[b0nk3rs]

Hey everyone! Since running up my water bill and spending far too many hours in my lawn this past fall, my extended family all believe I am the next Lawn Whisperer all because my grass was green. Big shoutout to @vnephologist for sending me his Melnor WiFi Aquatimer FREE of charge. Without this, my already troubled 2017 Fall repair/overseed would have been a disaster. Anyways, I am now the proud caretaker of 4-6 lawns for the 2018 season (2 are now skeptical and are awaiting my plan/costs). I have been mowing these lawns for many years, so I have some knowledge of the history behind them.

As this all started to materialize I realized how scary it is applying chemicals to someone else's lawn. So now i'm here to check any previous knowledge at the door and start fresh with some guidance from all of you wonderful people.

Background Info

• Location: Central, IL (Zone 5b)
• Grass type: KBG/PRG/Fescue
• Lawn sizes range from 2000 to 5100 sqft and total about 16k sqft
• Maintenance in the past has been minimal, mostly weed n feed in the spring and occasional weed killer spraying throughout the year
• Have not and will not be irrigated
• No major issues in recent years

Default Plan

This is mostly a template to start with and expand upon for each individual lawn.

April

• Soil test
• Pre-emergent - Prodiamine (0.75 lb/A or 0.28 oz/M)

May

• Fertilizer - Milorganite (1.0 lb N/k)
• Spot spray weeds

June

• TBD

July

• Fertilizer - Milorganite (0.75 lb N/k)
• Spot spray weeds

August

• Optional overseeding
• Pre-emergent (If not seeding) - Prodiamine (0.75 lb/A or 0.28 oz/M)

September

• Fertilizer - Milorganite (1.0 lb N/k)
• Core Aeration (Destroying my Pre-M barrier???)

October

• Fertilizer - Milorganite (1.0 lb N/k)

Plan Questions

• Soil test - I need 6, best bang for my buck while still being fairly simple? Leaning towards PSU but did not see where I could buy the kits
• How do I know if a starter fert is needed in April?
• Should I be applying anything to prevent pests/diseases?
• Am I getting too late for Prodiamine? Air temps are spiking starting tomorrow and the GDD is also skyrocketing. Images below.
• How does fall Pre-M and core aeration work?

I will be adding pictures and tracking my progress, especially for my own lawn. Thanks for reading!

More to come........
b0nk3rs

 

[b0nk3rs]

Went to pick up my Prodiamine I had "ordered" from a local FS Farmtown only to find out the lady I originally spoke to incorrectly told me I could buy single bottles. I won't be paying $650 for the case.

What's the latest I can effectively apply Prodiamine given the above forecast and knowing that soil temp hit 50 degrees yesterday and will surely be higher today?

 

[g-man]

Buy it from Amazon. Apply it as soon as you can, it will still help.

In regards to your plan. There is a lot of Milo in it. That means more work for you (buying, loading/unloading, spreading it, etc). I would try to come up with a simpler plan (Tier 1 approach). I would focus on August/Sept on nitrogen and dont do the November one. Also, 1.5lb of N/M is too much.

 

[b0nk3rs]

Buy it from Amazon. Apply it as soon as you can, it will still help.

In regards to your plan. There is a lot of Milo in it. That means more work for you (buying, loading/unloading, spreading it, etc). I would try to come up with a simpler plan (Tier 1 approach). I would focus on August/Sept on nitrogen and dont do the November one. Also, 1.5lb of N/M is too much.

I don't mind the additional work involved with Milo, plus my garage is going to smell amazing.

As for the November 1.5lb of N....I was using THIS as a reference along with the Fall Nitrogen Blitz plan. I didn't intend to have Urea back to back in Oct and Nov but i'm also not sure what I was actually shooting for there. So are you recommending I skip the "winterizer" app at the end of mowing season (which happened to be the end of Nov for me last year) ?

 

[g-man]

Yes, Purdue recommends that amount but the lawns in Indy are still growing. It is not really a winterizer.

My suggestion on skipping the winterizer is just the work to apply it to 6 houses and water it. You will have to check each lawn to see if each one stopped growing. The benefit of that last application is low, so it is something you could save yourself some work.

 

[b0nk3rs]

Yes, Purdue recommends that amount but the lawns in Indy are still growing. It is not really a winterizer.

My suggestion on skipping the winterizer is just the work to apply it to 6 houses and water it. You will have to check each lawn to see if each one stopped growing. The benefit of that last application is low, so it is something you could save yourself some work.

Those are some really good points, thanks!