Lawn experts?

[HAWKEYE10]

My front yard gets dry really quick so I bought a sprinkler today. How long should I leave it in one spot and how many times a week should should I water it? I just want to have a better looking yard. Don

[C Broad Arrow]

Add some compost or top soil to the lawn to build the base so you have a 4-6 inches. Once there is a good base the roots will go deep. You should not water more than once a week. Fertilize with a good brand, do not cut it too short. Leave the clippings on the lawn as it returns nutrients to the soil.
Spray to control weeds. Over seed in the spring.

[armadillo]

I never had a lawn in TN but here in TX we want the roots to go deep, so we water once a week. When we get drought restrictions that is all that is allowed anyway.

My system allows me to set 3 start times in one day, so I run 15 minutes on each zone in grass and 10-12 in the beds and cycle the whole thing twice in the early morning and once after sunset - all in the same day. In wetter climates you may not want to water at night - check with a local expert.

[Thunder71]

Mow high and water deep, once or twice a week very early in the morning (you can get timers) - I'd guess an average of one hour per location.

This encourages deep roots and thick lawn.

I have an irrigation system and water every Monday and Friday for one hour per station (5 stations total), starts at 3am.

[DeathGrip]

I guess by the responses so far you might want to narrow your search. I could give you some bad advice.

My grass is your weed.

[glockdog 19]

What type of turf are you trying to grow? What kind of soil do you have? Clay, Loam, or Sandy? Do you have a fertilizer program in place? Humidity and Wind will also dictate how much irrigation is needed. Water in the morning if possible. Night watering leads to disease unless you are on a fungicide program.

[smithnframe]

I hate yard work!

[jkc]

Originally Posted by smithnframe

I hate yard work!

Me, too. I do all mine with a ballpoint pen, writing a check to the HOA, who in turn contracts with a landscape maintenance firm, which, every Wednesday morning, just after dawn has cracked, shows up with truck and trailer loads of equipment and probably illegal immigrants, who mow and weed and trim and blow and rake, and etc., and then come back the next week and do it all over again ad infinitum... Life is too short to waste any of it on yard work...

[HAWKEYE10]

Originally Posted by glockdog 19

What type of turf are you trying to grow? What kind of soil do you have? Clay, Loam, or Sandy? Do you have a fertilizer program in place? Humidity and Wind will also dictate how much irrigation is needed. Water in the morning if possible. Night watering leads to disease unless you are on a fungicide program.

My front yard is clay and in the back yard the grass pretty much stays green unless it really gets dry. Most likely the grass is Kentucky 31 and I have been fertilizing in the spring. I also spray for weeds in the spring. Don

[glockdog 19]

K 31 is a very tough turf. I would try to aerate in the fall and add organic matter like the gentleman refered to in the earlier post. In the spring and fall, I would use a starter type fertilizer. This is a 1-2-1 ratio of nitrogen,phosporus, and potassium. The phosphorus and potassium will help develop longer roots which will lead to less watering. A good rule of thumb is to water deeply and less frequently. Roots will only grow in the presence of moistened soil. If you want more info on turf, there is a book published by Beard called Turfgrass Science and Culture. It is very boring but informative.

[Len]

Good advice so far. Mow long. Water in the early morning.

If you're using a sprinkler, put an empty can out in the path of the water. See how long it takes to fill it to an inch. Use that as your time to water.

Going wisdom is an inch a week [here in Michigan, anyway] ought to do it.

Hope this helps,

Len

[HAWKEYE10]

Originally Posted by Len

Good advice so far. Mow long. Water in the early morning.

If you're using a sprinkler, put an empty can out in the path of the water. See how long it takes to fill it to an inch. Use that as your time to water.

Going wisdom is an inch a week [here in Michigan, anyway] ought to do it.

Hope this helps,

Len

Good idea Len I will get an old coffee can. Don

[jdh]

Or a cheap dime store rain gauge.

[Rule3]

Use several cans in different locations and take the average.

The rule of thumb (Florida Turf) is 1" water per week in two application or twice a week. You need to calibrate (the cans) to see how much your sprinklers put out. So if it's 1 hour for 1/2" then water twice a week one hr at each time.

Your local County Agent is there to help you with anything


Tennessee Turfgrass

[ChattanoogaPhil]

Fescue in Tenn during the summer is tough to keep in good shape. I'm no expert, but after lots of trial and failures, here's what I do.

Sharp mower blade is a must. Otherwise, you'll tear the blades of grass instead of getting a clean cut. This leads to more water loss, greater need for watering and more prone to disease. On hot days I mow the yard in the late afternoon.

I water as infrequently as possible. I don't let the grass get to where it stars turning dark from dryness but real close. Water in the early morning. Wet Fescue during hot summer nights is a magnet for lawn fungal diseases like brown patch. When I do water, I drown it from about 6am to 10am. I try to get the water to soak in as deep as possible.

Pre emergent for weeds and crabgrass in the early spring works a zillion times better than trying to kill weeds and crabgrass after they are growing in the lawn during the summer.

Feeding is important but I am reluctant to put much nitrogen on my yard in the summer because that's fuel for lawn fugal diseases too. Soil pH is supposed to be very important but I have never tested the soil. Every few years I'll dump some lime on the yard. Not sure if that helps or hurts but no problems. Maybe Ill get the soil tested this year to see what it is.

I wish my yard still looked this good. The drought last year was just too much... trees sucked the soil dry around the perimeter faster than the hose could put it out so I gave up... but I'll get it back looking good this fall!



Pugsters like a nice lawn to roll around on.



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[smithnframe]

It is an exercize in futility!

[Pete99004]

Not difficult to have a nice lawn. First thing in spring rake well and use a good aerator - then hit it with a good fertilizer that's not real high in nitrogen. On years with a real wet spring, aerators can be used more than once. Plug style works better than the spike style in heavy clay areas.

Fertilizer should be done as soon as frost is out and then on each of the major holidays. Remember - not heavy applications or anything high in nitrogen. Try to water deeply once a week - at least 1" to 2" is best, more often (x2) in sandy soils. If you have that much in rain, don't water more. Bugs are the biggest problem so spray liquid or spread dry bug killer as needed. Some wet years will require multiple applications.

Water heavy in late fall and put down a mild fertilizer with minimal nitrogen, use the type more for root development. Good lawn health means you won't need to use any weed control, the grass will come in so thick it will choke out the weeds.

Good luck,

Pete