amarshall Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Nuke it from orbit... 20% glyphoshpate incoming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damage In Tolland Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 We kill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoDogNight Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Lurker here for a few years. Appreciate the insight and learning from all of the people who contribute. Figures my first post would be in this sub-forum, but I wanted to throw something out there for the (mostly) "organic" crowd. 18 years in the house, no "step" fertilizers in WELL over a decade, but yes, there are some weeds. MNLA fertilizer, hand pull some dandys, but otherwise, I live in my house and my yard, and don't obsess over it. Put me down in the camp that avoids chemical treatments that may affect my kids and my dogs, and I still have reasonable curb appeal. (First mow was Saturday, still evening out the height, and I need to check the deck leveling) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Here's our awesome lawn. Our lawn is crap and has only gotten marginally better in the last year. When we built a couple years ago, our builder skimped on the loam. Doubt we got 4" depth. Lots of little bare, gravley spots, etc. I recently added new loam and seed to one area of lawn since it was terrible and we had gulley washers from the rain (2nd pic). I spoke to a hyrdroseed guy and asked if there would be any benefit to apply now. He said no. Other option is to dress in the Fall with ~1" depth of loam and seed. Assuming we could even keep up with the watering (~0.23 acre of lawn), how successful would this be? It would require 10+ yards of loam. I don't need a golf course like lawn (used to have one), but would be nice to improve what we've got. If money were no object, I'd tear it all out and start over, but that's moot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian5671 Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Welcome 2 dog night! Your yard looks great. I'm in the middle-my yard needs a spring fertilizer/Crabgrass preventer and then a fall one, but that's all I really do. Some of my neighbors who have services-they go crazy, there's a truck dumping chemicals every 3 weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginx snewx Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Lurker here for a few years. Appreciate the insight and learning from all of the people who contribute. Figures my first post would be in this sub-forum, but I wanted to throw something out there for the (mostly) "organic" crowd. 18 years in the house, no "step" fertilizers in WELL over a decade, but yes, there are some weeds. MNLA fertilizer, hand pull some dandys, but otherwise, I live in my house and my yard, and don't obsess over it. Put me down in the camp that avoids chemical treatments that may affect my kids and my dogs, and I still have reasonable curb appeal. (First mow was Saturday, still evening out the height, and I need to check the deck leveling) beautiful and a great first post, welcome aboard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backedgeapproaching Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Lurker here for a few years. Appreciate the insight and learning from all of the people who contribute. Figures my first post would be in this sub-forum, but I wanted to throw something out there for the (mostly) "organic" crowd. 18 years in the house, no "step" fertilizers in WELL over a decade, but yes, there are some weeds. MNLA fertilizer, hand pull some dandys, but otherwise, I live in my house and my yard, and don't obsess over it. Put me down in the camp that avoids chemical treatments that may affect my kids and my dogs, and I still have reasonable curb appeal. (First mow was Saturday, still evening out the height, and I need to check the deck leveling) Looks good, first tip--always take a pic of your lawn with the sun at your back, always makes it look darker/better!!! Nothing wrong with going completely organic if you want to, especially when your lawn is already established and has looked good for years. Your lawn may have been pretty good from the get go when the builder put in your lawn or you made it nice 10 years ago when you were doing the Scotts Steps. When you have it like that, I agree just some organic fertilizer and minimal other treatments(if any) will still result in a nice a lawn. My in laws just do some organic fertilizing and everyone always says how nice there lawn is (they did do weed control for years though, which makes it easier now to just fertilize) If you look at the pic I posted last night with my before and after at my old house, no amount of organic fertilizer was ever going to help out that yard. It had literally 10% grass and 90% nasty weeds. Sometimes it takes a little more than organics. It was like that when I bought the house. I said it last month I think-but a great organic Fert is Milorganite--never burns and can be put down any time, even during this dry spell. You can get it pretty much everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backedgeapproaching Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Our lawn is crap and has only gotten marginally better in the last year. When we built a couple years ago, our builder skimped on the loam. Doubt we got 4" depth. Lots of little bare, gravley spots, etc. I recently added new loam and seed to one area of lawn since it was terrible and we had gulley washers from the rain (2nd pic). I spoke to a hyrdroseed guy and asked if there would be any benefit to apply now. He said no. Other option is to dress in the Fall with ~1" depth of loam and seed. Assuming we could even keep up with the watering (~0.23 acre of lawn), how successful would this be? It would require 10+ yards of loam. I don't need a golf course like lawn (used to have one), but would be nice to improve what we've got. If money were no object, I'd tear it all out and start over, but that's moot. I would just do it in the fall. You honestly could start in early mid-Aug since you are so far North. Like you said, get some loam down and overseed into you existing grass. You may want seed blankets (Lowes/HD has them I think) for the really hilly/steep parts so you don't get wash out. Also use some peat moss if you can also to help with washouts/moisture control. The absolute most important thing is to keep the seeds moist until they sprout, no question about it. They have to stay moist. That is where the Peat can help a lot. .23 acre doesn't seem to big to me, but everyone is different. I renovated .75 all at once at my old place with no irrigation. All sprinklers---I had hoses and sprinklers everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 I would just do it in the fall. You honestly could start in early mid-Aug since you are so far North. Like you said, get some loam down and overseed into you existing grass. You may want seed blankets (Lowes/HD has them I think) for the really hilly/steep parts so you don't get wash out. Also use some peat moss if you can also to help with washouts/moisture control. The absolute most important thing is to keep the seeds moist until they sprout, no question about it. They have to stay moist. That is where the Peat can help a lot. .23 acre doesn't seem to big to me, but everyone is different. I renovated .75 all at once at my old place with no irrigation. All sprinklers---I had hoses and sprinklers everywhere. Off a well or city water? I worry about drying out our well, although at 500', there's a good amount of water in the hole, just slow flow (~5gpm). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoarfrostHubb Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 I did a bunch of sprinkler time this weekend After a while the water gets skunky smelling so I stop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backedgeapproaching Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Off a well or city water? I worry about drying out our well, although at 500', there's a good amount of water in the hole, just slow flow (~5gpm). No wells in suburban Philly where I did the reno...its all city water. Not sure how much damage it would do to you well. My water bill was $242 for Sept when I did the reno-wife was slightly irritated. lol I have a well now in VT, but haven't done a reno, so wouldn't know really. Maybe someone with experience using a lot of water with a well would know better or could chime in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoDogNight Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 backedge (and others)...thanks for the welcome and comments (I'll mostly go back to lurking and picking up some knowledge here and there)...to me, soil building is key...it's alive. But...to each his own...we have the "Green Thumb" trucks around as well...and their lawns do look nice...they are just junkies wait for their next fix. ;-) I am fighting a loosing battle with crab grass the first 3-5 feet off the road, that soil is DEAD (years of salt and marginal loam depths). I expect this year it will be awful, but I will get in there and till it out before it goes to seed and then lay out many yards of loam and seed to rebuild that area this fall. My biggest problem, the yard is too big for me to keep it watered (well with marginal quantity for the huge amount I have to water (irrigation system was largely a waste of money I spent)), and I get tired of the effort to keep it perfect (as evidenced by the lime that has been in my shed since last fall)...so good enough is good enough for me. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backedgeapproaching Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 backedge (and others)...thanks for the welcome and comments (I'll mostly go back to lurking and picking up some knowledge here and there)...to me, soil building is key...it's alive. But...to each his own...we have the "Green Thumb" trucks around as well...and their lawns do look nice...they are just junkies wait for their next fix. ;-) I am fighting a loosing battle with crab grass the first 3-5 feet off the road, that soil is DEAD (years of salt and marginal loam depths). I expect this year it will be awful, but I will get in there and till it out before it goes to seed and then lay out many yards of loam and seed to rebuild that area this fall. My biggest problem, the yard is too big for me to keep it watered (well with marginal quantity for the huge amount I have to water (irrigation system was largely a waste of money I spent)), and I get tired of the effort to keep it perfect (as evidenced by the lime that has been in my shed since last fall)...so good enough is good enough for me. cheers Your absolutely right about that! You could have the best Kentucky Blue Grass seed on the planet, and with crappy soil, will lead to crappy results and struggling grass. Weeds love crappy soil, they thrive in it unlike grass. Good soil helps grass thrive and become thick/dense and outcompete weeds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbutts Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Is it normal for the power utility tree trimmers to leave all the cut branches all over my yard making no effort to clean any of what they cut up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damage In Tolland Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 Is it normal for the power utility tree trimmers to leave all the cut branches all over my yard making no effort to clean any of what they cut up? Yup..They did that here 2 summers ago and I was irate. Leaving debris everywhere..huge logs you could barely lift and huge divots in grass. Idiots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Your absolutely right about that! You could have the best Kentucky Blue Grass seed on the planet, and with crappy soil, will lead to crappy results and struggling grass. Weeds love crappy soil, they thrive in it unlike grass. Good soil helps grass thrive and become thick/dense and outcompete weeds. I should probably throw in the towel now then. We never had good quality soil from day one. We got a beautiful house built with lousy lawn. It could have been the icing on the cake, but the builder failed in that regard. I suppose it's not all his fault, but I should have known something wasn't right when they were seeding in late march that year. We had a frost a week later. He came back and reseeded, but probably was a waste. It's very hard to keep seed moist all the time until it sprouts. I thought about one of those hose attachment water timers, but don't trust they'll turn off when they're supposed to, thus draining our well or burning out the well pump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbutts Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Yup..They did that here 2 summers ago and I was irate. Leaving debris everywhere..huge logs you could barely lift and huge divots in grass. Idiots Terrible, I'm annoyed, but I would be seriously pissed if I put the kind of effort I gather you do on yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamarack Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Off a well or city water? I worry about drying out our well, although at 500', there's a good amount of water in the hole, just slow flow (~5gpm). Just for fun: Putting a 1/2" watering on 10,000 sq.ft. (0.23 acre) requires over 3,000 gallons. A 6" diameter well pipe will hold about 1.5 gallons per foot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damage In Tolland Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 Just opened up the mailbox and 2 wasps come flying out..Thankfully I managed to run into the garage without getting hit. Paper wasps had built a little tiny hanging nest from the top of the inside of the box..Like enough for 6 or 7 wasps. Knocked it down and got it the hell out of there. F'ers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamarack Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Just opened up the mailbox and 2 wasps come flying out..Thankfully I managed to run into the garage without getting hit. Paper wasps had built a little tiny hanging nest from the top of the inside of the box..Like enough for 6 or 7 wasps. Knocked it down and got it the hell out of there. F'ers Those critters colonized our former wooden mailbox several times - the bigger metal one, installed for larger packages, has so far excluded them. Best remedy is a cool morning just after first light, go out to spray or (preferably - less messy overall) squish the cold and sluggish beasts. They've nailed my wife and I from nests in porch rafters, stone wall, lawn edge (while I was mowing; several were in my clothes before the first one got irritated), and even in my living room one spring when a few overwintering in the cabin logs came out the wrong direction. They're not as aggressive as yellowjackets, but nasty enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backedgeapproaching Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 I should probably throw in the towel now then. We never had good quality soil from day one. We got a beautiful house built with lousy lawn. It could have been the icing on the cake, but the builder failed in that regard. I suppose it's not all his fault, but I should have known something wasn't right when they were seeding in late march that year. We had a frost a week later. He came back and reseeded, but probably was a waste. It's very hard to keep seed moist all the time until it sprouts. I thought about one of those hose attachment water timers, but don't trust they'll turn off when they're supposed to, thus draining our well or burning out the well pump. Seeding in March in NNE is absurd, but he probably didn't care and thinks most homeowners have no clue, so he just threw some seed down. No doubt keeping the seed moist can be difficult. You can get some pretty good timers that are reliable. When I did mine, it wasn't as hard because I work from home so I was able to water during the day with no issues. But it still will be a good amount of watering to keep them moist. Honestly you can still get a decent lawn even if you miss a little watering, that's where Peat Moss can help out. They also have other products like Soil Moist Seed Coat (amazon) that you can mix with your seeds that helps them from drying out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastalWx Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Haha. Running like a girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoarfrostHubb Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Paper wasps are no big deal to me. I have to get them out of the mailbox, grill, shed, etc numerous times of the year. Non aggressive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoarfrostHubb Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 These guys are meh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Just opened up the mailbox and 2 wasps come flying out..Thankfully I managed to run into the garage without getting hit. Paper wasps had built a little tiny hanging nest from the top of the inside of the box..Like enough for 6 or 7 wasps. Knocked it down and got it the hell out of there. F'ers I almost stepped on one this morning in the shower. Little bastard came in through the sliding door yesterday. that would have hurt to step onl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Just for fun: Putting a 1/2" watering on 10,000 sq.ft. (0.23 acre) requires over 3,000 gallons. A 6" diameter well pipe will hold about 1.5 gallons per foot. So we've only got 750g. Not that much. I'd never try to water all at once, but still..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoDogNight Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Just for fun: Putting a 1/2" watering on 10,000 sq.ft. (0.23 acre) requires over 3,000 gallons. A 6" diameter well pipe will hold about 1.5 gallons per foot. Which is why my irrigation system was a stupid decision. 14 zones, 3 heads per zone, 2 gpm per head, 305' well. And giving the well a rest means running closer to a 50/50 duty cycle...currently on for 25 minutes per zone, off for 20. Obviously I can't do all 14 zones each day, and at the rate it takes me to water 14 zones, the irrigation system was just promoting shallow roots. Slowly I've been converting the back yard lawn over to increasing amounts of garden (and the grubs damaging a big area for the second time convinced me it was a good idea) so I have four zones that are not used now, and would like to take out at least one more. I cut at 3.5" for the first cut, but will run it up to the max 4.0" that my Deere can do if it stays dry. Installed Gator blades on Saturday, curious how they will do for lift on long grass and mulching. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lava Rock Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Which is why my irrigation system was a stupid decision. 14 zones, 3 heads per zone, 2 gpm per head, 305' well. And giving the well a rest means running closer to a 50/50 duty cycle...currently on for 25 minutes per zone, off for 20. Obviously I can't do all 14 zones each day, and at the rate it takes me to water 14 zones, the irrigation system was just promoting shallow roots. Slowly I've been converting the back yard lawn over to increasing amounts of garden (and the grubs damaging a big area for the second time convinced me it was a good idea) so I have four zones that are not used now, and would like to take out at least one more. I cut at 3.5" for the first cut, but will run it up to the max 4.0" that my Deere can do if it stays dry. Installed Gator blades on Saturday, curious how they will do for lift on long grass and mulching. Our old house was 24 zone with two separate wells. Both lowflow. Actually had a 200g storage / pressure tank in basement. I'd never do that but it came with the house when we bought it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whineminster Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Terrible, I'm annoyed, but I would be seriously pissed if I put the kind of effort I gather you do on yours. I would give the utility company a polite phone call, they'll probably come rake them up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whineminster Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 These guys are meh Looks like their stings are nasty though. I have so many its ridiculous and they make nests int he worst places, unlike yellow jackets which usually hang out in the woods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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