Yellow nutsedge is very difficult to control and sticks out like a sore thumb in well maintained turf areas. It is not a broadleaf weed or a grassy weed, but a sedge, and requires specific control measures. Continue reading
Category Archives: Lawns
Lawn Care Simplified
Priorities for spring should be–#1 weed control, #2 mowing, #3 watering, #4 aerating, #5 insect control, and #6 fertilizing.
Spring is the perfect time for crabgrass and other weed controls. Please read instructions carefully on your choice of weed control. To legally use and lawn chemicals, you must follow all directions on the bag. The chemicals work at certain concentrations, so a little more only allows a chemical to run off desired treatment area & pollution occurs. For actively growing weeds, it is especially critical that you apply when there is moisture on the plants for broad leaf control. Chemicals must stick to leaves to be effective. This is easiest to achieve by applying in early morning when there is a heavy coat of dew. If the grass is not wet, you have most likely wasted your time and money. Continue reading
Winter Lawn Fertilization
Many Kentucky lawns can go for a number of years without applications of phosphorous and potash, or even lime. But it is not unusual for a homeowner to apply these amendments annually. A good practice is to find out what is actually needed for good lawn quality in the upcoming months. By testing the soil before deciding to add any of these, gardeners’ dollars can be saved. It is important to keep in mind that application of nutrients when none are needed is hard on the wallet as well as the environment, in the form of both the products applied and the fuel required to spread amendments.
When Thatch is a Problem
In Kentucky, we often struggle with quality lawns for many reasons. Cool season grasses do not perform well with a hot summer and warm season grasses are not as pleasing during the cooler months when they are dormant. Good overall maintenance practices play a critical part in our success. Aerifying and dethatching could be important to your specific lawn needs. Continue reading
Spring Lawncare Tips
Beginning this month, there is always a renewed interest in our lawns. Spring is the time to prepare your lawn for the rest of the year, and here are a few good management practices that will help you keep a healthy lawn throughout the season. Continue reading
Mechanical Damage to Trees
We talk a lot about insects and diseases that can wreak havoc to our landscape trees, but many times people are a tree’s worst enemy – especially people wielding lawn mowers and weed trimmers. And while a slight bump from a mower’s frame or a quick zip of trimmer line around a tree trunk may seem insignificant, it can create an injury that leads to disease or death. Continue reading
Top Three New Year’s Resolutions for Gardeners
Many people enjoy making New Year’s Resolutions, so I would like to encourage you to make some gardening resolutions. Even those of you who do not typically grow anything can reap benefits from planting something, nurturing it, and watching it grow. It doesn’t have to be a large vegetable garden. A small container garden or raised bed garden will be just fine. Continue reading
