What the heck happened to my lawn!

[reggie517]

So I put down my urea about 10 days ago and the lawn has stripes all over it. I used a brand new Scott’s Edgeguard spreader. I have never seen this happen before. I think something must have been up with the spreader which resulted in the strips of dark green grass.

I am going to check the spreader before my next application over the weekend but it is brand new and never had this problem with my old Scott’s broadcast spreader.

Should I split the amount in half and do both horizontal and vertical passes to help even it out?
[url=https://postimg.cc/CZGJRGC7][img]https://i.postimg.cc/CZGJRGC7/424830-A0 ... -CBB62.jpg[/img][/url]

[url=https://postimg.cc/jwRcPDZb][img]https://i.postimg.cc/jwRcPDZb/C59-E2-F2 ... B71041.jpg[/img][/url]

[TimmyG]

Gotta ask: did you leave the Edgeguard in edge position?

I find that it's very easy to observe the spray pattern with a broadcast spreader and know when something is amiss, like when my Earthway side shield inevitably falls into place or one of the three holes gets clogged.

I suggest loading up your spreader with something similar on a clean driveway and doing a quick pass. Maybe some of the material is falling straight down rather than getting thrown. You can either sweep up or blow the little extra into the lawn.

[reggie517]

The edgeguard was in the off position and it looked like it was spreading even but maybe a bunch was dropping right in front. Will have to look and test as recommended next time

[john5246]

The edgeguard was in the off position and it looked like it was spreading even but maybe a bunch was dropping right in front. Will have to look and test as recommended next time

Do you have any winter salt left over? Just put that in your spreader and make a pass along the driveway to see the pattern.

[KBGkicksazz]

Tip: Do your spreading in the morning dew which makes very definitive wheel tracks. Makes it much easier to be consistent with overlap. Obviously with urea that is quick acting it’s not as forgiving to overlap variances.

Also the tends to even out as you feed lawn more often so it’s not as twitchy.

The edgeguard was in the off position and it looked like it was spreading even but maybe a bunch was dropping right in front. Will have to look and test as recommended next time

[reggie517]

I always thought with urea you weren’t suppose to apply whe the grass was wet because it can burn the grass when it rolls down the blade when wet?

[KBGkicksazz]

Normally with urea you water it right in.

I always thought with urea you weren’t suppose to apply whe the grass was wet because it can burn the grass when it rolls down the blade when wet?

[Ben]

So I put down my urea about 10 days ago and the lawn has stripes all over it. I used a brand new Scott’s Edgeguard spreader. I have never seen this happen before. I think something must have been up with the spreader which resulted in the strips of dark green grass.

I am going to check the spreader before my next application over the weekend but it is brand new and never had this problem with my old Scott’s broadcast spreader.

Should I split the amount in half and do both horse izontal and vertical passes to help even it out?

This is a design flaw in a few of the spreaders in the Scott’s spreader line. Does your edgeguard spreader have plastic wheels that are “open” on the inside? Broadcasted fertilizer will collect in these wheel interiors as you apply then drop out, causing lines. Move to the Scott’s Elite spreader, Groundwork or Earthway spreader with air filled wheels and you’ll see this remedied.

To “fix” the stripes I used a high iron fertilizer using a different spreader and it minimizes the stripes. With time they will fade and blend in with the rest (depending on what type of fertilizer you applied and your soil - yours being Urea expect it to be short lived).

[northeastlawn]

I still have a drop spreader I prefer for a small yard of 3,000sf or less. It seems a lot more precise than the rotary spreaders.

I do once around the border, then 1/2 of it in one direction, then go 90deg perpendicular and do the last 1/2.

The border ends up getting a little more which is perfect.

[ken-n-nancy]

This is a design flaw in a few of the spreaders in the Scott’s spreader line. Does your edgeguard spreader have plastic wheels that are “open” on the inside? Broadcasted fertilizer will collect in these wheel interiors as you apply then drop out, causing lines.

Wow. Hadn't heard that before. Makes perfect sense. It's surprising Scotts hasn't remedied that problem!

I wonder if the wheels could be taken off and re-mounted "inside-out" so that the "open" sides are on the outside? Wouldn't look as nice, but might be a work-around for the problem.

[reggie517]

[quote=Ben post_id=334250 time=1560128982 user_id=2938]
This is a design flaw in a few of the spreaders in the Scott’s spreader line. Does your edgeguard spreader have plastic wheels that are “open” on the inside? Broadcasted fertilizer will collect in these wheel interiors as you apply then drop out, causing lines. Move to the Scott’s Elite spreader, Groundwork or Earthway spreader with air filled wheels and you’ll see this remedied.

To “fix” the stripes I used a high iron fertilizer using a different spreader and it minimizes the stripes. With time they will fade and blend in with the rest (depending on what type of fertilizer you applied and your soil - yours being Urea expect it to be short lived).
[/quote]

I had one of these before and never had this issue. I did notice when I was spreading last night it seems to shoot more to the right then the left. I am thinking I might apply some tape to cover the inside of the wheels until I get a new spreader.

I decided to split my application and I did a pass vertically and then horizontally. I also made sure the edge guard was off.

Thanks for all the inputs

[uncle_al]

I remember reading that if your spreader is causing striping then going horizontally and then vertically will create a checkerboard effect.

[reggie517]

[quote=uncle_al post_id=334444 time=1560525216 user_id=240]
I remember reading that if your spreader is causing striping then going horizontally and then vertically will create a checkerboard effect.
[/quote]
Yeah I was thinking about a couple days after I applied it. Maybe it will look like checker boarding via cutting like all the baseball fields look like

[HoosierLawnGnome]

Well, it certainly shows you need more fertilizer like the areas you overapplied, to get ultimate color.

[EddieN26]

This is a design flaw in a few of the spreaders in the Scott’s spreader line. Does your edgeguard spreader have plastic wheels that are “open” on the inside? Broadcasted fertilizer will collect in these wheel interiors as you apply then drop out, causing lines.

Wow. Hadn't heard that before. Makes perfect sense. It's surprising Scotts hasn't remedied that problem!

I wonder if the wheels could be taken off and re-mounted "inside-out" so that the "open" sides are on the outside? Wouldn't look as nice, but might be a work-around for the problem.

I read about this exact problem people were having with their scott's deluxe spreaders, and one gentleman posted a quick fix for his that I ended up replicating and it worked flawlessly. The wheels easily detach from the axle. So I cut out 2 circular pieces of cardboard the same size as the wheels, cut a whole in the center big enough for the axle to fit through, and duck taped each piece on the inside portion of the wheel. Voila! No more problems with products building up inside the wheels while spreading. The cardboard cutouts are still holding up strong a year later, and if ever needed they are easily replaced in 10 minutes

[reggie517]

It isn’t pretty but is should work
[url=https://postimg.cc/WtK3Knz0][img]https://i.postimg.cc/WtK3Knz0/8-D2-E630 ... 9-C121.jpg[/img][/url]

[EddieN26]

It isn’t pretty but is should work

A masterpiece! Hope that helps and solves your current lawn issues.

[reggie517]

[quote=EddieN26 post_id=334735 time=1561083151 user_id=9008]
[quote=reggie517 post_id=334569 time=1560734571 user_id=5426]
It isn’t pretty but is should work
[url=https://postimg.cc/WtK3Knz0][img]https://i.postimg.cc/WtK3Knz0/8-D2-E630 ... 9-C121.jpg[/img][/url]
[/quote]

A masterpiece! Hope that helps and solves your current lawn issues.
[/quote]

Thanks will let everyone know how it does

[HoosierLawnGnome]

That paper is a heckuva lot cheaper than a new spreader!

[reggie517]

[quote=HoosierLawnGnome post_id=334748 time=1561121509 user_id=2761]
That paper is a heckuva lot cheaper than a new spreader!
[/quote]

Yeah and it was brand new so wasn't gonna scrap it!