Bryan K Soil Sample Spring 2020

[bryankloos]

Here are the results of my recent soil analysis. Please focus on the Front Lawn as this is the main lawn that I'm working on.
The front yard received a full renovation last Fall after several years of neglect. It is ~13K sqft, seeded with a sun and shade mix of PRG, FF ad KBG. The lawn is irrigated and sees moderate foot traffic and dog traffic. It gets decent sun with some sections a bit more shade than others.

This year, prior to sampling I applied 10lb/K calcitic lime per previous analyses. I applied 0.25 lb/K Urea post sampling. I managed maybe 1.5lb/K urea last Fall. I also have an application of prodiamine down but do have some smaller sections of weeds from last fall that made it through the winter.

What are your thoughts to improve upon the lawn.

Many Thanks!

Bryan

[bryankloos]

... if analysis of the back and/or side (both fairly comparable) is also in the cards that would be great. That said I don't want to take away from resources that other posters need. I'd like to get all lawns in top condition but the front is the primary priority.

Thanks!

[andy10917]

Of course you'd pick the Front Yard to concentrate upon - it's the weakest of the soil profiles. And it looks like CT soil - I lived in Stamford for years.

We'll start with the Front and come back to the others...

Structurally, the Front Yard is pretty sandy soil with a TEC around 5+. The mineral part of the soil isn't holding it's part up, even though the organic matter is very nice at almost 7%. 7% is very, very, very good. If the budget for the Front permits, we may want to discuss the use of Humic Acid if you want to invest an extra $100 on the Front. Let me know.

Because the TEC is low, the bar of "Desired Values" is artificially low, too -- the situation is actually weaker than the test report indicates.

Now, here's where things get interesting - the cation profile (which drives the pH) is very different in the Front, when compared to the Side and Back. Very different! In the Front, lack of Calcium and Magnesium is making the soil pretty acidic. Get good calcitic Lime (Encap/SoluCal/Mag-I-Cal) at 9 lbs/K mixed with 2 lbs/K of Epsom Salts. Apply the mix at 11 lbs/K every 90 days. Don't apply that in the Side or Back - they have a different shortage.

Phosphorus is OK across the board.

Iron is a little low in the Front. You could either apply 2 lbs/K of Ferrous Sulfate every 6 weeks for best color, or delay that for a bit - it's not a crisis.

In the micro's, only Boron is short -- do you want to address that this year?

For Nitrogen, you could either use Milorganite monthly, or use Urea (46-0-0,cheap!) at 2 lbs/K monthly. Milorganite has an advantage of addressing the Iron problem too.

I'll be back to address the Side and Back once I've cleared the queue...

[bryankloos]

Thanks Andy! I'm glad to hear you know the local soil first hand.

I've invested a fair amount of time into the yard, and I'm willing to follow with funds to get things in the best shape I can. That said, I'm game to address everything this year in hopes to do a little less each year following.

For the Front:

Humic. Yes, please advise.

I have about 200 lbs Sta-Green. I will apply at 9lb/k with 2lb/k epsom salts at 90 days.
I will source ferrous sulfate and apply as suggested.
Happy to tackle the Boron. Why is it that you frequently as if people want to take it on in a specific year? Is there more to it than just adding the product?
I have about 70 lb urea so will probably use this for now. Milorganite is pricey here ($18/bag). I was hoping to get up the Mass this year and stock up on Baystate, but have not heard back from my initial inquiry last week. I'll try calling them next week, but with covid they may be shut down??? If I can source the Baystate, what would the application rate be?

Looking forward to hearing the plan for back/side.

Thanks again for the help.

[andy10917]

If I can source the Baystate, what would the application rate be?

Bag rate monthly, if the budget permits. Up to you about whether to switch to Fall Nitrogen Regimen in September.

Happy to tackle the Boron.

Good to hear. Get Twenty Mule Team laundry soap from the grocery store, and apply at 3 tablespoons/K every 60 days, as outlined in the Micronutrient Application Guide.

Why is it that you frequently as if people want to take it on in a specific year? Is there more to it than just adding the product?

Nah. Far simpler than that. If the Plan I build requires a significant number of applications, I will make the micronutrient applications optional, for three reasons: (1) I don't want to overwhelm them and they give up, and (2) they either need to develop the skills to do things that can be harmful if overapplied, and (3) they don't understand the need for things that are applied in tiny amounts yet.

Humic. Yes, please advise.

Ummmm, soon. There is a pretty big announcement in the Soils area coming shortly. I've been working on it for four years.

[bryankloos]

Cool. Got it! Ill organize for the above, wait on the Humic thread and ping you with any questions.

If the back/side is easier than the front I'll try to make some progress there but will wait for advice.

Thanks again!

[andy10917]

OK, on to the Side and Back lawns - they are very similar to each other (but different than the Front) and can have a single regimen...

These are soils that are over a TEC of 8 -- which makes them lower-end Loam soils. They have excellent OM levels.

In the cations, they're both OK on the Calcium and Magnesium levels, but quite short in Potassium. This means you need the tough-to-find Sulfate of Potash (0-0-50, "SOP"). Apply it at 2 lbs/K monthly during the growing season.

Phosphorus is fine.

The Iron levels are a bit short on the Side and OK on the Back. Apply Ferrous Sulfate at 2-3 lbs/K every 6 weeks on the Side.

In the micro's, only Boron is needed for both. Same Boron regimen as the Front for them.

Your call on the Nitrogen regimen.

[bryankloos]

Super, and thanks again. Fingers crossed it all goes well.

Only question is with 2 lb/k urea monthly, is it acceptable to apply that monthly or bi weekly. I’d prefer monthly but don’t want to burn anything. And to confirm with urea, I’m aiming for 2lb/k urea, the equivalent of 1lb Nitrogen/K. Is this correct? I ask should I want to use a different source of nitrogen.

Many thanks.

[bryankloos]

Oh yes, the humid acid. While I wait for the release of the formal thread, can you point me to what I need to pick up? I’m heading to the store tomorrow and would like to limit trips given covid. I’m assuming humate??? Thanks!

[andy10917]

If you can, apply half the amount of Urea every two weeks - this minimizes the chance of errors.

The humates thread is now posted.

[bryankloos]

I read the post. Thanks. Informative.
What is the application rate for Anderson’s Humic DG, and is this to be applied to all lawns at the same rate?
This should take care of things! Very excited to see the fruits of my labor abs your experience.
BK

[andy10917]

Do as the thread indicates - post the request for a review in a new thread with the Soils forum. I'll be doing them in batches until the end of the Busy Season. I do not yet have all of my calculations integrated into the general Soil Test Interpretations.

[bryankloos]

10-4!

[bryankloos]

Hi Andy,

Just curious about how long I to the season I should continue the urea. I’ve been at 1lb/k urea every 2 weeks. Things seems to be getting a bit orange where the dogs have been helping with the fertilizer. Shouldn’t lay off on the urea, wait a while and then switch over to a slower/milder N source/application until the Fall?

All help is appreciated.

Thanks

[andy10917]

The whole season - with a break from July 1st to August 15th. That break permits the grass to go dormant if it needs to. There are subtle differences after Labor Day - read the Fall Nitrogen Regimens thread (at least the first posting).