so decrease water.I cannot tell the difference. However, I also have some mushrooms in the back which seems to indicate too much water as well.

 

[On The Rocks]

I've got chick weed and for the life of me can not get rid of this #### !

Does anyone have any ideas to get rid of it short of tilling the entire lawn and laying down top soil and reseeding the yard from scratch?

What have you tried? Ortho makes a concentrate specifically for hard-to-kill weeds like chickweed and creeping ivy. You have to be diligent.

I have tried it, but you may be right...diligence isn't my forte.

 

[The Commish]

All of a sudden I got these brown spots all over my front lawn.

I think I got some sort of fungus problem? Dunno what to do.

Could be several different things. It could be the "brown patch" fungus. There is a treatment you can pick up at Lowes/HD. It could also be grub worms killing your grass from underneth. Try to pull some of the brown grass up. If it comes up without a fight, it's dead. Probably not brown patch. If the roots seem to still be holding on, get some of the brown patch spread.....goes on your lawn like fert.

Some of you may or may not know, grubs and Japanese beetles are one-in-the-same. At least most of the grubs I have are. First year I lived here we were overrun with Japanese beetles. I also had brown spot throughout the lawn so I put down Grub-Ex. Last year not so much with the beetles, this year, hardly any but I have the brown spot returning so I'm getting ready to put down the Grub-ex again.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_beetle

Yup....and don't put those stupid "beetle bags" out in your yard. It's similar to putting in one of those termite systems where you encourage them to come closer to your house.

 

[dnurk]

Sorry if it's already been mentioned in here (looked but didn't see it...)

Anyone use a lawn striping kit behind their riding mower? I've got a Hustler zero turn mower that puts down OK stripes in the lawn but I know it can look better. I've heard really good things about this one:

Checkmate Lawn Striping Kit

Just curious to get any FBG feedback on this or other stripe kits

Edit to add: I mow in the same pattern 4 of every 5 cuts, keep blades super sharp, etc. so I am pretty darn sure I'm getting the best stripe out of my mower that is possible right now

 

[Balance]

Hah. Water restrictions here in San Antonio caused me to turn off my automatic sprinklers. We went to Vail for 2 weeks and I forgot to set sprinklers back on

In case anyone was wondering - 16 straight days of 100+ temps, no rain, no sprinklers = not good.

If grass is dead will it come back in those spots or should I re-sod?

 

[snogger]

Earlier in this thread I mentioned we bought a house in the Fall of 2008 where the yard never had any work done on it.

After a long summer of Tilling, seeding, fertilizing and Lots of water I can say the end result was worth the work

Spring time.. : Not to proud when people visited. .

Summer and the yard is looking MUCH better!

next year we will fertilize and seed but I feel pretty good with the results after just one summer.

 

[The Commish]

Earlier in this thread I mentioned we bought a house in the Fall of 2008 where the yard never had any work done on it.

After a long summer of Tilling, seeding, fertilizing and Lots of water I can say the end result was worth the work

Spring time.. :X : Not to proud when people visited. .

Summer and the yard is looking MUCH better!

next year we will fertilize and seed but I feel pretty good with the results after just one summer.

These are private pages...can't see them...at least I can't

 

[Norman Einstein]

Anyone know of a good online weed identifier where you can browse photos?I've got something new sprouting up all over my lawn this year that I don't think I've ever seen before. Almost looks like little tree sapplings. I thought it was poison ivy or oak at first but it's only two opposing leaves and not three.

I got something like that too. Also clover with these small white flower type weeds coming up strong lately.Is it too late too put down the scotts fertilizer with weed killer, I waited this year b/c we reseeded an area where the previous owners had sand for a swing set (sand removed now and grass growing well) and did not want to mess up the growing new grass.

this sounds kinda like bindweed....definately don't want that in the yard...it's nearly impossible to get rid of

 

[Balance]

say there were 10 pallets of zoysia across the street, I have st augustine.

if I put zoysia sod in a bare spot that opened up during water restrictions... what happens?

will I bring about the destruction of the planet by mixing types of grasses?

 

[Mr. Pickles]

say there were 10 pallets of zoysia across the street, I have st augustine.if I put zoysia sod in a bare spot that opened up during water restrictions... what happens?will I bring about the destruction of the planet by mixing types of grasses?

Two sods enter, one sod leaves.

 

[snogger]

Earlier in this thread I mentioned we bought a house in the Fall of 2008 where the yard never had any work done on it.

After a long summer of Tilling, seeding, fertilizing and Lots of water I can say the end result was worth the work

Spring time.. : Not to proud when people visited. .

Summer and the yard is looking MUCH better!

next year we will fertilize and seed but I feel pretty good with the results after just one summer.

These are private pages...can't see them...at least I can't

Sorry.. these should be public:Spring

Summer

Summer panoramic

 

[shuke]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

 

[Mr. Pickles]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

I think I'm going to do this. I have some areas that need filling-in in my backyard. I finally have the weed situation under control.No idea when I should be doing this, however.

 

[belljr]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

In about 2 weeks, won't be aerating as my yard doesn't need it but I am about to thatch and seed

 

[The Commish]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

I do it each year. When I was up your way I'd do it mid september (in a week or two from now). Down here I do it late sept early oct.

 

[The Commish]

Sorry.. these should be public:

Spring

Summer

Summer panoramic

I started in a very similar situation as you...this fall is my last overseeding (as if grass wasn't there at all), then will go to standard amounts in the fall/spring.

 

[The_Hunchback]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

I probably will. The dang weather has been crazy, here in KC area hasn't been getting above 80 and next week they are calling for around 70's. Figured I would be doing it towards the end of the month but might have to do it in another week or so. I've got some spots to strip out in addition to the aerating.

 

[Mookie Blaylock]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

In about 2 weeks, won't be aerating as my yard doesn't need it but I am about to thatch and seed

How would one go about identifying whether or not a yard needs aerating?

 

[Mookie Blaylock]

Any lawn guys around these parts today? I'm a non-lawn guy looking for some fall tips to get my lawn going for next year. Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[shuke]

Anyone planning on aerating and overseeding? Trying to pinpoint the perfect time.

In about 2 weeks, won't be aerating as my yard doesn't need it but I am about to thatch and seed

How would one go about identifying whether or not a yard needs aerating?

Compacted soil, a lot of thatch.

 

[Da Beers]

Has anybody had any luck treating compacted soil with earthworms? I found a few places where you can buy 1000 for $29 or 5000 for about $90

 

[moleculo]

I just got on board with these guy's program : Organic plan Health. For the Charlotte area FBG's, they have a retail shop in Tega Cay and Matthews.

The key bit they sold me on was amending the soil by adding naturally occurring fungi which works with the roots to trade off nutrients. It's all about conditioning the soil to set up the natural eco-system that will break down my clay into better dirt, as opposed to dumping nitrogen and herbicide. It's not that I care so much about the organic schtick as much as it is addressing soil quality first.

I figure that two retail shops selling basically fertilizer exclusively means they better be good at what they do, and the staff is definitely more knowledgeable than the Home Depot guys...I can take in samples of weeds that I'm dealing with and they can help figure out what to do.

 

[fsufan]

anyone ever use Trugreen's service?

you like it?

help improve your grass?

i got a quote.

$52 per spray. they recommend 8 sprays a year.

 

[shuke]

anyone ever use Trugreen's service? you like it?help improve your grass?i got a quote. $52 per spray. they recommend 8 sprays a year.

Ripoff.How big is your yard? You'll do fine putting down 4 treatments by yourself and spot-spraying weeds and you'll save a couple hundred.

 

[Wooderson]

Sorry if I missed the answer to this as I only skimmed the thread.

I have some crabgrass in my yard. It's large and the root system on this stuff is impressive. Do I need to pull it or is there anything I can spray on it? I got some stuff from Lowes that I sprayed on it. It seemed to kill it but it's still just a brown mound of weed.

If I decide to pull it will I have to reseed that area or will my grass come back.

Man I hate crabgrass.

Thanks

 

[Al Czervik]

anyone ever use Trugreen's service? you like it?help improve your grass?i got a quote. $52 per spray. they recommend 8 sprays a year.

Ripoff.How big is your yard? You'll do fine putting down 4 treatments by yourself and spot-spraying weeds and you'll save a couple hundred.

Plus, you won't get their weekly annoying calls trying to up sell you other crap. Truegreen is the suck.

 

[The Commish]

I just got on board with these guy's program : Organic plan Health. For the Charlotte area FBG's, they have a retail shop in Tega Cay and Matthews.

The key bit they sold me on was amending the soil by adding naturally occurring fungi which works with the roots to trade off nutrients. It's all about conditioning the soil to set up the natural eco-system that will break down my clay into better dirt, as opposed to dumping nitrogen and herbicide. It's not that I care so much about the organic schtick as much as it is addressing soil quality first.

I figure that two retail shops selling basically fertilizer exclusively means they better be good at what they do, and the staff is definitely more knowledgeable than the Home Depot guys...I can take in samples of weeds that I'm dealing with and they can help figure out what to do.

Been wondering about this. I need to take a spin up and talk to them. It doesn't look any more expensive than the standard stuff from HD or Lowes.

 

[flapgreen]

Sweet. Just moved in my first home and have a decent sized yard.