Greenrebellion's Soil Test

[greenrebellion]

Background:
- New construction lot
- 12K square feet of lawn
- Heavy Sun Backyard, moderate to heavy sun front yard
- Irrigation system installed

The seeding plan:
- Hydroseed going down on Monday, August 8th
- Roundup has been applied twice to kill all weeds off (lot has been dirt for 12 months since it was graded)
- I will be bringing in about 1.5 yards of weed free compost per 1000 sf at time of seeding (this of course is not reflected in the test as I haven't brought the compost in yet)
- Hydroseed mix will include Tenacity and a starter fertilizer (starter is 19/10/1...this can't be changed, but I will use a different starter at the 3 or 4 week mark depending on guidance from this forum)
- Seed will be 100% KBG (Award, Bewitched, Prosperity)

Soil:
- Very heavy soil that cracks quickly and easily at the surface
- Percolation test showed about 1" per hour of drainage
- Soil Test showed predominantly clay


Any and all feedback on how I can optimize the soil for KBG over the next year is GREATLY APPRECIATED.

[HoosierLawnGnome]

Well, I know all about this type of soil - this could very well have come from my back yard, but yours is slightly better Not bad for a new construction lot really.

Your OM level is poor - mulch mow the leaves, mulch mow your grass, apply free sources. Good call on the compost at seed down. It takes a lot of material (tons - literally) over many seasons to improve this number, so keep at it.

Your TEC indicates a heavier loam soil, which is probably due to all the little clay particles in it. Good that you know. I'd recommend BLSC and Kelp Help to open it up. I'd go heavy if you can with BLSC before they get the lawn hydroseeded this weekend, then go to monthly maintenance applications - play with it for a while to find out what works for that soil. A not-as-effective but easy to find and inexpensive alternative if you can't pull materials together for the BLSC recipe is cheap shampoo - read up on the site.

In the major cations (Ca, Mg, K) - you are slightly high in Ca and Mg, but low on K. The result is a pH a smidge on the high side from ideal, but not bad.

You are also low on Phosphorus (P). Not awfully low, but low.

Iron is at a very healthy level. And your pH is not so terribly high that Iron gets bound up in the soil before your turf will be able to use it. We need to avoid pushing the pH then in what we plan to do.

<drum roll> THE PLAN then:

This is a bit more work, but it makes more of a difference for you - can you source Sulfate of Potash (SOP 0-0-50)? This is NOT Muriate of Potash (0-0-60). SOP can be found at garden specialty stores, farm suppliers, or online if needed. This is gentler on the soil and will hopefully help us avoid pushing the pH.

Also, source a starter fertilizer and post the NPK here - we'll use that in Sept and Oct. Find one with as low a third number as possible. Grand Rapids gets a lot of snow cover and we don't want to wreck your renovation with heavy applications of K in the late fall.

Apply the smallest rate of 5 lbs / K, bag rate, or maximum seed down mesotrione rate of the 19-10-1. This will give us some P and a wee bit of K.

For Nitrogen, I'd recommend frequent light doses of urea, watering it in right afterwards. You can find this at the same places you'll be looking for SOP normally. I'd also use this for winterization.

So - get those answers and we'll wrap this up. Private Message me if needed.

[greenrebellion]

My local farm co-op can order Sulfate of Potash...I need to special order it though so let me know how many pounds I need (comes in 50 pound bags).

I also found a 24-25-4 starter fertilizer. Let me know if this is a low enough K or if I should keep looking.

So I am trying to build a timeline in my head:
- BLSC or shampoo prior to seed down
- Sulfate of Potash (need to know timing and amount)
- Starter fertilizer (at 4 and 8 week mark? So mid Sept and mid Oct?)
- How often and when should the Urea applications go down? My farmer co-op has 46-0-0 Urea. Should I follow the Fall Nitrogen application thread or use a lesser amount as the grass will be young?

Many thanks to you for taking the time to put such a detailed, thorough and helpful response together.

[HoosierLawnGnome]

Perfect.

August - 5 lbs / K 19-10-1, 1.9 lbs / K SOP

Sept - 1 lb / K SOP, 4 lbs / K 24-25-4

Oct - 4 lbs / K 24-25-4

Retest next spring and we can get more amendments in.

Timing is less about the calendar and more about where your turf is and what your climate is like.

New KBG is especially hungry for Nitrogen. Once it starts tillering and taking off - normally a few weeks after germination, it really likes regular light doses of N. You can split up the above amendments in smaller amounts once a week or every other week, and add a little urea for instance. Make sure to water in urea and the fertilizer. Make sure you don't hit the N too heavy. Stop the Nitrogen when you get to first frost.

[greenrebellion]

Perfect! Makes sense.

Since I won't have the SOP at seed down (need to special order it), is it okay to apply this in 3 or 4 weeks once I can walk on the grass or will it harm young grass sprouts? Might have to skip the second application since that would put me at late September.

I will try to target 0.25 lbs/K of Nitrogen per week (using Urea) in the weeks that I am not applying starter fertilizer through Sept and Oct...stopping at first frost.

The Fall regimen article I linked says 0.5 lbs/K but I figure I'll be a little conservative since I have the starter fertilizer going down as well.

Seems like I have a good game plan ahead of me. Thanks again!