Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Learn how improving your soil can lead to a better looking lawn
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cweatherl
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Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
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Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » September 10th, 2020, 2:35 pm

I am located in Tulsa Oklahoma, have a ~6300sqft lawn that is full sun, and while I am experienced at gardening and lawncare, am relatively new to soil testing and advanced soil management. My home is 2011 construction and the lawn is 100% Bermuda in the summer and 100% perennial ryegrass in the winter when the Bermuda is dormant. I do have an irrigation system with 8 zones and depending on the weather and heat, regularly water 2-3 times (1-1.5”) per week trying to adhere to the “deep and infrequent” strategy. Where I live in Tulsa is very close to the Arkansas river and as such the soil is very clay rich. My irrigation system rotates zones frequently allowing for soak time to maximize absorption and to minimize runoff.
I am not new to this area, but I have only lived in my current home and been working on my current lawn for about 9 months. Unfortunately, I was not able to apply preemergent last spring and as such have been battling nutsedge and broadleaf weeds all summer. I do plan to rectify this issue starting this fall when the daytime temps are low enough to start a preemergent/post emergent schedule. Aside from the weed issues, the lawn is in decent shape just not as thick/plush and green as I would like it. Since the spring of this year, I have aerated once and been on a schedule of applying fast release nitrogen (34-0-0) every four weeks offset by slow release nitrogen (6-4-0) every eight weeks. I have applied one treatment of Andersons Organic Humic DG at 3lb/k last month. Currently my HOC is 2” (mulched) once per week and while the Bermuda grows quickly, it just isn’t as thick as I would like and it has a yellow/brown color to it when recently cut. I know I could raise the HOC, but I have been trying to keep it at 2” to promote lateral growth.
My soil sample was taken on August 24th and the last application of 6-4-0 was on June 24th and 34-0-0 on July 23rd.
As far as goals for my lawn, I just want a thick, green Bermuda turf in the summer that transitions to a nice rye turf in the winter. I would probably tend toward the “best” approach but don’t want to get too carried away. More than anything just trying to understand why the bermunda isn’t as thick as I would like it and why it continues to have the yellow’ish color to it. Based on the posted lab results, is it a Ph issue, cation issue, or other?
Many thanks in advance for your time and effort helping work through this lawn and learning “journey”.
Regards,
Chris
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andy10917
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Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by andy10917 » September 10th, 2020, 3:18 pm

Please add a Link to this thread into the Soil Test Interpretation Queue thread, so that you have a place in line for the interpretation.

cweatherl
Posts: 7
Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » September 11th, 2020, 1:26 pm

Updated analysis with ammonium and nitrate.
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cweatherl
Posts: 7
Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » September 11th, 2020, 1:47 pm

Done......was waiting on post to be approved then forgot to check back. Link added.

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andy10917
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Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by andy10917 » September 12th, 2020, 10:52 am

A couple of questions before I write up the analysis and plan:

(1) How do you remove the PR from the lawn after the Winter is over?
(2) Do you scalp the Bermuda lawn each Spring?


cweatherl
Posts: 7
Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » September 12th, 2020, 12:15 pm

1 - The Oklahoma summer heat seems to do a pretty good job knocking it down on its own. Other than that, I havent done anything to it this summer.
2 - I do generally scalp bermuda in the spring but havent on this lawn yet as i was waiting to see what i had to work with as it is the first year i've owned this home.

Open to any suggestions on either topic.

Thanks in advance, Chris

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andy10917
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Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by andy10917 » September 15th, 2020, 8:28 pm

While the soil is a little bit on the heavy side, I don't see any hint of a seriously clay-based soil. Loams range from 8 - 15 or so -you're at 13.37 for the TEC. The OM% is 2.85, which is mediocre. Unless you have a drainage problem, the soil test says the river doesn't come to your door. Add compost, mulched laves or peat moss regularly.

In the cations, Calcium is high and Magnesium/Potassium are low. This leads to a pH of 6.9. Since Bermuda is the primary lawn, and it can handle a higher pH, mix 2 lbs/K of Epsom Salt into something granular every 60 days. Also find Sulfate of Potash (SOP. 0-0-50) and apply it at 2 lbs/K monthly. SOP is not easy to find.

Phosphorus is good and so is Iron, but the Iron may dip in availability if the pH gets much higher.

A Nitrogen source is up to you, unless you request on that item.

Sorry, but it's tough to balance the soil for both Bermuda and Ryegrass. I hope this helps some...

In the micro's, the only one that is short is Boron. Do you wish to address that?

cweatherl
Posts: 7
Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » October 1st, 2020, 11:00 am

Many thanks for the feedback and my apologies for the delayed response. Good to hear that you don't see any major issues or deficiencies but just a few follow up questions come to mind.

1 - What is the ideal Ph for this mix of Bermuda and Rye?
2 - Regarding the magnesium deficiency, how does this affect the turf growth?
3 - Do you have any recommendations for how to source Epsom salt for lawns?
4 - What affect will the Epsom Salt have on the pH?
5 - Regarding the potassium deficiency, how does this affect the turf growth?
6 - What affect will the SOP have on pH?
7 - Do you have any recommendations for how to source SOP?
8 - I would like to know more about the boron deficiency and how to amend.
9 - If Rye were my primary turf, what is the ideal soil chemistry (including pH) and what would you recommend?

Many thanks in advance.

Chris

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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

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by andy10917 » October 1st, 2020, 10:01 pm

The pH, the pH, the pH. You need to do some reading on the site. Most of your questions are assuming that there is a great deal of importance in pH and an assumption that the is "perfect" or good/bad numbers that you hit or miss. That's very far from reality.

I'll answer some of the questions that don't need to wait until you've done your reading.

(3) Epsom Salts can be purchased at any Rite-Aid, CVS, Wal-Mart, etc.

(7) SOP can be purchased where golf courses and farmers buy their fertilizers, or online (but shipping will hurt).

(9) I don't think Rye is a practical grass to consider "primary" in Tulsa.

cweatherl
Posts: 7
Joined: June 10th, 2020, 1:07 pm
Location: Tulsa, OK
Grass Type: Bermuda and Perennial Rye
Lawn Size: 5000-10000
Level: Some Experience

Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by cweatherl » October 1st, 2020, 11:53 pm

Wow Andy, I cant remember a time in recent history when I've been talked down to so overtly. I have spent many hours reading the content and learning from this site and have benefited from it greatly. For that I am very thankful. That said, while I am no expert, this kind of response to genuine, graciously asked questions is totally unacceptable. I can assure that if you talked to me (or most anyone) like this face to face, that behavior would be corrected quickly.

In summary, message received Andy. I certainly wont bother you again, and for what its worth you might consider another outlet for your frustrations other than the very people that support and contribute to this site!

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MorpheusPA
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Re: Weatherl Soil Test: 2020-09

Post by MorpheusPA » October 2nd, 2020, 12:54 am

pH is...not important, to put it mildly. If the resources are balanced in the soil, the pH naturally follows those balances to be in the correct range.

However, those ranges vary. Some soils balance at a picture-perfect and textbook-flawless 6.2. I am blessed (translation: worked my butt off) to have that soil. It...has its advantages, but it's not like there aren't other options.

Good natural balances tend to vary from 6.2 to about 6.8, but we've seen nice soils right up to 7.2 and acceptable ones up to 8 and above (those do tend to be very high in calcium, of course, but that's not a barrier to a great lawn).

Conversely, knowing one's pH alone tells one practically nothing. A very low pH implies low resources but...do you add calcium? Magnesium? Potassium? How much of each? That single number is silent on the issue; it's a single-dimensional data point and can't tell us.

I just read a Logan test...er, elsewhere...where calcium was a tad high, magnesium near-optimal, and potassium kind of low, with a pH of 6.8. On paper, the pH looks grand, but the soil still needs potassium. The high Ca can be ignored, it wasn't more than a smidge high and nobody cares about that anyway. Which is good, you can't do much about it!

So all things considered, there's no real reason to even tell me the pH. I don't really care. I only care about the resource balance. If I get that right, the pH will, by necessity, be correct--and whether that's 6.2 or 6.8 doesn't concern me much (well, that's oversimplified, but...I got my shingles shot today and sacked out for four hours this evening and I'm still cranky. This will have to do).

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