[ionicatoms]

Cut the front/side yards at 3.75"
Sprayed 35oz of liquid iron supplement over 2200 sq.ft of the side yard using a hose-end sprayer. The test patch did nothing before (details above) so trying again. Unfortunately it's going to rain again in a few hours so I'm not super optimistic.

 

[blkcsrj7]

We've had a lot of rain and cooler temperatures with several overcast days. Most of the yard is looking ok, but found gray leaf spotting in some downhill areas.

That grayleaf spot is a pain in St. Augustine grass.

 

[ionicatoms]

Checked on iron application. No visible result (three days later). I didn't water it in, and it didn't rain. I did cut the grass on the same day as the application. Plus it's been pretty warm, so maybe the grass was stressed and not growing as much.

I saw a Youtube video which said that using a hose-end sprayer would tend to wash the iron into the roots (he said it can help with stress management), but that it wouldn't do as much for the color as an undiluted foliar application.

While I was walking around, I noticed additional areas with gray leaf spot. This reinforced the lesson that I need to be more proactive with systemic fungicide leading up to the rainy season, especially with lush growth. That's what I get for trying to save money.

 

[ionicatoms]

This evening I cut the front and side yards at 3.75"



Gray leaf spot is showing up pretty much everywhere. I ordered 20lbs of DiseaseEx.

 

[ionicatoms]

Upon closer inspection, one of the areas I assumed was GLS turned out to be sod webworm or similar. It's a patch right where my neighbor's lawn meets mine. I kind of figured this was coming because I've been seeing moths and I was super lazy and didn't put out GrubEx like I had planned.

 

[ionicatoms]

Here's a picture of the sod webworm damage.



I also found two of these mounds in my yard. Anybody recognize it?

 

[ionicatoms]

Pest Control company applied Talstar yesterday at lunchtime to treat the sod webworm. The Talstar P label says to wait 24hr before watering or mowing, so I was disappointed when my neighbor started mowing and I couldn't get out there at the same time.

This morning I applied 4oz LawnStar Liquid Iron in 1 gallon of water over 1k sq.ft. The grass was still wet from the morning dew. I applied to half the side yard, so will be able to see if there is a visual difference.

 

[ionicatoms]

Iron test was a failure. No color response at all. Left side was treated with LawnStar. Right side was not treated. Top photo is Before and bottom photo is after. Still don't know what I'm doing wrong.

 

[ionicatoms]

Last night I found more sod webworms despite getting Talstar sprayed 6 days prior. I decided to throw down BioAdvanced 24hr grub killer plus and check again tomorrow night. If I'm still seeing significant webworm activity, I'll call the pest control company back on Monday.

 

[ionicatoms]

Ok, so before I try a higher dose of liquid iron again, I decided to throw down some Ironite in a strip going right down the middle of the side lawn.



The instructions say to mow and then wait a day or two before applying. since I just cut the side yard today I also threw down half the bag in the front yard which was cut yesterday. If I get a response in either location I'll take a photo and post it.



Also bought a new-to-me product (Ortho Nutsedge Killer for Lawns) to try on some nutsedge and dollarweed I've been fighting. Says it takes 4 weeks, so will be awhile before I can give it a review.



Note to self: @ABC123 suggested pH down may help with iron response. Not sure if it matters for a foliar application, but seems reasonable for a soil treatment.

 

[ionicatoms]

Sod Webworm Update

7/16


7/23 (6 days post Talstar Treatment)


7/25 (8 days post Talstar, 24hr after treating with BioAdvanced 24hr Grub Killer)


Different angle


Side by side (7/16 vs 7/25)


Just went out in the yard, found fewer worms than before. Don't know if it's because they are dying or maybe because the grass was finally dry for a change.

 

[ionicatoms]

Sod webworm follow-up:

As of July 26, I am unable to find anymore webworms. The population decreased rapidly after application of BioAdvanced 24 Grub Killer, but without a good control plot it's not possible for me to rule out the possibility that the application of Talstar a week earlier played a role in the final results. At this point I would be inclined to treat with 24hr product sooner rather than waiting a week between the separate applications.

 

[ionicatoms]

This is a follow-up on my sod webworm problem. It's been two weeks since I first had TalStar sprayed. It's been one week since I put out granular 24hr grub killer.

The population of 5th and 6th instar webworms has dramatically decreased. However, I'm still seeing evidence of early instar damage. In the following photo you can observe a couple of white spots or white areas where the leaf surface is being gnawed at. Also seen in the photo is the brownish webworm moth and white egg.



So far the best resource I found is from the University of Georgia at the following link:
Sod Webworms: Biology and Management in Turfgrass

 

[ionicatoms]

Pest control came back for a re-spray today. Tech said I'm getting .25oz of TalStar per gallon and 4 gallons of solution per 1k sq.ft. By my reckoning, this means I'm getting the maximum dose of 1oz be 1k sq.ft. Part of me is wondering if this was too much product for a respray because it's only been two weeks since the last application (which I wasn't home for and didn't get to see being applied).

However, I also see on the TalStar P label that you need higher doses of product if grass is mowed above 1". Mine is maintained at 3.75". After chatting with @Burnie in the Grub thread, I did conclude that the first treatment wasn't sufficiently effective. So, on the whole, I'm thinking the second app can be considered appropriate even if it is at the max rate.

Label for reference:

​

 

[ionicatoms]

Sod Webworm Update

7/16 (First recognition of problem)


7/23 (6 days post Talstar Treatment)


7/25 (8 days post Talstar, 24hr after treating with BioAdvanced 24hr Grub Killer)


8/04 (18 days post first Talstar Treatment)


Recovery looks to be very slow. I regret not using the 24hr killer right away. Waiting a week was a mistake, I think.

 

[ionicatoms]

Applied Acelepryn today. Unfortunately, my instructions were not understood or ignored and they also gave me another dose of Baseline (bifenthrin) which wasn't necessary. That is frustrating and I think it goes to show that I'm better off doing experiments on my own rather than relying on a pest control company. It's probably super strange for a customer to ask you NOT to spray the normal batch.

The tech noted the presence of dollar weed, chamberbitter, and crabgrass in the lawn.

 

[balistek]

im right there with you on damage. Thanks for the link to the Georgia extension. I will give that a read.

 

[ionicatoms]

Picked up an Echo RB-60 spreader today. Hoping its better than the Scotts DLX Edge Guard.

 

[ionicatoms]

I put out Scotts DiseaseEx on the side yard and a decent portion of the front yard because I still have a bit of gray leaf spot (GLS). The RB-60 spreader worked great. I would warn shorter people to check the height of the rear legs because I noticed they were dragging through the top of my grass (cut yesterday at 3.75"); don't know if it would give anybody problems. I'm 6'3" for comparison.



I'll be selling my DLX.

 

[ionicatoms]

Despite checking the weather/radar shortly before spraying Image for Weeds Southern Lawn Weed Killer (2,4-d, dicamba, sulfentrazone) and RoundUp Plus (contains diquat dibromide) in separate areas, it started raining ~30 minutes after I finished. What a disappointment. Caught me mid-mow.

The Ortho Nutsedge killer I sprayed 2 weeks ago got mixed results. For one thing, it's supposed to take 4 weeks so I'm really not being fair. But, it's labeled for smaller, younger plants and I sprayed some pretty mature plants. So I'm not disappointed in the product itself. The pre-mix was really convenient to use, if not exactly economical. Sometimes you just want something quick and easy. After visiting the hardware store, I decided to buy some smaller spray tanks. Picked up two 48oz sprayers to try out. They worked okay, but when the fluid gets low, you have to hold them level which is a bit of a nuisance.

The amount of chamberbitter growing on my property caught me off-guard. I've got a lot to cope with. I didn't use a late-summer pre-emergent. Guess I'll have to figure that out for next year.