Jump to content
  • Member Statistics

    17,584
    Total Members
    7,904
    Most Online
    LopezElliana
    Newest Member
    LopezElliana
    Joined

5th Annual Lawn/Garden Thread warm season 2014


Damage In Tolland

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 1.1k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Suit yourself . Just don't wonder why your parents lawn looks like Reno

Their lawn is nice. Mine is a mess for other reasons. I think the front needs to be completely dug up, loamed, and reseeded. I just haven't put any effort into it yet.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

oh I thought you lived with them. Lol. Well if you need any advice just ask, although it seems like you're pretty satisfied as it is

No, I definitely take all advice. I suck at lawn care, but never really put much time or money into it.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Anyone have quack grass? Just researched it since I had something popping and it's too early for crabgrass... turns out it's the quick growing "quackgrass" worst part it's a perennial and deep root system goddamn it... it's exploding too hopefully the dimension slows it down atleast

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We've struggled pretty bad with the lawn over the years. Hills and runoff FTL.

We put loam down around the whole area that is around the extension of the driveway we did a few weeks ago.

We got something called rye seed. We also got something called URI seed. Which supposedly was designed to fit this specific area.

Pretty desperate to figure something that works. We combined the seeds and put them down. The grass is coming in very thick and solid. It looks great even after a couple weeks. Well see how it goes. If it works we might do something more wholesale during the fall. Redo the whole yard maybe

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We've struggled pretty bad with the lawn over the years. Hills and runoff FTL.

We put loam down around the whole area that is around the extension of the driveway we did a few weeks ago.

We got something called rye seed. We also got something called URI seed. Which supposedly was designed to fit this specific area.

Pretty desperate to figure something that works. We combined the seeds and put them down. The grass is coming in very thick and solid. It looks great even after a couple weeks. Well see how it goes. If it works we might do something more wholesale during the fall. Redo the whole yard maybe

 

Our soil blows too unless it has a good 6"+ of good soil down. When I worked with a builder in college down where I lived in Marshfield and on Cape Cod, the soil was mostly glacial till and clay. Awful. I feel like our lawns take a beating in the summer because we have a lot of dry periods in ern/SE MA which destroy the lawn. We'll get 3" of rain in an hour, make up for our monthly deficit, but all the water just runs off. You really need once or twice a week of natural help in the form of rain. 2008 was perfect for that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our soil blows too unless it has a good 6"+ of good soil down. When I worked with a builder in college down where I lived in Marshfield and on Cape Cod, the soil was mostly glacial till and clay. Awful. I feel like our lawns take a beating in the summer because we have a lot of dry periods in ern/SE MA which destroy the lawn. We'll get 3" of rain in an hour, make up for our monthly deficit, but all the water just runs off. You really need once or twice a week of natural help in the form of rain. 2008 was perfect for that.

The soil around here is TERRIBLE, you are spot on with that. My neighbors had their lawn re done maybe 5 years ago. The amount of dirt they had to bring in to make it worth while was pretty astounding.

When we we're digging with the bobcat a little while back. The dirt was so rocky and some was pretty much clay. Just garbage all the way around.

And every year like you said, the grass turns brown in spots. A downpour can actually make it worse by washing stuff away. Like you said we need some good solid rains a few times a week.

Its pretty much been a lost cause up to this point. Hopefully we figure out a combination that works, so far it's promising

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The soil around here is TERRIBLE, you are spot on with that. My neighbors had their lawn re done maybe 5 years ago. The amount of dirt they had to bring in to make it worth while was pretty astounding.

When we we're digging with the bobcat a little while back. The dirt was so rocky and some was pretty much clay. Just garbage all the way around.

And every year like you said, the grass turns brown in spots. A downpour can actually make it worse by washing stuff away. Like you said we need some good solid rains a few times a week.

Its pretty much been a lost cause up to this point. Hopefully we figure out a combination that works, so far it's promising

 

Where I live now has a lot of ledge, but the soil is actually pretty good I'd say. My front has rock not too far below the surface so it browned a little last summer, but not bad overall.

 

I know Kevin talked about thatch, but thatch can be good because it turns into soil eventually and adds microbes and organic matter into the soil as well as a softer ground since it's decomposed matter.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In my experience, knotweed stands grow so thickly that there is no lawn.  However, where protecting grass is important, choose a triclopyr product (Garlon is the original trade name, there are others with this active ingredient now.)  This is the chemical we use on woods road R-O-W, to protect our erosion-control seeding.

 

Thanks.  That's how this area had started--it was a wooded areas that this large section of 6' knotweed.  I cleared it out--digging up and burning many of the root balls.  I then seeded it and the grass has come in great.  Mowing it hides it, but of course it grows about 10X the rate of grass so I quickly lets me know that it's' time to mow again.

Grass clippings shouldn't be left on any lawn unless they are completely mulched into miniscule pieces. And even then I don't recommend it..Unless you want to have a massive thatch problem. Get them off the lawn and let it breathe. All those clippings do is get in underneath the grass and buildup as thatch..

 

I have no time to bag anything.  It takes half the day to mow the place, that's enough time for me.  I just use the regular blade and let the cliippins lie.  It is problematic on one side of the house, but we never use that side so I let it slide.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We've struggled pretty bad with the lawn over the years. Hills and runoff FTL.

We put loam down around the whole area that is around the extension of the driveway we did a few weeks ago.

We got something called rye seed. We also got something called URI seed. Which supposedly was designed to fit this specific area.

Pretty desperate to figure something that works. We combined the seeds and put them down. The grass is coming in very thick and solid. It looks great even after a couple weeks. Well see how it goes. If it works we might do something more wholesale during the fall. Redo the whole yard maybe

URI #2 is great - i use it and love it, it will promulgate quickly and no problems with weed seeds

i also mulch, my JD doesn't have enough HP to do it in one pass, so i have to mow over 2-3 times (a bit OCD i know), after the 1st pass set the mower deck to the highest setting. chops the clippings really fine and don't have a problem with thatch. hate it when the dogs get the clippings on their paws and track it in the house

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The soil around here is TERRIBLE, you are spot on with that. My neighbors had their lawn re done maybe 5 years ago. The amount of dirt they had to bring in to make it worth while was pretty astounding.

When we we're digging with the bobcat a little while back. The dirt was so rocky and some was pretty much clay. Just garbage all the way around.

And every year like you said, the grass turns brown in spots. A downpour can actually make it worse by washing stuff away. Like you said we need some good solid rains a few times a week.

Its pretty much been a lost cause up to this point. Hopefully we figure out a combination that works, so far it's promising

IOW, you clearly have the wrong soil type and climate for grass and should be growing something else

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Still a little slow for the hard maples and some oaks, but other oaks and especially Norwegian maples really coming along. I don't know why some oak species seem slower than others.

414425F3-00C9-4BCC-AE8A-B29CD44A2F0C.jpg

 

Norway maple - ugh!  But they are the first maples to begin greening up (though red maple flowers open even earlier.)  In general, the white oak group (white, burr, chestnut, swamp white) leafs out later than the red oak group (red, black, pin, scarlet).  There's probably some overlap among those species, and there's lots more kinds of oak once one moves out of New England.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

×
×
  • Create New...