Lawns, the care/feeding/maintenance of

[Walt34]

Do you spend much time on the lawn, if you even have one? Do you fervently follow a lawn care schedule or content yourself to mow what comes up? Occasionally throw down some fertilizer or seed when the thought strikes? Ignore it until fined by the County for harboring a health hazard?

A couple of years ago when because of health issues I despaired of ever pushing a lawn mower or fertilizer spreader again I hired a guy to mow and Trugreen fertilizing service. I've already begun mowing myself again and recently I sent a soil sample to the state extension service for analysis. Phosphorus was way too high and potassium less so but still high. That's a bit troublesome because there's a creek right behind our house that of course drains into the Potomac River which in turn drains into the Chesapeake Bay. I myself haven't fertilized here for at least ten years so that kind of points to Trugreen overfertilizing. We'll have a conversation about that Monday.

Nitrogen was a bit low but that’s highly variable so that’s more like a “snapshot” of conditions in a brief period of time. So I may fire Trugreen and start doing it myself. And save half the cost or more doing anyway. Looking online, I found that any number of fertilizer companies offer reasonably-priced subscription service and they'll send you the fertilizer at the right time. Beats schlepping to the big box store and hauling home a dusty torn-open bag that spills half the contents on the bed of my truck or finding they don't have what I need anyway.

BTW, the soil analysis is free or very cheap. Search on "[your state] extension service" to find it. In my case the results were very different from the $10 soil test kit I got at Lowes. Not a big surprise.

Growing up we lived in a SFH that had a front and back yard but I would not call it a lawn. Dad was content to mow whatever came up and if it was green so much the better. He mowed when the grass length became a health hazard and the instant I was old enough to handle a hand-powered reel mower that task was dumped on me. I really, really, hated that reel mower. I still remember one brutally hot day spent mowing the back yard and being drenched with sweat, and we didn’t have A/C. Dad bought a 20” rotary mower from Montgomery Ward with a wonderful Briggs and Stratton engine when I was 15 and that was pure luxury!

Currently I’m planning on overseeding late next month, and I’ll probably try dormant seeding this winter just to see how that works out. Opinions seem to be all over the map on dormant seeding although one guy I worked with had very good results, or maybe just luck, with it. Anyway, the idea is to put the grass seed down when it’s too late to germinate, and preferably before a snowfall so that when the snow melts it will work the seeds into the soil nooks and crannies where it will hopefully germinate in the spring. That’s the theory anyway, and as Sylvester The Cat says “That sounds logical!” It works for Mother Nature anyway.

[Winemaker]

I follow the Milorganite plan. Since I live in the humid SW PA, I fertilize Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving. I love green grass, fresh food and vibrant wine!

[W2R]

During the last 5+ years, since I bought the house and had new dirt laid down and then a new sodded lawn, I have spent 0 hours and 0 minutes on my lawn.

Mowing: My lawn guy mows and edges once each week. My lawn grows several inches/week in the summertime so weekly mowing is definitely needed.

Watering: Lawns are better suited to the New Orleans climate than anything else. It rains 60"/year here and when it isn't raining, the sun is shining brightly and the humidity is thick. Lawns grow well here and no watering is needed, ever.

Weeding and Feeding: The preferred lawn in my suburb (a variety of St. Augustine named after the suburb) grows so energetically here that it crowds out the weeds. No weeding or feeding needed.

The easy care for lawns in our climate is why I chose to have nothing but lawn on my lot. I have completely ignored it.

[Gumby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker I follow the Milorganite plan. Since I live in the humid SW PA, I fertilize Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving. I love green grass, fresh food and vibrant wine!

I am also a fan of Milorganite; same schedule. In addition, I put down GrubEx and limestone once a year. I mow when it needs it.

[Goonie]

My Dad always spread Scott’s Weed & Feed every Spring and Fall, and lawn was lush, green, and weed-free. So, I followed his lead and did the same for years, with the same results. About 20 years ago, I wanted to minimize my use of chemicals and be a bit more environmentally conscious, so I switched from Scott’s W&F, to Milorganite as fertilizer and corn gluten meal to prevent weed seeds from germinating. Both worked quite well, and our lawn looked great!

Somewhere along the way, I quit using both of those, mostly out of laziness I suppose. Now I’ve reverted back to using two chemical products sparingly on my lawn. In use a broadcast spreader to put down HALTS! weed preventer in the Spring, and I occasionally mix up a small batch of Fertilome Weed-Free Zone in a one gallon pump sprayer, and spot treat the few weeds that do crop up....mostly very small patches of Creeping Charlie.

The only fertilization the lawn gets is the grass clipping left behind by my mulching mower when I mow grass. My lawn looks far better than those of my neighbor’s who have the name brand lawn services spraying theirs multiple times per year.

Pre-ER, I held a state chemical applicator’s license for my job. During the annual license renewal and training, one of the things taught was that the chemical salts in the soluable spray-on fertilizers, such as those used by the brand name lawn services, build up in the soil over time and will likely have a detrimental affect on the root systems of the lawn. We also learned that if you’re going to fertilize a lawn, at most you only need to do it once in early to mid Spring and once in the late Fall, and the Fall application isn’t really needed.

[Sunset]

We are having a drought.

Everybody's lawn looks pretty dormant dead, I haven't mowed mine in 2 weeks so mine looks better than the folks whose lawn service still comes around once per week to mow even though the grass is looking pretty dead.

[Out-to-Lunch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker I follow the Milorganite plan. Since I live in the humid SW PA, I fertilize Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving. I love green grass, fresh food and vibrant wine!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gumby I am also a fan of Milorganite; same schedule. In addition, I put down GrubEx and limestone once a year. I mow when it needs it.

Since the "Mil" in "Milorganite" means "Milwaukee," there is a bit of "me" in each bag you buy. You are welcome!

[DayDreaming]

I maintain my own lawn.
I've never watered it, never applied fertilizer or weedkiller, and have never reseeded it - all those things would only mean that I have to mow it more often. I mow it regularly around the house. Further from the house, I mow less often, maybe just once per year - I enjoy seeing what wildflowers come up on their own, and only pull what might be invasive. Some parts of what was lawn, I'm letting go back to forest.

[Winemaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Out-to-Lunch Since the "Mil" in "Milorganite" means "Milwaukee," there is a bit of "me" in each bag you buy. You are welcome!

Thanks a mil'!


My saying is "invest in your dirt, the grass and plants are your interest and dividends".

[Midpack]

I’ve always mowed my own but after years of a lawn fertilizer/weed/insect service with mediocre results, with our new house I am attempting to DIY my lawn in an attempt to have an above average lawn. I follow a schedule that’s a mix of two sources, I use mostly organic products (not Milorganite) and put down a lot of soil remediation products (humic acid & biochar) - that will slow when I get the soil in good shape. Controlling weeds has been the biggest challenge (broad leaf weeds are easy, grassy weeds are not), but I think I have weeds under control now, and pre-emergents should do much of the work from now on vs spot treating. I’m spending more than a lawn service but I’m getting better results too. Done right, watering can be the most expensive part of lawn care, but once I get my soil in really good shape (deeper roots and more organic activity - something you can’t get with synthetics alone), I’ll be able to water less. I scalp in Spring and core aerate in Fall. That’s the plan for me. I’d like to overseed but I’m told I have to water every day for 4 weeks - that’s an expensive PITA I’m not willing to take on?

[JoeWras]

Lawns in the eastern Piedmont of NC are a nightmare. Too hot for a cool season grass, too cool for a warm season. So... pick one.

Just East of here most people go warm season (centipede, bermuda, zosia, or even St. Augs by the coast). West it is mostly cool (fescue, blue grass, bent).

When the neighborhood was built, it was all fescue. That's what I have. Fertilize lightly in Sept, usually Milorganite, since it doesn't have a high nitrogen load. Then heavy 10-10-10 in Nov. Sometimes another light Milorganite wake up in Feb. That's it. Nothing later than Feb or it burns or causes fungus. The fact is the grass has to be kind of starving in the summer. It can't be too thick.

I see the Tru-Green people constantly doing stuff. The results are not always good when the fungus in the summer hits.

I try to blow any granules off the hard surfaces back to the lawn. Still, I try my best to keep runoff as low as possible.

Now, we're getting ready to cut down a diseased tree. That's going to mean a lot more sun. My neighbor and I are thinking of going with Zoysia, a warm season grass. It is catching on. People are finally getting to be OK with the brown winter lawn. I like it, it looks OK and chokes out weeds. If I do this, everything will be reversed and it will be a new world.

[Mr._Graybeard]

I live in an old farmhouse, and to me it looks best with an old-fashioned lawn. White (Dutch) clover plays a big part in it. I enjoy seeing the white patches of it blooming in the grass, with bees and butterflies feeding off of it. And in many ways it's superior to standard lawn grasses. https://dengarden.com/gardening/Clover-Lawns

Of course, Mr. Trugreen will work hard to eradicate clover. My neighbor has the service, and the guy is out here every couple of weeks applying chemicals. Not my cup of tea.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr._Graybeard I live in an old farmhouse, and to me it looks best with an old-fashioned lawn. White (Dutch) clover plays a big part in it. I enjoy seeing the white patches of it blooming in the grass, with bees and butterflies feeding off of it. And in many ways it's superior to standard lawn grasses. https://dengarden.com/gardening/Clover-Lawns Of course, Mr. Trugreen will work hard to eradicate clover. My neighbor has the service, and the guy is out here every couple of weeks applying chemicals. Not my cup of tea.

Clover is making a comeback! I know some people here are advocating for it.

[Bamaman]

I used TruGreen at my last house, and they never once did any soil analysis. All the yards were treated the same even though my front yard was very thin (Bermuda.) After spending $1,000 for the year, I swore them off.

Our new house has a large front yard 100% Bermuda. But the side yard has a bunch of Johnson grass mixed in. I'm sucking it up and applying Roundup to the patches of bad grass, but the stuff requires many applications to kill.

We put in an in ground pool this year, and I put down Bermuda sod around the pool 2 weeks ago. The dirt is okay, but some areas are pretty rocky and the sod's not greening up as well as I hoped. Thankfully our water here is cheap. When the sod gets a little more mature, I'll conservatively fertilize it.

I find fertilizing a job that just takes a few minutes, and it's not even hard work. It does require watering, and I've been a slave to the hoses and sprinklers recently. The front yard has a watering system I've been hesitant to use.

I'm cutting my yard now at 3", and using a commercial zero turn mower. I cannot believe anyone would pay commercial cutters to do such a pleasurable job. It's just so much fun to ride the yard, and I only have to use the push more 2-3 minutes in corners.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr._Graybeard Of course, Mr. Trugreen will work hard to eradicate clover. My neighbor has the service, and the guy is out here every couple of weeks applying chemicals. Not my cup of tea.

My neighbor and I share a common area that splits the property line. Right now the common area has a garden of Hostas. They grow like weeds in this lightly shaded area.

Suddenly, this year, the Hostas on his side became dwarfs. It was weird. We finally figured out it has something to do with the Tru Green stuff. It didn't kill them, just stunted them. I'm not sure if he is going to continue with the service.

[FI50]

We have Bermuda in the front and Zoysia in the back. We have a swimming pool and garden in the back. So we avoid all chemicals in the back. For the five years we have been here, we may have watered the back a half dozen times. We do aerate every spring and now the grass every week. The Zoysia looks great.
The front is a different story. We have tried everything in the front. From local lawn services and whatnot, but they all follow their own schedule and have not done any analysis. Needless to say, the front does not look appealing.
I'm going to follow this thread, get rid of my current lawn service, and give diy a shot. If that doesn't work, I'll just have to bite the bullet and replace the front with Zoysia.

[jazz4cash]

Great Thread. My plan is application of pre emergent in March. Straight fertilizer low nitrogen at Easter, Memorial Day, July 4th Labor Day and 1st week of Dec. I use 1/3 less than recommended and almost always choose to skip Labor Day cause the lawn is too dry and I despise watering. I won’t use Scott’s Fertilizer and I hate their broadcast spreaders. I’m thinking about buying an Earthway ($$$). I use straight products as much as possible like trimec broadleaf herbicide for spot treatments with a pump sprayer

The idea of using a DIY lawn product is appealing since the brands I prefer like Lesco are not easy to find. My DB swears by Milorganite but it’s cost prohibitive due to size of our lawn. I might use it for the front only though.

[JoeWras]

Cultivars matter, especially with Bermuda and Zoysia.

Around here, the only Bermuda cultivar that grows well is the wild type. It is basically a weed. The locals call it wire grass. Bermuda grows much better about 50 miles east of here.

We also have various cultivars of Zoysia in the neighborhood and some are more successful than others.

[timo2]

Our two greyhounds destroyed the bluegrass and fescue lawn (it's only a little yard). So we put in Dog Tuff Grass Plugs to replace our sod. The Dog Tuff Grass is urine resistant, and spreads by runners (it could be considered invasive), so it patches over urine spots by itself. I have a photo story I made for a review of the Dog Tuff Grass.

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FI50 We have Bermuda in the front and Zoysia in the back. The front is a different story. We have tried everything in the front. From local lawn services and whatnot, but they all follow their own schedule and have not done any analysis. Needless to say, the front does not look appealing. I'm going to follow this thread, get rid of my current lawn service, and give diy a shot. If that doesn't work, I'll just have to bite the bullet and replace the front with Zoysia.

Could be lots of reasons, but is the front yard shaded? IME Bermuda wants full sun, it won’t grow well even under medium or larger trees (even worse than other grasses). Our trees are only about 4 years old, not sure what I’ll do with the lawn when the trees mature.