Thu 30 Apr, 2009
May is still a good month to get a lawn started, but the earlier the better. As the days grow longer and warmer, seed germination and seedling growth is not so good as when milder weather prevails. It is desirable to get a good stand of new grass well established before the hot, dry days of mid-summer arrive and weed competition becomes greatest.
A good lawn is one of the main landscape requirements of a home and one that gives more problems and concern than any other landscaping problem. A State Department of Agriculture bulletin on lawns should be consulted for full and detailed information.
The most common mistake made is to try growing grass in poor, thin topsoil and inadequately prepared earth. Grading and leveling too, are often done wrong resulting in a perpetual series of problems when watering and mowing with increased danger of winter injury. Another common mistake is to sow cheap grass seed. Good grass seed commands a good price but is less expensive in the long run. Cheap seed is no bargain.
After seed is sown, the soil must be kept moist constantly by frequent light sprinklings. Drought for as little as a half day can be fatal. Until it is well started, grass requires continuous attention as far as watering is concerned. Perhaps the principal cause of seed and seedling failure is insufficient and untimely watering.
Losses sometimes also are traceable to the incorrect use of the new chemical lawn weed killers on sprouting seed and young seedlings. Do not use these weed killers on established lawns where reseeding has to be done to improve the turf, to restore grass in winter killed places or on young stands of grass in new lawns. One major question to carefully think about is when to fertilize lawn. It is inadvisable to use chemical weed killers until after new grass has had to be cut at least two times. Also, too often a good, established lawn is reseeded routinely in the belief that this is necessary. Reseed only a weak, thin and weedy lawn; good turf does not need reseeding every spring. Bare patches, obviously, need reseeding.
A Feeding Program
If fertilizing of the lawn and the y perennial garden was not done in April, do it early in May. Lawns that were fertilized in early April will benefit greatly if given another application during the last week of May or early in June. Grasses grow vigorously during May and June so they can use a lot of plant food; give at least one pound of actual nitrogen for each 1000 square feet in each application.