Started getting some supplies in for 2021 already. Picked up 300 lbs of ESN 44-0-0 polymer coated urea, 200 lbs of MOP 0-0-60, and 5 cases of Feature(no, they are not all for just my lawn) from my local Nutrien AG. The 44-0-0 is $0.25/lb and the 0-0-60 is $0.18/lb. The Feature is not too bad on price either .



The SGN of the fertilizers were initially a concern before I saw them knowing they are AG grade, but after getting them they look like something I will be able to work with.





I blended the 44-0-0 and 0-0-60 together in a 3:2 ratio since they are both the same SGN. It makes it easier for me to apply this way well. The end result is a 26.4-0-24 that is 100% controlled release and only cost $11.10/50 lbs.



I also found a great deal on some spray grade AMS 21-0-0 at $8.99/51 lb bag, so I took advantage and am stocked up for multiple seasons.

 

Pete where are you getting Feature by the case? I thought they stopped making it last year, no one could find it?

 

Pete where are you getting Feature by the case? I thought they stopped making it last year, no one could find it?

Message me with quantity and shipping details. Cases are available.

 

Pete where are you getting Feature by the case? I thought they stopped making it last year, no one could find it?

I get it from my local Nutrien AG. I don't think they ever stopped making it, just that the one online seller stopped selling. My local Nutrien AG is willing to get it for me, but to be honest most locations wouldn't go out of their way for most. He let's me pick from his bulk bins and is willing to locate the Feature, but I am not buying in small quantities either.

Pete where are you getting Feature by the case? I thought they stopped making it last year, no one could find it?

Message me with quantity and shipping details. Cases are available.

Your best bet is to go with @SumBeach35! :thumbsup: Unless you are willing to buy multiple cases at a time. He even has a website in his signature where you can purchase online.

 

Also during the off-season, I picked up a few other things to add to my inventory. 100 lbs of spray grade KNO3 13.7-0-46, 110 lbs of spray grade MKP 0-52-34, 5 gal of 0-0-26 phosphite, and 100 lbs of citric acid. Multiple years worth of inventory, and am looking forward to incorporating all into my spray program.





Spent some time organizing the fertilizers, putting them into bins and labeling to make quick access.



Also picked up more T-nex and really only need to stock up on some urea and will be set for the most part for a while. Based on soil results, there may be some elemental sulfur and gypsum, but will wait on those items until I get the soil report.

 

So what shape is the lawn currently in? What have I done to it so far? And what are my plans for 2021?

The past winter was rough on the grass here in NW Illinois as well as most parts in the upper midwest. November and December had no snow cover, but on 12/30/20 we received snow which melted down some, iced over and I didn't see the first parts of the lawn again until 3/3/21 (64 days later). That 64 days of continuous snow/ice cover produced some gray snow mold and was first observed with the following pics taken on 3/3.











I'm not really concerned about the gray snow mold and will be a distant memory in a few weeks, but with the combined foot traffic when there was no snow in November and December and the patches of snow mold, the lawn is left looking in rough shape to start 2021. It is probably the worst it is looking coming out of winter since I have been here. These pics were taken on 3/8 when just about all the snow has melted(69 days of continuous cover in the worst spots) and are worth documenting to show the shape it is in and how quick it will start looking acceptable in a few weeks.













This is the first year that I have actually put a restriction on the lawn and told the kids no sports on it until you see the mower on it for the first time.

Late last fall I trimmed all the trees, did the fall cleanup and edged all the beds to give myself a head start going into 2021. So far this year all I have done is apply gypsum by the street area to minimize salt damage and it was applied on 3/8.

What are my goals for 2021? Continue to maintain a top level surface for my kids as well as all the neighborhood kids to play on. To be honest, I'm not sure I would do what I do if they didn't enjoy playing on it so much. The lawn gets alot of use, as witnessed by all the color loss in the pics above.

This area again for reference was frequently used last fall for pickup football games. Based on the wear patterns, you can almost see where they lineup and run.



I do take a sports turf approach to maintaining my lawn, and will continue to do it as cost effectively and efficiently as possible.

The plan is to maintain it all year at a .75" HOC and will try to not bounce around HOCs as I have done in the past. A quote from @MNLawnGuy1980s lawn journal is something I strive to do as well, especially regarding the HOC.

I am shooting for more consistency this year, less roller coaster of decision making, and more stroll in the park consistency. The more consistency approach is driven by me constantly doing stupid stuff throughout the year, i.e. when my lawn is thriving at .3 or .4, I am going to do my best not to make the jump down to .25 to "see how it will do".

I'm excited to get the season started and look forward to another fun year out in the lawn!

 

Beautiful day today. Temps hit 60°F, sunshine and no wind. There was no way I wasn't going to do stuff in the yard. Picked up sticks, pine cones and other yard debris. Soil is drying up enough that I was actually able to pull soil samples.

Sample in the bucket and I will mix it up tomorrow and send it off to Waypoint on Monday.


My soil probe that I use for samples with a custom depth gauge I mount on the side to sample down to 4".


When I was done, I debated, but decided to throw the buckets on and do the spring clean up. Based on the cooler/wetter weather forecast for next week, it might be a bit before I will have the opportunity to get out again.



HOC was set @ .75" but kicked the FTC groomers down to .50" to help clean up the yard a bit. In total, there were about 24 full buckets collected. This will be one of the few times in the year that I will run with them on.

This is the first year that I have actually put a restriction on the lawn and told the kids no sports on it until you see the mower on it for the first time.

The neighborhood kids must have been watching me and waiting. Not more than 5 minutes after I was done, the kids were setting up cones to play football in their favorite spot. At one point I counted 12 kids in the yard, with only 1 being my own. Made me smile!





That spot that they play on constantly starts to make me think if it might need some additional maintenance throughout the year. It is only around 3500 sq ft, but is seeing a good amount of traffic. Whether additional coring, sanding, or both, might all be something I might consider depending how it looks going thru the year.

 

Yes!!! A new Pete journal thread to further raise the bar. It's amazing to see how nice your turf looks just after your clean up session. Can't wait to follow along and see what you have in store.

I couldn't relate more to the satisfaction I get from seeing the enjoyment of friends and family playing on all our hard work. Selfishly makes me feel it's all justified.

Couple questions:

What's the reasoning behind the larger rear roller? I'm assuming possibly the progression to shifting the 2500b further from a greens mower to the higher hoc fairway setup?

Could you enlighten noobs like myself on when or why one should use slow release products? Maybe even a slightly deeper dive into your overall fertility program strategy? I know much of this is driven from soil test results but would love to hear you elaborate on this topic as I'm continuing to learn.

-Jacob

 

Yes!!! A new Pete journal thread to further raise the bar. It's amazing to see how nice your turf looks just after your clean up session. Can't wait to follow along and see what you have in store.

I couldn't relate more to the satisfaction I get from seeing the enjoyment of friends and family playing on all our hard work. Selfishly makes me feel it's all justified.

Thanks for following along. It is satisfying watching others enjoy the lawn. The boys were out again on Sunday playing baseball in the backyard. I was hitting them grounders, and must have thrown 300 pitches for batting practice.

What's the reasoning behind the larger rear roller? I'm assuming possibly the progression to shifting the 2500b further from a greens mower to the higher hoc fairway setup?

Simply put, yes, it is probably the final step in getting the right setup for having the 2500B cut perfectly in my HOC range. The larger rollers get the brackets out of the canopy. With 2" rollers whether on the front or rear of the QA5 head, the brackets only sit about .5" from the ground. This causes an issue in the aftercut appearance at HOCs .75" and above. When you mow and overlap the previous pass, the bracket will drag in the previous pass and stand up the grass. It makes for a small strip about .75"-1" in width that looks as though it wasn't cut even though it was between each pass. Kind of hard to explain, but hope I did. With the 3" rear rollers, the brackets are above 1". Even with 2.5" front rollers, the front brackets are at .875". I would prefer 3" front rollers as well, but won't fit with the current FTC groomer setup.







Pics of the width of the brackets that would correlate with the width of the stripe of stood up grass that you would see at the taller HOCs.

Could you enlighten noobs like myself on when or why one should use slow release products? Maybe even a slightly deeper dive into your overall fertility program strategy? I know much of this is driven from soil test results but would love to hear you elaborate on this topic as I'm continuing to learn.

I spray almost 50% of my N with foliar urea or soil sprayed AMS. I enjoy doing this because I can really control and use small rates of cheap, fast release N and is easy to add to fungicides or a T-nex/iron spray. That being said, I can't get all my N this way unless I was spraying weekly.

Granular fertilizers have always been my base of N, and the Sprayed N has been the topping off, or getting the right amount of N I want for color/growth. Previously I have used quick release granulars but never liked having to apply small doses frequently with the spreader even though they are cheap. Finding 44-0-0 polymer coated urea at $0.25/lb ($12.50/50 lbs) has allowed me to change up the way my granulars go down this year.

Here are typical temperature release curves of the product I am using this year.



With those curves and knowing what my typical soil temps are in different months, I can begin to estimate how the N will release thru the year. I could go out with a whole 1 lb/M of N with this product on April 1st and estimate that only .2 lbs/M of N would release in April, possibly another .3 lbs/M of N in May, and the other .5lbs/M of N releasing in June.

You would need to be careful of using this product I July or August in my area, as around 60% of this product could release each month, but you could use it again in late August with a high rate of N and have it meter out thru the fall and give a steady feeding of N. That would mean I would only need to apply granular N 2 times/year compared to 6-8 times/year like I have done in previous seasons. I plan to try it out this year, see how I like it, and then decide if I will keep using it in following years.

Hope this helps. Any follow up questions, let me know. :thumbsup:

 

Good day to get out in the yard yesterday, 65°F and a .15" ET. Got to try out a new tool for me, a hex plugger. It quickly moved up my list as one of my favorite tools.





Took plugs from the back corner area of the yard where I store extra soil and yard debris. I will take plugs from this area throughout the year as I look to expand the non grassed area out a bit.



Most of the plugs went into this area. A spot that has been my Achilles heal. It is tough to grow grass in this spot as it is a bottle neck for traffic, has a tough slope, a drain for the pool concrete surface exits here, as well as alot of rainwater runoff runs across this spot. Reseeding efforts as well as smaller pro plugger attempts never took hold. I am hopeful and excited that this repair might be more successful.





Got the plugs fit in tightly together and fairly smooth with the help of an extra piece of wood. When done, I lightly topdressed with extra soil, brushed it into the seams, gave it a good soaking, and roped it off to try and limit traffic. After a few sandings when it starts growing, I am hopeful this spot will be a distant memory in a couple months.



After cleanup, I finished the day with a round of gypsum to the whole yard.

 

Everything is looking good. I've never seen a hex plugger, but now for some reason I cant stop thinking about Settlers of Catan.

 

Awesome plugger Pete! I find the pro plugger a little small at times and this would be a very nice tool to have. Cant wait to see more updates

 

That plugger looks slick. I may have to pick one up, but the budget is shot for this month sadly.

 

In case anyone wants one:. https://www.rrproducts.com/Hexagon-Turf-Repairer-product55230

 

but now for some reason I cant stop thinking about Settlers of Catan.

:lol:

@Deltahedge, @ABC123, @bernstem, @g-man, thanks for the replies!

I enjoyed using the hex plugger. The first couple plugs were hard to pull until I got the hang of it, probably due to my heavier loam soil. Once I got going and started pulling the plug next to the previous one it got easier. Made quick work of that spot and ended up pulling almost 100 sq ft in plugs. I like this one better then the pro plugger that I also have because the plugs it pulls are 12 times larger than the pro plugger. It is also nice to fit the plugs tightly together to get a quicker, cleaner repair and recovery.

I will update that spot later on to show how it establishes.

 

Very cool plugger and repair job. This would've been huge for a repair job from consumers last year.

Thanks again for the earlier response and taking the time to explain!

Makes perfect sense on the larger rear roller upgrade and also very interesting info on the 100% slow release science. This could buy some serious brownie points at home to reduce to the amount of applications throughout the season. Is this type of product only typical to turf suppliers? I'd love to source some here in Michigan.

 

Thanks again for the earlier response and taking the time to explain!

No problem! :thumbsup:

Is this type of product only typical to turf suppliers? I'd love to source some here in Michigan.

The product I have is actually an AG version of polymer coated urea and picked it up from my local Nutrien AG. There are other polymer coated urea products as well as blends that turf suppliers will carry. I picked up the AG version in bulk to save a bit on cost.

 

Love the hex-plugger, you made that look easy!

I wish the Nutrien-AG near me would deal with homeowners...I've tried a few times but they just refuse to hear me out. Any tips on buying there or do you live near one that is super chill?

 

Love the hex-plugger, you made that look easy!

I wish the Nutrien-AG near me would deal with homeowners...I've tried a few times but they just refuse to hear me out. Any tips on buying there or do you live near one that is super chill?

Thanks!

Unfortunately, I don't have any tips for buying from Nutrien AG. My location has been great to deal with!

 

Got my soil test results back today.



Probably the most noticeable difference over the years is the adjustment in Ca:Mg ratio. It was 1.37:1 in 2017 and is now up to 3.58:1 in 2021.

Snapped a quick pic to show how the bewitched is greening up compared to the neighborhood NoMix lawns.

 

That test looks fantastic, cant wait to see how it performs.

Ive noticed with my local Nutrien if I come knowing what I want its an easy in and out, hassle free.

Should post before and after pics of feature after it starts to get going. After that its just maintenance for the color and it seemed to be not very noticeable. Loved to spray the N every week and notice the consistent growth, seemed to love it.

 

@Pete1313 are you using gypsum to move the Ca:Mg ratio? If so, how much have you been putting down per 1000 per year?

 

@Pete1313 are you using gypsum to move the Ca:Mg ratio? If so, how much have you been putting down per 1000 per year?

Yes, and alot. Below is the breakdown of the Ca/Mg ratio tested each year and below that is the amount of gypsum applied that year. Note that the totals of gypsum applied each year were broken up into multiple applications. I also included the elemental sulfur applied in the years. The amount of sulfate released as the elemental sulfur gets converted to sulfate will help leach out some magnesium.

2016 - Ca/Mg = 1.39
No gypsum

2017 - Ca/Mg = 1.37
57 lbs/M of gypsum

2018 - Ca/Mg = 2.15:1
39 lbs/M of gypsum

2019 - Ca/Mg = 2.33:1
64 lbs/M of gypsum
2.5 lbs/M of elemental sulfur

2020 - Ca/Mg = 2.61:1
93.75 lbs/M of gypsum
3.25 lbs/M of elemental sulfur

2021 - Ca/Mg = 3.58:1
Have applied 22.5 lbs/M of gypsum so far

Here are my soil tests thru the years put in order for reference. Hope some of this info helps! :thumbsup:

2016 soil test from Logan Labs. List on the right is the conversions to PPM to make comparing to Waypoint's soil test easier.


2017 soil test. Conversions again on right.


2018 soil test.


2019 soil test.


2020 soil test.


2021 soil test.

 

Thanks Pete! That info helps a ton. I got my soil test back recently and decided I was going to try to increase my ratio as well to help with my sticky soil. My ratio is around 4.3 so a bit higher than what you're dealing with, but I still think there's a benefit to increasing that a little further.

I'm surprised by the amount that you've applied per year. I just went and grabbed 2 40lb bags earlier tonight thinking that'd be more than enough, but now you've got me rethinking that. The two bags gets me about 16lbs/M for this yr.

Out of curiosity what is your goal for Ca:Mg ratio that you're trying to get to?

 

Out of curiosity what is your goal for Ca:Mg ratio that you're trying to get to?

I'm not set on a fixed number of exactly where I want to get to, but I will try and push it again this year similar to what I applied in 2020. This might be my last year of really trying to move the numbers with gypsum and then see where I am at in 2022 and go from there. I know I don't want the Ca saturation to go above 80% and am getting up there at 75% on the 2021 test. 2022 might be gypsum free and just use elemental sulfur and see how both Ca and Mg numbers respond to that. In the last year the numbers appear to be really moving and I don't want to overdue it.

There is some literature that I have read that suggest a 3:1 Ca:Mg ratio would be appropriate in a sandy, low CEC soil (CEC of 4), and a 7:1 Ca:Mg ratio would be more appropriate in a heavy clay, high CEC soil (CEC of 40). Where do I fit? Somewhere in between.



In my opinion, and may not be the most popular here, is that MLSN and SLAN might be more appropriate for sandy, low CEC soils. In a heavier, higher CEC soil BCSR I feel is beneficial. Especially when it comes to soil structure and Ca:Mg.