2013 Spring Lawn Care...When Mother Nature Allows!

Last year was last year. It was NOT normal! What we have this year is not normal either, so welcome to St. Louis in the spring time. By this time last year we had cranked up our air conditioners and set 2 or 3 records for high temperatures. This year, record snow falls for the month of March…go figure. Bottom line with lawn care is, it doesn’t matter.

DO NOTHING to zoysia lawns for 2-3 more weeks. The soil temperature at 2 inches deep last week was 38 degrees (in Shrewsbury anyway). I don’t want any aeration, power raking or fertilizing of “warm season” lawns until the soil temperatures reach 55 degrees (hence the name…warm season grass). My opinion is you are just wasting your time, money and effort unless you wait for optimum growing conditions. My guess is late April the way we are going.

Cool season grass applications/things to do:

*Rake up trash from the winter or blow first (loosening the matted materials) and the mow over the top. Either bagging or mulching as long as you remove the junk before making a fertilizer application

*Apply a low nitrogen (10 or less on the bags first number) high potash fertilizer with a season long crabgrass control. (I like 7-0-22 w/.15 dimension. Available at Kirkwood Material (314-822-9644). Only apply if you have mowed and or raked the yard at least once and better yet if you have done this twice!

*Spot spray chickweed and henbit with “Weed-B-Gone” (after reading the label of course!) as needed. Faithful readers will know to NEVER buy a bag of “Weed-N-Feed” EVER. It is an environmental massacre and about the biggest horticultural waste of money I know of. IPM (integrated pest management) is using only what you need, where you need and when you needed it type of application with herbicides. Yes it takes more time and like most things, you will never get everything with one application, so don’t expect to. You never kill all weeds, season long with anything, so take your time, read your label and ask an educated garden center (not box store) for some tips!

*After mowing you cool season (fescue, blue or rye) lawn at maybe two notches down from the highest setting, move your mower all the way up for the rest of the summer! You should be mowing every 4-5 days from Mid-April through Late-May, but only 1-2 twice a month in late-June trough late-August. It’s unrealistic to think weekly mowing is healthy for your cool season lawn. You have to match your mowing needs with it’s growth habit. It will grow way more in the spring then in the summer (remember, it’s a “cool season” plant and there has been nothing “cool” about our summers for the last two years). Now, irrigated yards will grow more regularly, so take what I’m telling you with a grain of salt. You yard may need less or more mowing depending on your maintenance schedule?

Some of you have already put down preemergent, have mowed and sprayed weeds…there is nothing wrong with that. If you have done nothing (including me), there is nothing wrong with that either. Once the ground dries and we can work the soil, we should seed those “shady” lawns that don’t require crabgrass control. Otherwise, look for my next posting in about 2-3 weeks to see what crazy weather we may be experiencing in late April.

Remember folks, it’s just grass. Send me your questions and I’ll be glad to offer my advice. I hope everyone has a great Easter and will always try to keep their glass half full! Life is short my friends, smile more and you will be happier.

Sincerely,

Glennon Kraemer