Master Gardeners of Union County

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Start Your Mowers!!!!!!!

Oh, the sounds of spring: birds singing, bees buzzing, peepers peeping, and owners of conked-out mowers roaring! Now's the time to get those mowers in shape for hours of carefree cutting.

Blades are typically the first focus; however, blade-work is made safer by first removing the spark plug. This allows the plug to be inspected and it makes moving the blade around for inspection and deck cleaning easier by eliminating engine compression. Worn or fouled plugs along with dulled blades reduce mower efficiency which wastes gas and elevates exhaust emissions.

A close inspection of the mower deck (cleaned!) may reveal heavy corrosion which could weaken the deck presenting a safety hazard. Of course, over-wintered engine oil should be changed, and the air filter inspected. Next, adjust the mowing height of the cut to between 2 1/2 to 3 inches. Carbohydrates produced by high-cut turf grass support good root growth.

Make plans to enjoy your finely-tuned mower as needed rather than by the calendar. One should only remove one third of the leaf blade at a time. Cutting off more than one third of the blade weakens the grass plant and stresses the turf. Fast growing turf grass in the spring and fall may require cutting as frequently as two or three times per week. Also, don't let wet weather get in the way of too many mowings; it is better to mow wet grass than to try to cut grass that's been allowed to grow to a height for baling!

Source– Buckeye Yard & Garden Line (BYG)

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Pre-Emergence Herbicides for Turfgrass

It is time to plan for pre-emergence herbicide applications for the control of crabgrass and other grassy weeds in turf. In fact, some of the longer-lasting products are already being applied. Crabgrass is by far the most common of the warm season weedy grasses on lawns. Unlike the other warm season grassy weeds, such as goose Fertilizers

grass, smooth crabgrass begins to germinate when soil temperatures fall within the range of 52-58F, or 55F at the 4" soil depth. The other warm season grasses germinate when soil temperatures are in the upper 60's to low 70's, which can be several weeks later. Proper grassy weed identification is critical to learning whether or not a lawn is riddled with early-germinating crabgrass or another grassy weed that requires a different management strategy.

As with most pesticides, timing is everything! Pre-emergence herbicides do not kill seeds; they derail the seed germination process. So, these herbicides must be applied and activated before the seeds of the targeted weed(s) begin to germinate. The full bloom of forsythia or eastern redbud trees are reasonably

accurate phenological indicators that crabgrass seeds are nearly ready to germinate. Remember to read the herbicide label carefully to learn how to activate the herbicide. Many products require a significant application of water.

Of course, application timing is also critical relative to how long the herbicide will remain active. Once the herbicide is activated, the clock is ticking on how long the herbicide barrier remains effective in preventing successful seed germination. One of the reasons that we try to avoid applying the herbicide too early is to maximize the chance of the herbicide barrier lasting through the season. You can increase your chances of getting effective season long control by doing the following:

Select a product with a long lasting active ingredient, such as prodiamine or dithiopyr. Both provide 90% control for up to 16 weeks. Dithiopyr also has early post emergence activity for those cases where some crabgrass may have already emerged.
To increase the duration of control, make certain you are applying the full label rates, or make split-applications with each application at 1/2 the full labeled rate. Of course, READ THE LABEL to find out if the product is labeled for split applications and to learn the timing between the two applications.
Select products that will provide the appropriate amount of recommended active ingredient per acre. Some pre-emergence/fertilizer products today are formulated to apply pre-emergence herbicides at the low end of the recommended rate range or even below the traditional rate recommendation range. Established rate recommendation ranges for three commonly used pre-emergence herbicides are: Prodiamine (e.g. Barricade) 0.65 - 0.75 lbs ai/A; dithiopyr (e.g. Dimension) 0.25 - 0.50 lbs ai/A; and Pendimethalin (e.g. Pendulum) 1.5 - 3.0 lbs ai/A.
What about over seeding turf grass? Almost all of the pre-emergence herbicides on the market are very effective in suppressing the germination of desired turf grass seeds! Remember that pre-emergence herbicides should not be used as the first line of defense against turfgrass weeds. A thick lawn is the first line of defense. If the choice is using an herbicide to suppress weeds in a thin lawn, or thickening the lawn by over seeding, the best choice is over seeding.

Source– Buckeye Yard & Garden Line (BYG)

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

The Grapevine