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Spring Lawn Care
By Justin Petrosino, ANR Extension Educator
OSU Extension, Darke County
It’s
hard to believe spring is already here and that March is almost gone.
In agriculture farmers are getting ready to top dress nitrogen on their
wheat, spray their fields for weeds, and are gearing up for planting
starting in a few weeks. In town we may not be thinking too much about
our lawn just yet but it’s time to start preparing for the season.
Topics like overseeding, crabgrass control and fertilization are what
we’ll focus on today.
Overseeding can be a way to improve the look of your lawn; however, if
turf is already established overseeding should be limited to late
summer. Put a note on your calendar during fair week to add some extra
seed to your lawn. Doing so will give the new grass the best chance of
becoming successfully established. During the spring if you have a
patch of dead grass or an undesirable species reseeding a small area
can be beneficial. Come April an undesirable grass can be sprayed with
glyphosate products like Roundup to kill the affected area. This will
kill both desirable and undesirable species so it is a last resort. It
may take more than one application to kill the grass. Wait a week or
two in between applications if you follow up.
Once
the grass is dead overseed the area with a desirable species, irrigate,
and apply a starter fertilizer if needed. Be careful not to include any
herbicide in the fertilizer, so avoid weed and feed products. Also be
careful in your seed selection. The cheaper the seed, typically the
quality is poorer. K31 is named so because it was registered in 1931.
We don’t plant corn from 1931, your lawn shouldn’t have those genetics
either. Modern grass varieties have improved resistance to diseases and
stressful conditions.
Weed
control in the spring is critical for a healthy lawn. Most herbicides
to be used in the lawn are for broadleaf control. Under ‘active
ingredients’ on the label you will find names like MCPA, dicamba,
2,4-D, and triclopyr. These products will control emerged broadleaf
weeds. If you are fighting crabgrass a preemergence herbicide is
critical. Check the label for ‘crabgrass control’ and check the ‘active
ingredients’ section for benefin, pendimethelin, oxadiazon, and
dithiopyr. These products should be applied before April 15 to ensure
control of crabgrass as it emerges. For preemergence herbicides to work
they need to make their way into the soil. I usually irrigate about a ¼
inch of water onto the lawn after application. Be sure to avoid
applications of fertilizer and herbicides right before heavy rains of a
half inch or more. Any products applied beforehand will wash down the
drain along with your money!
Although many folks apply fertilizer in the spring, lawn fertilizers
should be applied between June and September. This gives us the least
chance of them running off and the best opportunity to fertilize our
lawn and not weeds. University research shows it can also help reduce
disease severity and help lawns make it through those tough, droughty
times. Fertilizers should be applied based on a soil samples taken
throughout the yard. At the Extension Office we have guides on how to
take soil samples and where to send them off to for testing. If you
have any questions on lawn care and weed control feel free to contact
Justin Petrosino at OSU Extension, Darke County, at 548-5215.
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