Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Discuss how to and whether you should renovate your lawn
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bluebeat

Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by bluebeat » June 5th, 2016, 3:26 pm

Hi everybody!
I hope someone can give me a couple of suggestions on my lawn.
We purchased our property 4 years ago. There is roughly 4000-4500 sqf of lawn. It was not perfect when we got it,
but now it is getting way too weedy (see photo). We are trying to manage it on a budget. Not looking for perfection,
just something to make it better (more even?) than it is, besides cutting it every 2 weeks. Complete lawn renovation
is out of the question at this point in our lives, hopefully someone can give unbiased advice to alternative so I can compare
to what a local lawn company will suggest.
I thank you in advance,
Mike.
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jsap819
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by jsap819 » June 5th, 2016, 4:29 pm

Look in the article section of this site and read "The Triangle Approach". From the picture it looks like majority of the weeds are broadleaf so you should be able to eliminate majority of it. Whatever is left after you'll have to post more detailed pictures after and ask the more knowledgable members here for help. Good luck.

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bluebeat

Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by bluebeat » June 5th, 2016, 6:49 pm

Thank you jsap819.
I guess weed control herbicides is the way to go. I am completely new in weed killing :) . I found this stuff:
Preen Lawn Weed Control Plus Crabgrass, it is in granules, easy to spread and seems promising... Or there is better "over the counter" weed killer available?
Thank you for your time.
Mike.

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andy10917
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by andy10917 » June 5th, 2016, 6:53 pm

Any "three-way" herbicide with the ingredients in the Article for the First Level of the Triangle will work. It's all about the ingredients and no the brand/bottle.

ligrass
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by ligrass » June 5th, 2016, 11:00 pm

It looks like you have mostly white clover. CCO (Clover, Chickweed, Oxalis killer; chemical: Triclopyr) is what you need. 2 blanket apps 2 weeks apart should knock out most of it. It's level 2 of the Triangle Approach, but if this were my lawn I would start with that just because of how much you have. Bag mow for now, boost your Nitrogen fertilizer apps. Clover likes low Nitrogen environments (and actually fixes them).


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ken-n-nancy
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by ken-n-nancy » June 6th, 2016, 7:46 am

ligrass wrote:It looks like you have mostly white clover. CCO (Clover, Chickweed, Oxalis killer; chemical: Triclopyr) is what you need. 2 blanket apps 2 weeks apart should knock out most of it. It's level 2 of the Triangle Approach, but if this were my lawn I would start with that ...
I agree that nearly all the weeds I see are white clover, which is tackled by Ortho® Weed B Gon® Chickweed, Clover & Oxalis Killer For Lawns. You'll need a sprayer if you don't already have one (about $15 for an inexpensive one at Tractor Supply Co, Home Depot, or Lowes), and one bottle of CCO (about $10 at the same places). Apply according to the instructions on the label. Two applications 2 weeks apart, as mentioned by ligrass, and that lawn will look completely different. There's enough grass intermingled with the clover (that's one of the great things about clover infestations -- the grass is all still there, and what is still there generally does pretty well) that it will look pretty good soon after, particularly with the fertilizer treatment suggested by ligrass.

I would also suggest mowing high (around 4", probably the highest setting on your mower) at least once a week; preferably about every 4-5 days when the grass is growing vigorously.

LoneRanger
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by LoneRanger » June 6th, 2016, 10:42 am

This looks like a great first thread for the Lawn Care Basics 101 forum.

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oze
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by oze » June 6th, 2016, 10:53 am

bluebeat wrote:Thank you jsap819.
I guess weed control herbicides is the way to go. I am completely new in weed killing :) . I found this stuff:
Preen Lawn Weed Control Plus Crabgrass, it is in granules, easy to spread and seems promising... Or there is better "over the counter" weed killer available?
Thank you for your time.
Mike.
Welcome, Mike!

I'll chime in as an advanced beginner. You have already been correctly (in my opinion) steered to liquid broadleaf killer, rather than granules. Although granules certainly are easy to spread, it seems that conditions have to be *just right* for them to work well. The weeds have to be damp enough for the granules to stick, but too much water will wash them off and into the soil, where they will do no good. This beginner always sprays the weed killer. Although, thanks in large part to the experts on this forum, that spraying is just spot spraying every other week or so.

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ken-n-nancy
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Level: Experienced

Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by ken-n-nancy » June 6th, 2016, 11:26 am

oze wrote:... You have already been correctly (in my opinion) steered to liquid broadleaf killer, rather than granules. Although granules certainly are easy to spread, it seems that conditions have to be *just right* for them to work well. The weeds have to be damp enough for the granules to stick, but too much water will wash them off and into the soil, where they will do no good.
Just wanted to echo what "oze" writes above -- the sprayed weed killers are so much more effective than the granular ones.

If you are sufficiently good at following instructions on sprayed weed killers, you will get much, much better results than with the granular "weed killer" products. One does need to be careful not to spray your flower beds or vegetable garden, and it is possible to "overdo it" and harm the grass, but it really isn't very difficult to do properly.

Others have already pointed you to The Triangle Approach article, which is "required reading" for weed control. It looks like your lawn is an excellent candidate for the technique; I think you'll be very satisfied with the results, especially coupled with proper mowing (taking off no more than 1/3 of the leaf blade at each mowing, mow at a height of around 4" for the summer), watering (about 1" of water per week total, which can be all natural rainfall, depending upon the weather), and fertilization.

ENVY23
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Re: Renovation alternatives? Please help.

Post by ENVY23 » June 6th, 2016, 1:28 pm

Here's a simple plan that I think will give you results you'll be happy with. All of these products should be available at your local Home Depot or Lowe's.

Step 1: Mow more often. That lawn looks pretty tall and mowing every two weeks doesn't seem often enough.
Step 2: Make sure your lawn is getting ample water. 1" per week as mentioned above.
Step 3: Apply this once per month - http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milorganite- ... ilorganite For your size lawn, you will need 2 bags. 2 bags will cover 5000sqft, but you can apply it all on your 4000sqft without any negative effects.
Step 4: Spray this http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ortho-Weed-B ... /203686902 Re-apply in 10-14 days if needed.
Step 5: Spray this 14 days after the last application of Step 4. http://www.amazon.com/Ortho-Chickweed-C ... EBWPXCATZ7 Reapply 2-3 times, 14 days apart.

For Steps 4 & 5, follow the instructions on the product's label.

Depending on what you're left with after the weeds are gone, you may want to overseed this fall to try and get some more grass in there.

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