So this week, we will be distributing newsletters to all our customers addressing common turf problems in our area. We figured that if it’s important enough for our customers, it’s important enough for our online readers as well! We have pasted a copy of the article below. Hope it helps!
7 September 2010
The fall season will soon be among us! Personally, I can’t wait. Crisp cool air, colorful leaves, college football…it’s my favorite time of year!
It’s also the time of year when we as landscapers work hard to reverse all the damage Mother Nature has caused over the past few months. Summers in South Carolina can be so brutal to a beautiful landscape!
As we will address in the enclosed article, it can be extremely frustrating to grow a healthy looking lawn in Greenville. Is it impossible? Absolutely not! You just have to be aware of the sacrifices that come along with keeping the turf healthy year-round. In our specific area, the requirements differ due to our climate.
As our customer, we want you to understand the common problems we see in turf throughout Greenville. We also want you to gain an understanding of what can be done to address these issues. For this very reason, we are distributing our first of many ASL newsletters!
We sincerely hope this article will be beneficial to you. As always, please call us anytime with questions, concerns, etc. We are here for you!
Happy Fall!
LeAnne Norris
Operations Specialist, ASL
Leanne@landscapegreenville.com
“Turf Grass in Greenville, South Carolina”
Written by: Taylor Stansell
Landscape Designer/Maintenance Supervisor, ASL
taylor@landscapegreenville.com
Often, when I talk to people for the first time about their lawn, the first thing they tell me is that they simply want their yard to look “good.” Sound familiar? I can imagine that this is the general consensus among all property owners. Everyone desires the “showcase” yard of the neighborhood. Who wouldn’t want all the neighbors to be envious of their landscape, continually taking notice of how good it looks? We understand this! As your landscaper, this is our ultimate goal for you. However, in order to attain that showcase look, we must first recognize exactly what it takes to get there.
In our area, the most common turf species grown are Fescue, Bermuda, Hybrid Bermuda, Centipede, Thin and Thick Blade Zoysia, Bent Grass, and Rye Grass. In this article, I will go into detail about these grasses and share with you what is needed to keep each looking pristine. I will also address some of the common problems you will face with each.
We must first examine the nature of our specific area. Throughout the country, regions of states are divided into climate zones. Each climate zone specifies hundreds of individual plants and grasses that will thrive in its conditions. Greenville is smack-dab in the middle of the warm season zones and the cool seasons zones. We are classified as a “transition zone.” What does this mean? Unfortunately, I can tell you it isn’t very good if you are a person who desires a specific type of turf to look excellent year-round. This is because the transition zone is the most difficult area to grow grass. Warm season species will be damaged by our winter weather, and cool season species will struggle in our hot summers.
In Greenville, we are fortunate as a transition zone because we have the option to grow a variety of turf species. However, there are only certain times of the year that each species will thrive. In a “transition zone,” neither warm season nor cool season grasses are uniformly successful.
Cool Season Grasses:
Let’s start off with cool season grasses. These are Fescue, Rye and Bent Grass. These are considered cool season grasses because they are going to grow the most actively during the cooler seasons in Greenville (i.e. September through April). The most common of the cool season grasses in our area is fescue.
Cool season grasses do not like hot and humid weather. Obviously, this becomes an issue during our summer months here in the South. Cool season grasses are very susceptible to diseases such as brown patch and pythium blights, caused directly by hot and humid weather. As you may have experienced, these diseases will leave large ugly brown spots in a yard.
In our area specifically, cool season grasses require a larger amount of water during the summer due to our hot summers. This is where the situation becomes tricky. With a lot of water, disease is invited in. Without enough water, the grass withers away and dies. As you can understand, it takes an extremely fine balance of care and patience to maintain fescue throughout the summer. It can be done, but it is expensive and time-consuming. Chemicals will help, but these chemicals are extremely costly and must be applied regularly every month.
Please don’t allow the downfalls of fescue to discourage you from loving this species of turf. A fescue yard is absolutely beautiful in the cool seasons and will bring you great delight with its dark green lush look. In the summer months, however, expect some issues. Dealing with these issues throughout the year will determine how well the fescue performs during the hot and humid months.
A good practice specifically for fescue is to aerate as much as possible. This will provide more oxygen to the soil. It will also loosen the soil and allow more room for the root zone to grow and expand. Always remember this: the healthier the roots below the ground the healthier the blades of grass above the ground.
A good fertilizer program is also required and should include pre-emergent. Use caution here though: pre emergent has what we call “life spans.” I will further explain this later in the article.
Warm Season Grasses:
For all of you who have warm season grasses such as Bermuda and Zoysia, I have a wealth of information for you as well! Bermuda and Zoysia are the most common of warm season grasses in Greenville. Unlike cool season grasses, warm season grasses are growing and looking their best during our summer months. Therefore, throughout the summer, aerating and top dressing must be performed regularly. This will strengthen the root system and provide a thick “golf course-like” appearance.
A heavy fertilizer program is required for warm season grasses as well. Applying lime is essential in making sure that nutrients are readily available in the soil. Lime allows magnesium to be absorbed by the grass’s root system. Magnesium is the nutrient that keeps the grass green for a longer period of time. Maintaining the proper “pH” level in the soil is also critical for keeping the turf green. A simple soil test can be performed to determine this level.
The common problem we face in our area with warm season grass comes during the time of transition from winter into spring. With spring, we see warm days that introduce us to summer. However, with spring, we also see cool nights that remind us of the winter we are so eager to leave behind. When this happens, warm season grass develops a sort of problems. First and foremost, warm season grass develops “spring dead spot” and “dollar spot.” Both of these diseases are fungal diseases and are directly related to the cool damp spring nights. Typically when spring hits, people want their grass mowed down low in order to achieve a short carpet-like appearance. The sun heats the soil, the grass begins to show itself, and green life appears from beneath the soil. However, this new growth is the most vulnerable to disease because the leaf tissue is extremely soft. Disease can penetrate the soft leaf, easily entering the plant. The cool and damp spring nights allow the disease to spread once the sun goes down. Therefore, the soil needs to be as dry as possible during these spring evenings.
There is a large misconception that watering more will allow for quicker turf growth. This is not entirely true. Watering too often will be detrimental to warm season grass. The key to having the healthiest warm season grass is to have the healthiest root system possible. Remember what I wrote about cool season grass? The healthier the roots below the ground the healthier the blades of grass above the ground. The same is true for warm season grass. If you water all the time, the root system does not have the opportunity to go deep into the ground and reach a good water supply. It is best, early in the season, to starve the grass of water, forcing the roots deeper into the soil. Yes, this may mean that the turf will not look its best in the early spring, but it will allow the turf to look pristine in the summer months. Starving the grass of water in the early season ensures that when the hot summer months come, the roots are at their healthiest level possible. If a root system is too short during the hottest days of summer, the grass will look good in the morning, but dry during the day. Keep this in mind: warm season grass is not supposed to peak in the spring. Spring is the season for preparing the turf to remain healthy during the summer.
When the time is right, warm season grass becomes a fast grower! I often have people ask me: Why is it so hard to keep the grass mowed down low all year long? Customers wonder why their yard doesn’t look like a golf course year-round. In order to keep warm season grass short all season, you must mow three to four times each week. As you can imagine, having someone mow your turf three to four times per week can get extremely expensive! As an option, there are chemicals known to slow the growth rate of warm season grass. Once again though, these chemicals are expensive and must be applied regularly every month.
Living in Greenville, it is necessary for warm season grass to be around 3 inches tall going into the fall season. This added height acts as a blanket in the winter, protecting the root system from disease and death. Therefore, it is smart to gradually raise your cutting height throughout the growing season.
Weeds:
We all hate weeds. They stick out like a sore thumb and can decimate a yard. There are many factors that contribute to rapid weed growth. A lawn can receive one of the most rigorous fertilizer programs and still get a few weeds.
Earlier, I mentioned something called the “life span” of pre-emergent. Life spans are classified as how long the chemical stays effective within the targeted soil profile. Pre-emergent is applied in a liquid or a solid form, more commonly in a solid form. The typical life span of a pre-emergent is 70-80 days. However, this will vary tremendously on how much rain the turf receives and how much the lawn is watered. Let me explain. When a chemical is applied, it creates a barrier on top of the soil line to prevent weed seeds from germinating and growing through it. The more water the turf receives, the further that barrier is washed down below the soil line. The water will eventually push the chemical barrier far enough below the soil line so that weeds are once again able to germinate and grow rapidly.
This season, Greenville received a tremendous amount of rain. When it rained, it poured. This accomplished two things. One, it washed some of the solid chemicals straight off your yard. Two, the chemicals that remained were pushed far down into the soil profile, making them ineffective. All Seasons Landscaping, as well as many other companies in the area, applied more applications of pre-emergent this year than in past years, just to try and keep up with the weather.
**To all our fescue turf customers: Something to keep in mind is that no pre-emergent can be present in the soil when it comes time to aerate and overseed a fescue lawn. Unfortunately, this leaves a window of opportunity for weeds to quickly germinate and spread. We understand that this can be aggravating to a customer. However, just remember that the weeds will be present for a very short time span before they are sprayed out and the new seed is sown. Soon there will be a new carpet of grass covering your lawn. Yes, there will be a small window of time when you will see weeds in your turf. It does require a little patience. Just remind yourself that it’s only temporary. Your turf will look beautiful again!
There are chemicals that can be sprayed on turf to kill weeds, but times of application are limited. Chemicals are temperature sensitive. If the temperature is too hot, the chemical will kill the surrounding turf. This is the last thing you want! Anything above 80 degrees is considered too hot for applying chemicals. Cold weather will also affect the chemicals. If the weather is extremely cold, the weed shuts down and does not absorb the chemicals through its cell walls.
On a more personal note:
We appreciate all of you for hanging in there with us during this past growing season. It has been one of the toughest growing seasons I personally remember in a quite some time. We had horrendous rains this spring and awfully hot days this summer.
Cooper and I are dedicated to making sure your turf looks as good as possible throughout the year. We know that many of you are currently dealing with weeds. This is because we are in between chemical applications and are frantically working around the clock to correct the curve ball Mother Nature threw at us. We are happy to offer advice where more attention is needed.
I can promise you that we will never make a recommendation for monetary purposes. We take pride in having each and every one of your properties looking great. Your property carries your name as the homeowner and our name as the landscaper. Our goal is to have the greatest looking yards in Greenville! And for the most part, we do exactly that. If we ever make a suggestion of something extra that is needed outside of your normal contract, and you are unable to follow through with it, we completely understand. We simply want to present you with every option you have at your disposal to achieve the best looking turf possible.
For the most part, everyone in Greenville will have a great looking yard for nine months out of the year. The other three months can be a struggle. Not only is it frustrating to you as a homeowner to see your turf looking inferior, but just as frustrating, if not more so, to the landscaper constantly fighting the challenges mother nature throws our way. I hope this article has been somewhat helpful is describing some of the challenges we as homeowners and landscapers face on a day-to-day basis. So next time you find your turf in those dreaded three months of struggle, just remember that its best nine months are just around the corner!
Currently, our crews are actively spraying for weeds at all of our properties and applying pre-emergent to all warm season turf. We will also be aerating and overseeding all cool season grasses in the next two weeks. We thank you so much for your understanding this season and look forward to seeing you and your property soon.
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