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wesleywillis posted:I thought I remembered reading somewhere that you can drill holes and put something "non-toxic" in to the holes you drill in a tree stump. Non-toxic meaning like something that won't kill anything that comes within 50 feet of it. Like salt or some poo poo or some type of combination of cooking oil and "something". But on the other hand, I think it was facebook I saw that on, and we all know how reliable the "life hacks" are that you get from there.... A lot of stump remover stuff is just dry muriatic acid, you pour into the drilled holes and then cover with hot water. The acid dissolves in the water and accelerates the natural decay of the woody fibers in the trunk. I have to imagine that would also do a number on any not-quite-dead stumps still throwing up suckers, too.
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May 20, 2020 14:27
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BonoMan posted:Hey guys! I have a few lawncare questions. I posted over in the home care thread but didn't realize this one existed so I'm moving it over here. 'sup dogg! I mentioned this before, but I feel like The Lawn Care Nut is a great first stop if you want to get serious. If St. Aug is what you're after all the better, as that's what he has on his lawn and thus he has a ton of info about it. It may be a little overload, but if you do a search of his videos you can find some good beginner tips, rehab info, herbicide advice, fert schedules, etc.: Youtube Search: Lawn Care Nut St Augustine In particular, this seems relevant: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlHQHEk57bY Like I said elsewhere, all my amateur expertise is focused on cool season lawns so I can only provide some limited and general advice, but hopefully this will steer you the right way. BonoMan posted:
Looks like you have some broad-leaf weeds in there. If you don't mind the aesthetics then that's cool, but they will compete for nutrients and limit how thick your St. Aug can get. You can find good advice for St. Aug-compatible herbicides up above. BonoMan posted:With closeup: OK, #1: You need to sharpen your blades See how your grass looks gnarley and torn at the tops? That's a sign that the blade is blunt enough that when it hits the grass it's ripping the top off rather than cleanly shearing through it. Ideally you should be seeing nice, clean, straight cuts almost as if you used a pair of scissors to cut the blade. This causes three problems: - Aesthetics: the cells in the torn tip will die and whiten, and en-mass will lead to a ragged and unhealthy look - Stress: a jagged cut will lead to more dead cells along the leaf blade, in turn causing the grass a lot more shock when that happens. You will also "bleed out" more water from the grass until it heals, which may be an additional stressor in the heat of summer. - Infection: Just like with a person, the jagged cut also leaves more surface area that needs to heal and makes it much more susceptible to a variety of fungal infections (which can manifest in all sorts of ways). #2: Mow at the proper height As I understand it, St. Aug actually likes to be cut a bit higher than other warm season grasses like Bermuda (which you can just scalp to the drat ground). Check around, but I think 3" is perfectly reasonable. This will both help it compete with the weeds (shading more soil to prevent weed seed germination while its stolons colonize the surrounding areas) and help with water retention as the shade will keep the soil cooler to a shocking degree, preventing evaporation. #3: Mow at the proper frequency (One-Third Rule) To avoid stressing your grass, you ideally want to avoid cutting off more than one third of the total blade height in a given pass. This means that if your cut height is 2" you want to mow when it gets to 3", or if your cut height is 4" you want to mow before it gets to 6". This may mean mowing multiple times per week during peak growth; however, it will have a noticeable impact on how quickly the grass recovers from the cut and how well it can divert energy to spreading growth. BonoMan posted:Now some of the crustier areas: It's hard for me to know exactly what's going wrong here, but I would say it's definitely recoverable. I think that it's salvageable, though. I think I'd address the broadleaf weed problem first, as it's definitely competing with the grass in some areas, keeping them from filling in. I'd also check for soil compaction in the totally bare areas around that tree. If it's been bare for a while it may have gotten quite hard. Doing a core aeration might be a good idea. Once you get those two things under control, one thing you could try to accelerate the process is making plugs from your good areas and using them to help fill in the bare spots faster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDnf2Q5_ei0 BonoMan posted:2.) In front of the pine tree, there seems to be a good bit of erosion. And possibly some damage from being rained on by sap (I have nothing to support this other than the damage areas mimics the canopy shape and size)? Yeah, I think the lack of roots there has left the soil vulnerable to erosion, washing away all the loose soil and leaving behind the hard compact stuff. You can try leveling it with a good topsoil mix and seeding, then stabilizing the soil with a degradable mulch. This Stuff is great, as it contains a sticker that will prevent washout. Properly germinating when seeding is definitely its own topic, though. BonoMan posted:3.) A shittily sodded patch of grass from a utility company. Honestly, who knows what that grass is? If you really care, I'd consider nuking it with glyphosate (  ) leveling the area with a heavy mix of topsoil and coarse paver sand and then re-seeding or plugging.BonoMan posted:So yeah any advice would help! And I can always provide more pics or details. Sorry if this is overload! I hope this was helpful!
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May 29, 2020 23:14
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BonoMan posted:It absolutely was thanks! And yeah I've signed up for the Lawn Care Nut from your reco in the other thread. Been really enjoying the videos so far. Oh, and going off what Kaiser said: I'd just throw down a ton of Milorganite right now -- Something like 30 Lb/1000 sqft. You should be able to find it at Home Depot/Lowe's easily enough. It's going to add organic matter, slow release nitrogen, and phosphorous to the soil. It also has some compaction reduction properties, causing clay to agglomerate into coarser chunks rather than a compacted surface. The Milorganite won't fix your organic matter problem (you really need to revitalize the soil ecosystem and rely on the root cycle for that) but it will kickstart that recovery process. You could also pick up a couple bales of peat moss and just kind of scatter it around the yard as a top dressing. Peat can hold something like 20x it's weight in water so it will help your moisture retention and will decompose into organic matter as well. For the dead areas and thatch, get a hose-end sprayer and apply some unsulfured molassas at a rate of around 3-6oz/1000sqft. The sugar will soak into the dry plant matter and jumpstart the decomposition process. It will also provide a tiiiiny amount of N. Running a dethatcher/power rake across the area may also be a good option, but I'm not sure i would do that until the turf is healthier and you have the weeds more under control. Since you are already following LCN, I'd really recommend the Bio-Stimulant Pack. AIR-8: Basic solution will break down ionic bonds in clay and slowly make it more permeable to roots, which will decompact it over time. HUMIC-12: Humic Acid solution will add long-chain carbon molecules (think organic decomposition byproducts, like compost) to the soil which will make fertilizer more bioavailable RGS: Kelp Extract contains hormones which will promote root growth, slightly slowing vertical growth pressure and helping the existing grass establish itself and fill in laterally Micro-Green: Provide micro-nutrients that might be missing from the otherwise poor soil, improving overall health. You can apply this with the hose-end sprayer. I wouldn't mix the AIR-8 or Humic-12 with other things, as they can precipitate and cause clogs, but the others should be fine. The other GCF fertilizers are also great products, if you feel like going liquid.
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May 30, 2020 15:53
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Hasselblad posted:Sharpening my mower blades is one of my most least favorite things to do. I have a large sharpening file, but can never get a good angle without my hands cramping up in record time. Tried a drill attachment but those work like poo poo. I use a preset carbide sharpener for regular edge maintenance and a rotary tool grinder jig for more major rehab like cleaning up blade nicks. Make sure to check your blade balance afterwards.
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Jun 1, 2020 02:00
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Darchangel posted:How well does that carbide sharpener work with mulching blades with the wave in the edge? I have the Dremel accessory, and it's sort of crap where the blade wiggles. You can follow the curve reasonably well with the carbide. Keep in mind that only the sharpness of the actual at-height surface really matters (as that's what will determine the quality of the remaining grass cut). Everything else can just get chopped to hell as it's mulched.
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Jun 2, 2020 02:33
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Sir DonkeyPunch posted:This might be the wrong thread, but I get my lawn treated. How much rain is expected, and how sloped is your lawn? If it's less than 1" you should be fine, my only concern would be a heavy downpour event washing some of the application out.
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Jun 3, 2020 14:49
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BonoMan posted:No I've been doing it for years so I have the technique down. But I have this really lovely aggregate for the driveway and walking path and the road as I mentioned is really ragged asphalt and with how quickly my grass can get over it... it means just destroying my string when I edge. I just loving blow through it and it's annoying as hell. So I respectfully disagree with Motronic on the value of a blade edger, but I kind of agree that raged aggregate is really the opposite of where an edger would shine. If you are blowing through string, you might want to try running at only half throttle (if it's adjustable) -- enough to still cut through the grass, but not so much that it immediately shreds itself when it hits hardscape. Another option to consider is a weed torch. Run your trimmer normally (horizontally) and scalp down the overgrown areas, then come through with the torch and burn out anything popping up through the jagged parts. What an edger is good for is establishing a nice, clean line and trenching a small gap so that your roots air-prune rather than spreading onto the adjacent surface. With a trimmer you can cut back the overgrowth just fine, but a blade will actually prevent the overgrowth as well (or at least restrict it to the top growth). They are great for a once/twice a month maintenance pass around your hardscape, and for establishing/maintaining bed edges. You can use a trimmer to clean these areas up but they aren't doing the same thing an edger does. In practice I use both -- edger at the beginning of the season and periodically to maintain a defined edge, and trimmer every week or two in order to give the grass a "haircut" around said edge.
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Jun 10, 2020 16:35
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Are you within range of an electric outlet, or are you looking for a gas/battery tool?Motronic posted:I totally agree with the reasoning behind this, I just don't need an edger at the beginning of the season or for periodic maintenance because once it's been edged I'm keeping the air gap with the string trimmer. Being able to do that so that you aren't bringing out an additional tool several times a year is really landscaper 101 type stuff. If at your home you don't mind having the extra tool so that you don't have to be as aggressive and timely with a string trimmer I get it - it's not a fun job. I agree with you. In my case I've got sidewalks at the bottom of a sloped lawn, so maintaining that gap can be a bit of a bear sometimes. Amusingly I've seen some lawn/landscape YouTubers argue the opposite, with one (GCI Turf) going so far as to say "if I catch a guy on one of my crews using a string on hardscape he is fired on the spot" because he says the edge quality is so much better which seems pretty ridiculous to me. I suspect that this is one of those things where if you ask any two landscapers what the best technique is you are going to get two answers no matter what. I actually prefer using the trimmer when I can both because it's faster and because I like walking along the hardscape side with the trimmer at like a 60' angle to kind of "taper" the edge -- make it cleanly defined where it meets the hardscape, but overhanging a little to make it look a bit more organic. E: also to what you were saying about using the string to trench, I think that's very true but only if you aren't rehabbing an area. Like my lawn was pretty hard and compacted in places and the trimmer was never going to carve a good gap. Now that I've maintained it for a while and the soil is a lot more workable a string can do a much more reasonable job of clearing it out. Again, it is probably a very situational thing. To that end, if you aren't looking at a very large area you might actually get better use out of a manual half-moon edger to chop it out instead. That will be useful in a lot of other places as well. Hubis fucked around with this message at 18:21 on Jun 10, 2020 |
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Jun 10, 2020 18:15
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so just to put it out there, this is what I am planning on throwing down on my Fescue starting in September (at a rate of roughly 1lb Actual N/1000sqft) and I'm kind of unreasonable excited about it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrephnUZ1Q0 Meanwhile I am doing applications of their StressX 4-0-25 in the heat of summer, along with a full dose of Hydretain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa9hQd-J_w8 Also as far as watering goes, this video shows a variation on what I'm using which might be useful for anyone without an in-ground sprinkler system: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULXTVEyenuY I really like the rainbird rotary heads with the pressure-regulated body (PRS-45). They are super easy to adjust, cover really good area with very even flow, and because they have low precipitation rates they have low GPM demands meaning you can cover a larger area from a hose bib connection without pressure drops. I got all my parts from Sprinkler Warehouse, which sells the rainbird roatary heads + PRS bodies as a combo. I'd probably recommend either the 13-18ft heads (yellow) or the 17-24ft heads (purple) depending on your lawn. They also have some fantastic short-throw heads that will do a 3-5'x20-30' area (adjustable) for weird corners.
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Jun 17, 2020 02:53
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Darchangel posted:Saturday, I decided to do something about the grass that kept cropping up in my tree's ring. Generally what you want to do is prune to encourage a dominant leader (one branch that is growing the strongest) by cutting back competitive "co-dominant leaders" and avoid having a trunk which forks too much and is this weakened by a lot of crotches carrying heavy weight (heh). However, you really don't want to completely remove branches if you can avoid it, as they will help feed, thicken, and strengthen the trunk from where they meet all the way down as long as they are there. While eventually you will want to prune back all the lower branches to your "final first branch height" the longer you can leave subordinate lower branches the better (so long as you have one clear leader at the top).
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Jun 24, 2020 02:45
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Yeah the main thing with those is avoiding co-dominant leaders.
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Jun 24, 2020 20:00
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Solkanar512 posted:Is this for trees in general? I’m finding that a lot of my Japanese maples have been pruned at the nursery such that the main leader is cut off (likely for another graft) down to the next set of side branches, which then become co-dominate leaders. The shapes of the trees are just fine but it seems like a waste to just cut it off like that. My arborist expertise is all Internet Search wisdom, so please take this with a grain of salt; however, as I understand it the problem with co-dominant leaders is primarily that the crotch wood between them is structurally weak and will tend to fail as the tree ages and the two split trunks get larger. If you have a dominant stem and a branch then you tend to have a stronger union between them as one gets thicker than the other. If you are growing a tree that is smaller/ornamental/you are near the top of where you want it to be then it is less of a concern. Note that certain schools of pruning (i.e. hyper-stylized japanese gardens) involve pruning the entire tree to have single dominant leaders, including having leaders for each branch, etc. For a young maple like that you can pick one of the two top leaders if you want before they get too thick and just do a normal heading cut if you want to give more shape, or leave it and have it be more symmetric. e: http://tcimag.tcia.org/publication/?i=564008&article_id=3292929&view=articleBrowser&ver=html5
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Jun 25, 2020 02:31
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DJExile posted:My wife and I bought a house and it's clear the landscaping hasn't been touched in at least 4-5 years, maybe more. This front area where the driveway curves around has a garden that until last week, with the help of a neighbor kid, was completely overgrown with 3 foot high thistle. I didn't even know the rocks were in there until we started digging. The grass itself isn't in great shape either but I feel like that can at least be touched up relatively easily once I get all the dandelion weeds out of here. We're also getting the driveway re-paved which will be its own blessing. Yeah, the grass looks pretty fine -- certainly salvageable, and not worth worrying about until after all the driveway work is done. Maybe some compaction next to the driveway? What's wrong with that tree? It doesn't look *too* bad to me. For low maintenance ground cover, some variety of juniper could work well. I threw in some Mountain Hydrangeas in my yard this year to fill some gaps and they look great and are extremely hearty as well.
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Jun 28, 2020 03:35
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Early spring or Fall is planting time.
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Jul 8, 2020 00:53
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:also hello everyone i manage a 130 acre nursery in new jersey so if anyone has any tree questions i am happy to help What's a good time of year to remove an air-layering I started mid-spring on a red maple?
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Jul 15, 2020 21:59
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:we don't do much clonal propagation, but where are you and where is it going (outdoors or a greenhouse)? an air layer should be fine 'indefinitely' (not literally, but long enough that you can wait to plant it whenever it's seasonally appropriate) Thanks for the useful feedback! I realize it's kind of a weird question -- it was just something I'd been idly wondering about, and when a tree expert happened to present themselves I figured I'd take a shot. Purpose is mostly just technique practice on landscape trees for bonsai (the branch was one I needed to prune anyways, and while a. rubrum isn't a super great species for bonsai the branch had some mojo so I figured I'd practice a bit). I got some Japanese maples at a decent price that are nice varieties but with pretty ugly grafts onto the root stock, and so my plan there was to grow them out a bit and then air-layer them off the grafts. Seasonally I'd ideally want to plant/pot it in early spring, so my concern was whether leaving the air layering to winter over would put the roots at risk for freezing (since they wouldn't have the protection of a pot/soil around them, etc.). If I removed it this fall it would go in a pot outdoors, but in a "sheltered" location (I've got plans to hack together a "cold greenhouse" for wintering things that should stay in the 30's).
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Jul 15, 2020 22:51
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:i'll container grow seedlings until they're vigorous enough to handle being field grown, for the few seedlings i do grow, but almost anything a customer would buy from me did most of it's developing out in the fields. i know a few guys near me 'field grow' their container plants (they line out their containers in their fields and grown them out there), but i've never seen the point and imo it's easier to get a ball&burlap tree to transplant compared to something container grown, especially when you're a landscape contractor putting 100+ trees in the ground a day and speed matters. Have you experimented with Air-Pots, and if so do you think they're worth the hype? The demos I have seen showing the dense/radial root structure and how that translates to better health even several years post-transplant is really compelling to me, but I don't know how much of that is just marketing.
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Jul 16, 2020 17:43
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devmd01 posted:Putting this drainage pipe in from the downspout down to the drainage easement is gonna suuuuuuck. RIP ur tree (which direction is the easement?)
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Jul 17, 2020 22:45
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devmd01 posted:My initial work assessment was correct, that suuuuuucked. Nothing but dense clay the whole way down; thankfully the mattock made relatively short work of it. I've never heard of anyone who ever rented a trencher say they regretted renting a trencher
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Jul 19, 2020 19:53
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Sprue posted:What do y'all recommend for cutting grass in a very small, extremely hilly/rocky/stumpy yard? I've just been using this big rear end string trimmer but it leaves really ragged edges on the grass and it's super hard to get a uniform cut. Do they make a string trimmer designed for grass that helps keep a consistent level? Yeah, they have a couple wheels to hold them level, and usually even a height adjustment option for dialing in a long or short cut. Also, they usually use a metal blade instead of a string to get a really clean cut
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Jul 19, 2020 23:11
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Sprue posted:What do y'all recommend for cutting grass in a very small, extremely hilly/rocky/stumpy yard? I've just been using this big rear end string trimmer but it leaves really ragged edges on the grass and it's super hard to get a uniform cut. Do they make a string trimmer designed for grass that helps keep a consistent level? Glibness aside, this is actually the opposite of what you asked for, but it might help because it actually works in a way similar to what I joked about above: making the trimmer more like a lawnmower https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qh6vPgX0cH0 So as shown, the Edgit (or similar devices) are helpful for using a trimmer for edging; however, another advantage is that they provide a big surface area for directing the airflow creates by the spinning trimmer string. In theory this helps to stand the grass up a little bit more so that as you cut it you are actually getting a more even length. Of course, trimmer string isn't angled like mower blades are (which helps create that consistent suction) so it is still not going to be as good, but it might help? Another simpler idea would be to go over the area you want to trim and hit it with a blower first to "fluff up" the grass a little more. Ultimately you are never going to get a super clean cut with a trimmer, just because of how they work. Even a mower with hardened metal blades will give a bad cut if the blades are dull or nicked. But maybe this can help at least give a more consistent height?
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Jul 20, 2020 14:21
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Sprue posted:Thanks for the info. That edgit looks overkill for my spot, but sick. Do you have a brand/style you recommend for lawn trimmers? I'd want to get something low end because my lawn is small and I don't give too much of a poo poo lol I have the Ego trimmer, but I'd say it's probably overkill for your "I don't care too much" demographic. Do you have any 18v power tools (Milwaukee, Makita, DeWalt, Ryobi)? All of them have some kind of string trimmer that fits into the their respective battery ecosystems, so that seems like a lay-up. Things to look for are larger maximum line gauge and an auto-winding feature. Larger line = more durable and more momentum when you are cutting.
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Jul 20, 2020 22:57
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SpartanIvy posted:I just saw a news article that Home Depot is dropping EGO as a brand they carry as part of a "accelerating it's investment" initiative and it's blowing my mind. They're the Cadillac of battery powered lawn equipment and I'd be surprised if they're not the best selling. I guess Home Depot has stock in some other brand and needs to cut competition. uhh, wow. That's insane to me (especially given that Home Depot acts as the customer-facing service center for all Ego's repairs -- they manage the logistics of shipping the orders back to the manufacturer, etc). My guess is some internal negotiations between HD and Ego broke down and HD decided to play hard-ball.
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Jul 22, 2020 00:53
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pmchem posted:I just bought an EGO mower and weedwhacker last week and used them for the first time today, it better not become impossible to have those things fixed or have the batteries replaced. (Note: cool season lawn advice here) Selective herbicide with Quinclorac (more effective on established crabgrass) and a spike of SedgeHammer. Add a non-ionic surfactant. Do this broadly (if weed cover is really that dense) and then repeat in 2-3 weeks as a spot application. In the fall, overseed, mulch, and water constantly (like 2x a day) until germination is complete. If you are in a transition area get a laterally spreading fescue, otherwise a fescue/bluegrass mix (or straight bluegrass). Next March put down an application of Dithiopyr, and do it again in May. Repeat the selective herbicide as a spot application for any trouble spots -- it should be much better by then. Next fall put down another application of Dithiopyr in August/September (to prevent winter weeds). Then do the "fall nitro push": put down ~1lb/1000sqft actual N per month and mow CONSTANTLY. Your grass will grow like crazy, and the mowing will encourage lateral growth, filling in any gaps. This would be a great time to apply seaweed extract and humic acid as well.
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Jul 22, 2020 20:17
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Daric posted:My yard is looking pretty good at the moment but I threw down some Ironite today so I'm curious to see how that will look next week. We're supposed to get some rain from the dirty side of that tropical storm but it shouldn't be anything heavy. Anyone use Ironite before and feel like it made a significant difference? for an otherwise healthy lawn, hell yeah. Get that deep blue-green color on!
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Jul 26, 2020 03:08
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Motronic posted:Be careful with that. It's literally mining waste, therefore not subject to hazmat rules. And yes, it contains arsenic and lead. I allllllmost chimed in with this, but didn't want to start a massive derail. But yeah. In regular applications it is not really going to accumulate to any noticeable volumes, but over an extended period yeah you might see accumulation of heavy metals. Note that Milorganite has similar iron content, but without the toxic metal load if you are worried about that kind of thing (although people have their own concerns with Milo, which I personally don't give much attention).
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Jul 27, 2020 02:59
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devmd01 posted:It’s taken some work but the yard is pretty clear of weeds. It looks pretty good all trimmed up!  E: BTW, now is the perfect time of year for people to get a six pack of cheap lager, a hose-end sprayer, pour the lager into the sprayer, and do an application to the lawn. The sugars will serve to boost microbe activity in the thatch that soaks up the beer, which in turn will cause it to breakdown even faster in the middle of the summer heat and prepare you for fall growing season. Hubis fucked around with this message at 03:04 on Aug 8, 2020 |
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Aug 8, 2020 03:01
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wesleywillis posted:I drink beer and water the lawn with my piss. Is that doing it right? Everyone knows you're supposed to piss in the compost (Kidding) ((Not kidding))
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Aug 9, 2020 01:04
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Side discharge bad, mulching good. Side discharge is good for really tall grass that would bog up the deck, or if you are going to do multiple passes. I'll amend what Motronic said about height: Height reduction in the winter can be good if you get a lot of snow as it can reduce snow mold problems. Raising the height in the summer can be good to help maintain cool soil. Raising the height can be useful if you let the grass get a little too long -- raise it and mow, then mow again 2-3 days later at normal height. Lowering the height to the minimum your grass likes (2-2.5 for fescues) before fall overseeding or dethatching is good. And bagging: If the grass is really long/wet (don't mow wet, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do) bagging can be much better. If you are planning to overseed, bag for a few weeks beforehand so your seed can get more contact with the soil. Likewise, bag for the first few mows after seeding. If you are ever having fungus issues (Transition Zone I see u) bagging until it clears up can be helpful. So I would say they are both very useful options to have, but neither is something you'd need to mess with most of the time. For what it's worth I mow at 3.5" (up to 4" if I've let it get too long), working down to 2.5 if I am overseeding (then back to 3.5"), and down to 2-2.5" for my last few mows in the winter. I mulch my clippings and bag/compost my leaves off-site.
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Aug 23, 2020 15:19
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KKKLIP ART posted:We have zoysia which seems to be happy at about 2 inches. I kinda want to just get the Honda I see recommend everywhere. Does mulching and side throw. We are having a lot of mushrooms pop up which is weird but maybe makes more sense now. We also are going to reseed our back yard because the previous owners for sure only cared about the quality and spread of grass in the front. ~LiViN tHe DrEaM~ Then ignore everything I said about heights and timing. That said, you may want to do your first few mows in the spring at 1" to remove dead material from the winter, then raise it. The best height depends on a few things: 1) humidity/watering/rainfall. Shorter grass = hotter soil surface = faster evaporation. That said, Zoysia is fine with hot soil and is more drought tolerant, so probably not a big factor 2) surface quality. If you are mowing at 1" and the ground is uneven, you will scalp on the bumps. This is why people who like to mow "reel low" go to so much effort dragging in sand to rake out and level the grade 3) mow frequency. The 1/3 rule is still in effect, so shorter grass = more frequent mowing. At 1" you'd want to mow when the average height hits 1.5", while at 2" you could wait until it hits a towering 3". CommonShore posted:This science of when to bag/mulch/throw intrigues me. If I want to maximize the clippings I'm getting for my garden compost heap, but also to minimize the likelihood of damaging the general grass health (mostly so that weeds don't get into the grass to then get into my garden) how often should I do each? So first, I'm assuming no herbicide on the lawn. If you use a herbicide for weeds you will want to mulch or trash the clippings for the next few weeks after. Beyond that, my feeling is this: you aren't going to hurt your grass by not mulching clippings. You may lose the benefits of mulch (weeds, water retention) and may need to compensate for not returning that material to the soil (adding organic matter and nutrients) but that can be easily done. And if you are 100% composting those clippings instead and using them elsewhere in the garden then I'd personally argue you are doing the same amount of good by composting those materials more thoroughly and adding them elsewhere while avoiding the potential risks to the lawn from mulching. If you had the capacity to 100% collect, compost, and actually use all your clippings I would totally do that. But chances are you probably don't have that capacity/demand (at least I don't). And in general the mulched clippings ARE good, provided they aren't contributing to some other problem. These problems can be thatch buildup and depriving the underlying soil of oxygen and nutrients (if you are cutting very long grass), contributing to fungal disease (if disease or risk conditions are present), or covering the soil when you need seed-soil contact. So my rule of thumb is to generally mulch all the time, unless I want the clippings elsewhere. 1) bag when the grass gets too long (like I've been too busy/away). It won't break down as quickly and can mat down between the grass, contributing to thatch. 2) Bag when I have to mow damp/dewey grass, because it will stick together and clump on top. 3) Bag for a few weeks before and after overseeding. 4) Now since the clippings break down faster in the heat, if you want to generate more compost fodder another option is to bag from March-May (highest risk of spring fungus), mulch June-September (will break down in the summer), and then bag October-December (clippings won't break down much over the winter, so this avoids adding dead material and also adds some green content to complement any tree leaves you might be composting as well). Keep in mind this is not at all strictly necessary -- I think the general rule of "mulching your clippings is good for the soil" is fine; however, if you want to be a little more involved then I think these added factors are worth thinking about. Another thing to consider is dethatching. This can be very good for the grass, and the thatch you pull up makes for AMAZING compost fodder. You will generate a shocking amount of it.
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Aug 23, 2020 18:09
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CommonShore posted:This science of when to bag/mulch/throw intrigues me. If I want to maximize the clippings I'm getting for my garden compost heap, but also to minimize the likelihood of damaging the general grass health (mostly so that weeds don't get into the grass to then get into my garden) how often should I do each? Or here's a less long-winded answer: bag whenever you feel like adding a pile of green material to your compost. You won't hurt the grass by doing so. This could be every other week, once a month, or just whenever you've got space.
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Aug 23, 2020 18:11
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cakesmith handyman posted:While you guys are talking lawns we have a little patch out front maybe 6'x8' that my wife wants to patio over, it's got flower borders on 3 sides and the front of the house at the fourth. I'm reluctant to slab over it because I believe the grass keeps the heat down in summer but I wondered what super low maintenance alternatives are around? Mint, camomile etc? It gets direct sun half the day and some foot traffic. Micro clover, Irish Moss, Creeping Thyme are all good alternatives. I'm actually looking for something similar for an awkward side patch of my yard.
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Aug 24, 2020 00:59
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wandler20 posted:Does anyone have a recommendation for a quality leaf vacuum/mulcher? I'd prefer something somewhat portable because I have a lot of small spaces to get into but I'm open to anything. I have the Worx 12-Amp Electric Blower/Mulcher and I like it just fine. Get the attachment that lets you discharge into a trash bin if possible -- that little collection bag fills up fast.
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Aug 24, 2020 19:07
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Daric posted:It's nothing crazy and not a very good picture but most of the houses in my neighborhood have yards that look like the one on the right. Mine is the one on the left. Walking back from our mailbox today I was pretty proud of how much better mine looks than most of the others. 
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Aug 26, 2020 01:14
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Motronic posted:You are much more detailed with what you will do with grass than I am, and I appreciate the additional insight.  This is definitely a result of having a small enough lawn to afford to fuss over and a personality that won't leave well enough alone. I worry I make it sound too dogmatic or like too much effort when really what I mean is the basics are pretty straightforward, but if people are willing to spend a little more time (scaled by acreage) there are some added details worth considering. I've got a scant 1/4 acre of suburban corner lot I've decided to try and make the absolute most of, but none of this is to cast any aspersions whatsoever on you guys with 5000sqft to multiple acres of actual grass to wrangle. I sure wouldn't have the time.
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Aug 27, 2020 02:50
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Motronic posted:
At that point, how feasible is just setting up a small elevated water holding tank on your property and just keeping it topped up with a low volume pump?
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Aug 31, 2020 01:17
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Motronic posted:The mechanics are easy. The sanitation.....maybe not so easy. Yeah, I guess that kind of thing makes much more sense for something like irrigation than tap water.
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Aug 31, 2020 03:16
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Twlight posted:I have moved into a property which has grass. This is the first time i've had to take care of grass really ever, however my grass is largely yellow and poo poo. it is in full sun, and the previous owner really didn't take care of the lawn at all. While I am not looking to have golf course grass, changing the color to green would be beneficial to me. Daric posted:The first thing I would do is figure out what kind of grass you have. Grasses like fescue spread from seeds, grasses like Bermuda, Zoysia, and St. Augustine spread via stolons (like long tendrils that grow and sprout grass out of them as they stretch). If you see stolons in your yard, it's probably one of those three.  He's in the midwest, so it's probably going to be some mix of kentucky bluegrass and perrenial rye (and/or maybe fescue). And weeds, obviously. Actually, now is the very end of summer dormancy hell for Northern grass where heat and drought will cause it to brown and dieback. Fall is peak time for cool season grass, and if you want to rehab a lawn now is the ideal time to start. It's probably brown from some combination of drought stress, heat, and nutrient deficiency. Thin/bare patches may be light, traffic, or compaction problems. Easy rehab instructions: 1) Measure your lawn. Divide it into convenient 1000sqft ish sections. 2) Go buy yourself a few bags of Milorganite, and apply it at the recommended rate. One 36lb bag should cover roughly 2500 sqft, but you're not going to burn anything if you go a little bit heavy. 3) Order some Sulfate of Potash and spread it at about 1lb / 1000sqft. 4) Water Water Water. Between rain and irrigation you want 0.5-0.75" every 3-4 days. 5) Mow Mow Mow. You're going to be applying a goodly amount of nitrogen, which will revitalize any healthy turf. Keeping it mowed will encourage it to thicken and spread. 6) Do all this again in October. You're looking to apply roughly 1lb of Actual Nitrogen every 4 weeks ("the Fall Nitro Push"). 7) Do one more application of Milo in November. The grass will start to go dormant from the cold, but the roots are warmer and they are still hardening off, and storing energy for spring regrowth. This feeding will help it do that better. Milorganite (and other organic Nitrogen sources) aren't really ideal in cold weather, but the combination of slow-release, micronutrients (Iron and Sulfer especially), and soil-improving qualities will all make it a great first step to fixing everything up. There's a lot more nuance you could go into, but this is pretty straightforward and you should hopefully see results this season. Once you see how well it responds you can get an idea for where to go from there (probably spring pre-emergent and overseeding next fall).
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Sep 4, 2020 21:56
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Twlight posted:This is super key, I did see about milogranite in some of the youtube videos which we're linked in the other comment. Thank you for this! Should I just get any ol' spreader? or is there a good type to buy? I've seen scotts spreaders in HD, but not sure if they're fine or i will even understand the difference. How big of a lawn? The larger spreaders are nice if you have a larger area to cover and can throw things down with fewer trips (andctheycar generally more durable in general) but the Scott's EdgeGuard spreaders are fine for home use. I've got an EdgeGuard mini that works just fine. The eponymous "edge guard" is really nice for keeping your fert and seed off the sidewalk/flower beds.
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Sep 5, 2020 07:24
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Motronic posted:I'm getting ready to start the fall nitro push soon, but I also need potassium. You know if there are any liquid solutions? I've got 35,000 sq. ft of grass (don't judge me!) so I've taken to liquid application of everything with the tiniest little baby spray trailer I've ever seen. Just the right size to do the whole mess in 2 or 3 fills. A quick search for "liquid potash" on DoMyOwn.com will give you some good options. I've seen Nucleus 0-0-21 spoken of well on some lawn forums. I haven't used their potash mixes, but I've had good results with the TurfGrass Pro products. Interestingly they have a 0-0-26 Potassium Phosphite product and a 0-0-29 Potassium Acetate product. I wasn't sure what the practical differences were, but I guess Potassium Acetate has very good foliar absorption, while Potassium Phosphite has some residual anti-fungal properties. So my guess would be the 0-0-26 ProPhite would be a solid pick for your situation. This is definitely stretching my personal experience though, so let me know what you end up trying and how it works! Edit: it looks like Nucleus is Potassium Sulfate, so I imagine that would give you some good color response. Hubis fucked around with this message at 07:50 on Sep 5, 2020 |
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Sep 5, 2020 07:47
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