Dan's Soil Test (August 2018)

[flyingfish88]

only occasional - once or twice per year. Unfortunately was out there about a month ago!

who is out there?

[andy10917]

"Lancaster Agriculture Products" (In Ronks, PA) has granular Ferrous Sulfate (food grade, no less) at $21.29 for a 50 lb bag.

[flyingfish88]

nice find! Not sure if can get out that way over the next couple weeks. Is there a deadline to put iron down this season? Such as not after X date or once growing stops?

[andy10917]

You'll be putting down Ferrous Sulfate TO THE SOIL and not on the grass plants themselves. It's OK to put Ferrous Sulfate to the soil if the pH is 6.6. So, go ahead up until your first-frost date.

DO NOT follow temptation and apply a little heavier application - you will wind up with slate-gray or even black grass. Trust me, it's ugly.

[flyingfish88]

Hi Andy,

thanks again for the tip on Lancaster Ag! Made an early morning trip out there and picked up two bags of Iron Sulfate.

Just want to confirm the application. It is 50% Iron, so to get the 2lbs per 1k you recommended I would be putting down 4lbs of the product per 1k?

Do not want to end up with a gray lawn!
thanks again!

[andy10917]

No. Apply 2-3 lbs/K of Ferrous Sulfate to the soil. Do no extrapolations or conversions.

[flyingfish88]

ok, thanks, glad i checked!

[flyingfish88]

Hi Andy,

Doing some initial planning and budgeting for next years applications. Want to get an estimate on how many bags of milo I will need and see if I can find a local store to order it all at once due to the shortages this year, or possibly take a small trip to Jersey for some ocean-gro.

When you mention:
"but next Spring apply the Milorganite from May until July 1, and pick up again on August 15th."

Do you mean 3 milorganite applications in Spring (May 1, June 1, July 1) and Fall (Aug 15, Sept, Oct), or just 2 each in the spring and fall?

thanks!
Dan

[andy10917]

I can't help you without info about your square footage (to the nearest 1000 sq ft).

[TimmyG]

I can't help you without info about your square footage (to the nearest 1000 sq ft).

He asked how many applications, not how many bags.

[flyingfish88]

Sorry, wasnt too clear.

Looking for how many seperate applications in the spring and fall, which would then allow me to calculate how many bags. My front is 7500, so each app is 3 bags at bag rate, but might also might use milo in side and back or cheaper alternative.

Tjanks again!
Dan

[andy10917]

If you used the Fall Nitrogen regimens, you should make it to mid-May without a Spring app. So, mid-May and mid-June would work. Another app around August 15th and more Fall Nitrogen (using Urea apps) in September until average first frost would get you pretty well-covered.

[flyingfish88]

Hi Andy,

I didn't get to do the full fall regimen. My fall fertilizing consisted of a milorganite app on Sept 1 and then a winterizer app of urea day after thanksgiving.

If I wanted to go full organic, how many apps of milo would I do after starting on Aug 15?

thanks again!
Dan

[andy10917]

That's up to you.

You can apply Milorganite every 1-4 weeks, as long as all of the Milo is consumed before the next app. The idea is to have the end of the Milo "digested" by the average first frost date. That way the grass goes to sleep at its natural pace. Milo requires the microherd to process it to become available to the lawn, and the microherd goes to sleep at roughly the same time as the grass. Applying it every 4 weeks is sort of "normal", and every week is very aggressive.