Dormant vs. Dead Triv - Certainty

Kentucky bluegrass, Fescue, Rye and Bent, etc
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Adam_M
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Dormant vs. Dead Triv - Certainty

Post by Adam_M » July 13th, 2021, 1:16 pm

Hi,
I've been hammering some triv with Certainty - 3 apps so far. It's brown, and the surrounding KBG is upset about it, but not dead by any means. It can definitely take another hit.

So... how do I tell if it's dead or dormant? The question actually reminds me of one of my favorite places in the City of Pittsburgh - they have a tree that's dormant about 10 months a year and a sign in front of it that says I'm not dead, I'm dormant. And they have a T-shirt to prove it.

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andy10917
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Re: Dormant vs. Dead Triv - Certainty

Post by andy10917 » July 13th, 2021, 5:53 pm

It takes some practice, but dead grass tends to fall to the soil level, and dormant grass tends to remain pretty upright. There are no absolutes in making the determination, however.
and the surrounding KBG is upset about it, but not dead by any means
Fully expected with Certainty. I call it "Certainly Certainty Syndrome". The good grass gets a bit muddy-looking and maybe a little stunted, but it recovers. Kudos to you for putting up with three apps - many just can't deal with the length of time three rounds plus recovery time takes.

Green
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Re: Dormant vs. Dead Triv - Certainty

Post by Green » July 18th, 2021, 11:05 pm

My experience so far is that Certainty plus heat results in collateral damage that manifests as dormancy. Last year, about 95% of the KBG came back, even though it looked like I hadn't watered the section all Summer and let it go fully dormant for a couple of months. Ryegrass or Fescue in a mixture has a lower recovery rate, but overseeding is easy with those, so I still see no reason not use Certainty on the mixtures with KBG. The really bad Triv spots get glyphosate, anyway. Thankfully I have less of those each year.

Generally if nothing greens up by early Fall, not even a hint of green, and you're getting good water, it's dead. It's rare that living, dormant grass doesn't green up in the same calendar year. But in these cases, it usually mats down quite badly, and tend to peel up if you rake it.

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