Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
- andy10917
- Posts: 29739
- Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 10:48 pm
- Location: NY (Lower Hudson Valley)
- Grass Type: Emblem KBG (Front); Blueberry KBG Monostand (Back)
- Lawn Size: 1 acre-2 acre
- Level: Advanced
Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
In the North, we're basically there -- yup, it's time to put a fork in the 2016 Season.
But wait!! One more task...
Did the Lawn you made this Season meet your goal(s)?
Rate it from "A+" (which is way more than you hoped for) to "F" (call the rototiller guys). Explain your rating.
But wait!! One more task...
Did the Lawn you made this Season meet your goal(s)?
Rate it from "A+" (which is way more than you hoped for) to "F" (call the rototiller guys). Explain your rating.
-
- Posts: 2692
- Joined: April 25th, 2014, 11:11 pm
- Location: Macomb County Michigan
- Grass Type: Front/Side - Emblem, Back - Panterra V
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
For the late seeding I ended up with, I'll give it a B+.
- MorpheusPA
- Posts: 18129
- Joined: March 5th, 2009, 7:32 pm
- Location: Zone 6 (Eastern PA)
- Grass Type: Elite KBG
- Lawn Size: 10000-20000
- Level: Advanced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
C. We had an extended drought this year, so a lot went dormant from late June through late August.
It looked great from late February through late June, though, so A's and B's through that period. F from late June to late August. D in September. B in October, B in November so far; it looks great, but there are a few patchy holes where the grass died over the summer and didn't have the water to come back in fall.
It looked great from late February through late June, though, so A's and B's through that period. F from late June to late August. D in September. B in October, B in November so far; it looks great, but there are a few patchy holes where the grass died over the summer and didn't have the water to come back in fall.
-
- Posts: 1484
- Joined: May 5th, 2012, 11:29 pm
- Location: Central NJ
- Grass Type: TTTF
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
With the horrible drought this past summer I give it a D-...... I ended up over seeding. Hard to believe it but today it bounced back to an A. Ended up be a great fall, the spoon feeding kicked in nicely
- PSU4ME
- Posts: 1147
- Joined: November 29th, 2016, 9:29 am
- Location: Metrowest MA
- Grass Type: Front: Bewitched/Midnight/Everglade Back: Midnight/Diva/Everest
- Lawn Size: 20000-1 acre
- Level: Some Experience
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
I'm with morph, the drought really killed me this year but I'd give myself an A for how I dealt with it. I was able to Reno about 13k worth of a backyard and it turned out ok.
- kenomikes
- Posts: 75
- Joined: March 21st, 2016, 11:50 am
- Location: RI
- Grass Type: Front Masterpiece TTTF, Rear Driveway area Masterpiece TTTF, rear pool swingset area TTTF Barenbrug
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
Learned alot this year starting with the soil test. Half my spring seeding reno failed, redid the failed sections in September and the front and back look nice now. Need to finish up leave mulching and drop the winterizer.
D at first and and now a B.
D at first and and now a B.
- Pete1313
- Posts: 873
- Joined: June 2nd, 2014, 9:36 am
- Location: Northwest Illinois
- Grass Type: Bewitched KBG
- Lawn Size: 20000-1 acre
- Level: Advanced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
I would give mine a B, about all I could expect in its first year. I eliminated most of the weeds, and it is a darker green compared to most of the area lawns, but is all I can expect from an old NoMix. I spent most of the year working on the soil by adding alot of BLSC/KH, grains, and following ST6's recommendations and I think I am starting to see some change for the better in the soil. I also followed the aggressive fall N plan and played with fall apps of generic primo. Overall, all the inputs helped it go from a D to a B in one season.
- nclawnguy
- Posts: 2808
- Joined: July 12th, 2011, 8:53 am
- Location: Piedmont Region of NC
- Grass Type: tttf
- Lawn Size: 20000-1 acre
- Level: Advanced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
C - I spent little to no energy on my lawn this year. I had backyard tore up for pool and patio install. I do not have irrigation and my lawn is around 35,000 sqft. Had a drought and had heavy equipment and trucks driving through it. It looked like hell in July and August, but bounced back nicely in the fall. I did do an overseed to repair some of it. Right now it looks pretty good, not anything close to where my last lawn was like, but not too bad.
- BoatDrinksQ5
- Posts: 1387
- Joined: September 27th, 2013, 8:54 am
- Location: North Twin Cities, Minnesota
- Grass Type: 9k of KBG (2013 sod) Blue-tastic, Corsair, BlackJack, Empire
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
B
Lawn was pretty great - then went on a 2wk trip to UK - neighbor cut grass a little short for me - coincided with a dry period and not enough watering. Lawn got a bit toasted in spots - then came the moles - a lot of areas just barely recovered come fall. Started mowing shorter and there was even more BBDL then typical (old mole tracks and drought artifacts...). Was a little too light on the fall fertilizing - so thickening wasn't is good as desired once grass was shorter.
Next year I am going to make a point of mowing a little shorter year round and watering more aggressively. As Andy has pointed out before I believe - is it worth spending the time, money, and energy in the yard - but then short change it by stressing/hurting it with being cheap with the water (that is fairly cheap in my area)!
Each year I get better and better at detecting 'stress' and watering - but this year I was GONE during the worst period... fail. Security "yard" cameras have been purchased.... won't make the mistake again lol
Good year - looks great after the snow melted - looking forward to next year!!!
Lawn was pretty great - then went on a 2wk trip to UK - neighbor cut grass a little short for me - coincided with a dry period and not enough watering. Lawn got a bit toasted in spots - then came the moles - a lot of areas just barely recovered come fall. Started mowing shorter and there was even more BBDL then typical (old mole tracks and drought artifacts...). Was a little too light on the fall fertilizing - so thickening wasn't is good as desired once grass was shorter.
Next year I am going to make a point of mowing a little shorter year round and watering more aggressively. As Andy has pointed out before I believe - is it worth spending the time, money, and energy in the yard - but then short change it by stressing/hurting it with being cheap with the water (that is fairly cheap in my area)!
Each year I get better and better at detecting 'stress' and watering - but this year I was GONE during the worst period... fail. Security "yard" cameras have been purchased.... won't make the mistake again lol
Good year - looks great after the snow melted - looking forward to next year!!!
- ronfitch
- Posts: 252
- Joined: April 1st, 2012, 1:41 pm
- Location: St. Paul, MN
- Grass Type: original: I don't know; overseed: Kentucky Bluegrass
- Lawn Size: 5000-10000
- Level: Some Experience
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
It's about context .... B.
It still looks good, a darker green than some others around here this late in the year and I could push the reflective poles in the ground by hand pretty far this week (for you in the south, we put those up along the street to try and keep the snow plows in the street). Five years ago, I could not have done that even in the softest part of the lawn - utterly impossible in the boulevard sections by the street. I recall needing a hammer to drive wire tent stakes into the ground in the backyard the first summer of turf.
I stuck with milo and (sorry, Andy) shampoo/molassas in May-July, Sept-Oct. I keep meaning to do the proper BL mix and just never got to it. That, plus three hits of gypsom again this season and winterizing about ten days ago. And pre-Em. Probably about what I would pay for a five-per-season treatment service.
One big change for me was swapping out the controller on our irrigation system to a Rachio II in early July, which syncs with WeatherUndergound.com stations as one of the options in addition to setting a regular watering cycle. It was free to me as one of first 50 in the city to respond to the offer.
I was already out-of-sync with most neighbors and the HOA by not watering every other day (I was watering once-a-week, when needed and keeping an eye on rain amounts). Honestly, our HOA has sprinklers running *during* heavy summer storms and there are areas of sidewalks that have standing water much of the year because of it.
The Rachio took that over for me, even when gone for a two-week trip late July/early August. The water use for the October billing period (which probably covered July 1st - Sept 30th) this year is about 40% of last year, same for 2013 and 2014, and less than a third of what it was for the same period in 2011 and 2012.
It still looks good, a darker green than some others around here this late in the year and I could push the reflective poles in the ground by hand pretty far this week (for you in the south, we put those up along the street to try and keep the snow plows in the street). Five years ago, I could not have done that even in the softest part of the lawn - utterly impossible in the boulevard sections by the street. I recall needing a hammer to drive wire tent stakes into the ground in the backyard the first summer of turf.
I stuck with milo and (sorry, Andy) shampoo/molassas in May-July, Sept-Oct. I keep meaning to do the proper BL mix and just never got to it. That, plus three hits of gypsom again this season and winterizing about ten days ago. And pre-Em. Probably about what I would pay for a five-per-season treatment service.
One big change for me was swapping out the controller on our irrigation system to a Rachio II in early July, which syncs with WeatherUndergound.com stations as one of the options in addition to setting a regular watering cycle. It was free to me as one of first 50 in the city to respond to the offer.
I was already out-of-sync with most neighbors and the HOA by not watering every other day (I was watering once-a-week, when needed and keeping an eye on rain amounts). Honestly, our HOA has sprinklers running *during* heavy summer storms and there are areas of sidewalks that have standing water much of the year because of it.
The Rachio took that over for me, even when gone for a two-week trip late July/early August. The water use for the October billing period (which probably covered July 1st - Sept 30th) this year is about 40% of last year, same for 2013 and 2014, and less than a third of what it was for the same period in 2011 and 2012.
- darkcrisis
- Posts: 176
- Joined: October 20th, 2014, 9:31 pm
- Location: Knoxville, TN
- Grass Type: TTTF
- Lawn Size: 5000-10000
- Level: Some Experience
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
C-
We are in a severe drought...
Front Lawn - Neglected because I was focusing my money, attention, and work to the back lawn reno. I may just plan on letting it coast from here on out and overseeding with rye every fall so it looks nice and green while everything else is brown during the winter months.
Back Lawn (Reno) - Started out looking great, but quickly declined. I think I infrequently watered too long... I thought it was grubs because I found one, but the damage continued. I then figured it must be a fungus. The delay in putting down applications of fungal control products caused more damage. By that time growth slowed tremendously.
I have some areas that look really good while other look horrible. I plan on preventative fungicide treatments on the lawn next year and hope I can get it back to a worthy looking yard. I honestly am glad the season is over because every time I look at my reno I get angry. Oh well... nothing I can do now. At least I have a good starting point next year. I will probably have to do a heavy overseed in the worst areas next fall. Regretting not mixing in some KBG to my TTTF. Not having any grass that can spread kind of sucks.
Live and learn... Looking forward to a fresh beginning next year!
We are in a severe drought...
Front Lawn - Neglected because I was focusing my money, attention, and work to the back lawn reno. I may just plan on letting it coast from here on out and overseeding with rye every fall so it looks nice and green while everything else is brown during the winter months.
Back Lawn (Reno) - Started out looking great, but quickly declined. I think I infrequently watered too long... I thought it was grubs because I found one, but the damage continued. I then figured it must be a fungus. The delay in putting down applications of fungal control products caused more damage. By that time growth slowed tremendously.
I have some areas that look really good while other look horrible. I plan on preventative fungicide treatments on the lawn next year and hope I can get it back to a worthy looking yard. I honestly am glad the season is over because every time I look at my reno I get angry. Oh well... nothing I can do now. At least I have a good starting point next year. I will probably have to do a heavy overseed in the worst areas next fall. Regretting not mixing in some KBG to my TTTF. Not having any grass that can spread kind of sucks.
Live and learn... Looking forward to a fresh beginning next year!
- HoosierLawnGnome
- Posts: 9591
- Joined: May 22nd, 2013, 5:59 pm
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Grass Type: Blueberry KBG
- Lawn Size: 1 acre-2 acre
- Level: Advanced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
B.
Renovation had good coverage that should fill in this spring and get the thickness I want. Looks more yellow than I'd like going into winter.
Renovation had good coverage that should fill in this spring and get the thickness I want. Looks more yellow than I'd like going into winter.
- 1977212
- Posts: 992
- Joined: June 16th, 2015, 8:49 pm
- Location: MN
- Grass Type: Quack, No Mix
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
B- I was shooting for a cheap way to keep it nice this year and succeeded, but The color suffered. I believe I've push too much N in the spring as my lawn got a little floppy. Next year will be much better as I'll be doing some iron apps.
- probasesteal
- Posts: 1032
- Joined: March 29th, 2014, 3:39 pm
- Location: Winston-Salem, NC
- Grass Type: FRONT: SPF30, NuGlad and Midnight. BACK: Hogan's TTTF with SPF30 HBG
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
B
Front yard has never looked better and the reno HBG/KBG looks great. Few thin spots that I hope fill in. The backyard is lagging, but further along than many years past. Average is a 'b', front a-, back C+.
The bluegrass that's established looks amazing, so far well worth the wait (I was tempted mid October to scrap and throw down PRG) thanks for the nudge NClawn and ECU.
Front yard has never looked better and the reno HBG/KBG looks great. Few thin spots that I hope fill in. The backyard is lagging, but further along than many years past. Average is a 'b', front a-, back C+.
The bluegrass that's established looks amazing, so far well worth the wait (I was tempted mid October to scrap and throw down PRG) thanks for the nudge NClawn and ECU.
-
- Posts: 501
- Joined: June 29th, 2016, 9:54 am
- Location: Fishers, IN
- Grass Type: Mix (mostly KBG)
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
Not fully done for the season since there is still some top growth. Hopefully I should drop urea this weekend.
Front A
The aggressive nitrogen approach made the front spread really nice. The Milo gave it a deep green. At least 9 neighbors have asked for details what I'm doing and 3 have actually started to follow with Milo applications and have cancelled their service (true green, sorry Billy).
Back B+
The soil still needs more work on the back and the rust impacted the color. It is a new construction, so it will take some time. It is not a sprint but a long term marathon. The kids were able to play on grass instead of mud, so I'm happy.
Front A
The aggressive nitrogen approach made the front spread really nice. The Milo gave it a deep green. At least 9 neighbors have asked for details what I'm doing and 3 have actually started to follow with Milo applications and have cancelled their service (true green, sorry Billy).
Back B+
The soil still needs more work on the back and the rust impacted the color. It is a new construction, so it will take some time. It is not a sprint but a long term marathon. The kids were able to play on grass instead of mud, so I'm happy.
- Jackpine
- Posts: 1081
- Joined: October 28th, 2011, 6:02 pm
- Location: Antrim County, Michigan
- Grass Type: N.W. Mi. KBG blend
- Lawn Size: 3000-5000
- Level: Experienced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
About a B-
2015 summer reno did not thicken up much due to getting pretty much the same amount of N as the rest of the lawn. Color will be better next year!
No rust this year in the front...Yeah! Did have a bit of thinning in the shady areas of the summer reno due to an unknown issue.
Front looks great with nice compliments on the 75% Blue Velvet/25% Bewitched blend.
Same as last year the lawn has gone to bed hungry with no winterizing app. Milo down in September all used up.
2015 summer reno did not thicken up much due to getting pretty much the same amount of N as the rest of the lawn. Color will be better next year!
No rust this year in the front...Yeah! Did have a bit of thinning in the shady areas of the summer reno due to an unknown issue.
Front looks great with nice compliments on the 75% Blue Velvet/25% Bewitched blend.
Same as last year the lawn has gone to bed hungry with no winterizing app. Milo down in September all used up.
- OldGlory
- Posts: 336
- Joined: June 30th, 2013, 9:51 am
- Location: North Shore, MA
- Grass Type: Carl Spackler Hybred: KBG; Featherbed Bent; Northern California Sensemilia
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
Tough year with the drought. Grade C overall.
Front Yard Reno was a challenge. Was hoping for a nice wet spring to help it along. Had to rely on my irrigation system since mother nature was so stingy with rain. It took a very long time to fill in and I still have some bare spots where I could not get adequate coverage with the irrigation system. It hung on until the water ban in late August. Plan for next year is to use Tupersan and overseed in Spring hoping for a wetter go of it.
Backyard stayed green but was riddled with Poa. Plan for next year is to lay down a continuous blanket of pre-em starting in early spring and RU the Poa and install sod where the patches are.
Front Yard Reno was a challenge. Was hoping for a nice wet spring to help it along. Had to rely on my irrigation system since mother nature was so stingy with rain. It took a very long time to fill in and I still have some bare spots where I could not get adequate coverage with the irrigation system. It hung on until the water ban in late August. Plan for next year is to use Tupersan and overseed in Spring hoping for a wetter go of it.
Backyard stayed green but was riddled with Poa. Plan for next year is to lay down a continuous blanket of pre-em starting in early spring and RU the Poa and install sod where the patches are.
-
- Posts: 6837
- Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
- Location: CT (Zone 6B)
- Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
- Lawn Size: 10000-20000
- Level: Experienced
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
B+ for the main front. I managed to knock down a lot of the Triv problem in the past year, and overseeded the entire thing several times over the past year or so. I also got rid of most of the clover finally.
B for the side front. Parts of it burned out in the drought despite hand watering, irrigation at regular intervals to adequate depth, etc. It's due to tree roots, slopes, compaction, and old/poorly performing grass types in some parts. I did an overseed on the worst part, the top of the front hill this Fall. I also managed to escape disastrous brown patch this year by treating after the first signs. The area recovered well in the Fall.
A+ for the hell strips. Gypsum, proper fertilizing, and lots of hand watering as needed...really held up well despite the near-impossible nature due to their small size, pavement adjacent bounding them, and high temps this past Summer. Planning to add irrigation to them next Spring.
A+ for the back. After a rocky start last Spring and a little dormant seeding on the sloped part, this area really held up well, even without a ton of irrigation. This is due to better soil, some protection from the sun, and better grass types.
C+ for the side. It's still got a lot of Triv. I finally overseeded this Fall, for the first time since it was planted in 2011.
A- for the low-input area. I managed to reduce the Poa A infestion to nearly nothing, finally. Last Spring, I reclaimed and re-seeded a lost portion that had tree litter from neighbors for about a decade. I'm grading this area on a different scale though...as a utility area, since that's what it is. Irrigated the low-input area several times during the Summer/drought. Also put in spray heads on spikes for the newly seeded part. Watered that part on a timer very frequently throughout the Summer and early Fall. It came in very well. Still some bare spots in the low-input area that burned out due to the drought this Summer, but it's recovering. Still some Bentgrass mixed in, but that's acceptable on utility/low-input turf.
A+ for effort and time spent.
B for the side front. Parts of it burned out in the drought despite hand watering, irrigation at regular intervals to adequate depth, etc. It's due to tree roots, slopes, compaction, and old/poorly performing grass types in some parts. I did an overseed on the worst part, the top of the front hill this Fall. I also managed to escape disastrous brown patch this year by treating after the first signs. The area recovered well in the Fall.
A+ for the hell strips. Gypsum, proper fertilizing, and lots of hand watering as needed...really held up well despite the near-impossible nature due to their small size, pavement adjacent bounding them, and high temps this past Summer. Planning to add irrigation to them next Spring.
A+ for the back. After a rocky start last Spring and a little dormant seeding on the sloped part, this area really held up well, even without a ton of irrigation. This is due to better soil, some protection from the sun, and better grass types.
C+ for the side. It's still got a lot of Triv. I finally overseeded this Fall, for the first time since it was planted in 2011.
A- for the low-input area. I managed to reduce the Poa A infestion to nearly nothing, finally. Last Spring, I reclaimed and re-seeded a lost portion that had tree litter from neighbors for about a decade. I'm grading this area on a different scale though...as a utility area, since that's what it is. Irrigated the low-input area several times during the Summer/drought. Also put in spray heads on spikes for the newly seeded part. Watered that part on a timer very frequently throughout the Summer and early Fall. It came in very well. Still some bare spots in the low-input area that burned out due to the drought this Summer, but it's recovering. Still some Bentgrass mixed in, but that's acceptable on utility/low-input turf.
A+ for effort and time spent.
- j rockford
- Posts: 427
- Joined: October 6th, 2010, 9:46 pm
- Location: cincinnati
- Grass Type: emblem moonbeam moonlight slt midnight star midnight prosperity, boutique
- Lawn Size: Not Specified
- Level: Not Specified
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
D/F as in dry and fungus. Also a helping or two of my own buttsteak idiocy. Picked the wrong year to tinker with process. Hot humid weather with a late hot and dry spell and a scoop of dollar spot added up to a lousy result.
- llO0DQLE
- Posts: 1420
- Joined: August 4th, 2013, 3:20 pm
- Location: Edmonton, AB Canada
- Grass Type: KBG and Creeping Red Fescue
- Lawn Size: 1000-3000
- Level: Some Experience
Re: Put a Fork In It (and Then Grade It)
A+ from spring green up to mid June. The weekly 2x BR Milo + Tons of Rain + No proactive biofungicide regimen = fungus on my first year lawn starting mid June until the end of the season. By the end, it felt like an F to me. Lots of brown blades everywhere. I actually couldn't wait for winter snow to cover it so I could look forward to spring green up next year.
Next year I'll hold back on fertilizing, I will probably stick to grains and only BR Milo monthly at most starting in late spring (just for the color) and be proactive with the Serenade. I might even just do FAS for color if I don't feel like dropping any soluble N.
Next year I'll hold back on fertilizing, I will probably stick to grains and only BR Milo monthly at most starting in late spring (just for the color) and be proactive with the Serenade. I might even just do FAS for color if I don't feel like dropping any soluble N.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 22 guests