Please Turn Down the Water

We are settling in to our cool, damp days of winter here in the Central Valley. This means that plants will not require much if any supplemental watering from our irrigation system. Our demand for water is in the 5-10% range of what is needed to hydrate our lawns and other plantings in the peak summer months. With a normal rain shower here and there the sprinklers could even be turned off until February or March. The exceptions may be the newly planted annuals, and even they won’t need much water in winter months.

Water is precious and we certainly don’t need to waste it. Too much water can increase disease incidence on the lawn and accelerate root rots in trees and shrubs. Saturated lawns also get rutted up with heavy mowers crossing it. Weeds, of course, will love the abundance of water. A bermudagrass lawn will certainly do fine with no irrigation until you water in your preemergent crabgrass control products in February.

Here is the bottom line. Only water as needed. If you are willing to turn off your water, do so and then watch for dry spots following long periods of no rain and above normal temperatures.  If you don’t do that, then please reduce your water to one day a week and cut that to 50% or less than normal.

Let’s pray for a wet winter and tons of snow in the mountains. 

For more information about watering or lawns, contact Weed Man at 266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

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To Seed, or Not to Overseed, That is the Question

It’s hard to believe, but cold weather and dormant bermuda lawns are right around the corner. The lawn will lose its color and turn a light tan color as the frost kicks in. Is that good or bad?

The real question is whether or not to overseed the lawn to mask this brown look. Obviously if you hate the look of a dormant lawn you would lean towards overseeding to have a green lawn year-round, but here are a few reasons not to overseed. It’s nice to have a few months off from mowing. Secondly, bermuda will not have to compete next spring and early summer with an aggressive ryegrass lawn for space. Bermuda will green up faster and fill in quicker without ryegrass. The use of pre-emergents will help reduce invasion of winter annual weeds to help keep a uniformly clean, brown lawn and need to go down September-October.

Overseeding your lawn in early October can give you a beautiful, green lawn this winter. It is especially a smart option when facing a mixed stand lawn or patch stand of grasses. This will help hide and even the uniformity of the lawn. As the trees grow larger and produce more shade, the bermuda lawns start thinning out and the ryegrass can provide some much needed cover in those areas. On the negative side, overseeding results in mowing the lawn for 3-4 months a year that could have been avoided had you not seeded. Once you start the overseeding process it is difficult to stop in future years as portions of the ryegrass will remain from the previous season through seed or just persistence. The non-overseeded year will often be a mostly brown lawn with numerous clumps of rye. Also, as stated above, the bermuda stand itself may be thinned somewhat due to the persistent and aggressive nature of ryegrass.

If the scales tip in favor of overseeding your lawn, you must then choose the right seed. Without going into all the various improved varieties and their features I will sum it all up by saying DO NOT OVERSEED WITH ANNUAL RYEGRASS. It is a low quality grass used in erosion control and pastures. It grows quickly, its coarse textured, yellow-green in color, and prone to winter diseases. Perennial ryegrass vastly excels annual rye in all categories. Be sure to buy a clean, high quality seed without weedy grass contaminants. Please check the seed bag tags. 

As for me, I overseed my common bermuda front lawn for the neighbors, but I also love that clean, dormant hybrid bermuda in the back that gives me a break for 4 months.

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30 Days to a Better Lawn in 2014

Step outside and take a good look at your lawn. Do you see bare spots or patches of undesirable looking grasses and weeds? Maybe your kids’ activities, your dog’s constant pacing in the same path day after day, or your parking the car on the front lawn has caused the lawn to thin out due to wear and compaction. It’s true that the 19 straight days of temperatures exceeding 100 degrees certainly did not help our cool-season lawns either. The lawns are beat and just looking for some tender care.

Cooler temperatures are just around the corner. What is left of the lawn will perk up and appreciate the cool nights and shorter, milder days. Crabgrass will stop germinating by mid to late September. Thirty days from now life will be great!

What needs to be done in the next 30 days to have a better lawn for next year? Get ready because this is where you come into the mix. Check for unwanted grasses. Patches of Bermuda or dallisgrass are hard to kill and should be sprayed 2-3 times in the starting early September. Dense sections of crabgrass or bentgrass are fairly easy to kill and could wait until the middle of September to spray. If you think the lawn looks bad now just wait to see what it looks like in a few weeks!

Here’s the good news. Oct 1-10 is a great time to reseed all those problem areas. I would strongly recommend scalping down the areas to be reseeded prior to seeding followed by a fall lawn aeration to loosen the soil and encourage better root development. Areas could then be raked or dethatched mechanically to make a proper seed bed. Select a quality grass to match your existing lawn and follow suggested seeding directions. Generally tall fescue and ryegrass go down around 7-10 lbs/1000 sq ft. Next apply a ¼ inch of clean humus or compost to cover the seed to keep in the warmth and moisture to insure good germination. Apply a starter fertilizer like 10-20-10 at 10 lbs/1000. Water 2-3 times a day lightly to keep the mulch and seed moist for the first 7-14 days.

Here is what you don’t want to do. 1). Nothing. Your lawn will be no better next year and likely worse. 2). Sprinkle some seed over the bare spots and hope for the best. This is not much better than option 1. 3). Buy the cheapest seed you can find like annual ryegrass. This will result in the ugliest lawn on your block. Annual rye never really greens up, it grows very fast and often clumpy, and it does not match any grasses in your lawn. and it often gets riddled with disease in the winter months.

The window of opportunity is here. Now get outside and take the actions needed for a better lawn in 2014!

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Three Steps to a Better Fescue Lawn

You have had a chance to watch your lawn evolve over the years to where it is today. It may have bare spots or unwanted grassy or broadleaf weeds that detract from its appearance. Unless you take some action I can pretty well guarantee that the lawn will not evolve back to the lush green uniform lawn that you once had at the start (assuming it was nice at one time).

First you want to identify the short comings and the causal agents. Bare spots could be the result of pets, poor sprinkler coverage, fertilizer burn, excessive shade, annual weed pressure, poor soils, etc.  As the landscape matures and trees cast a more shade the lawn may thin or nearly disappear. Weeds are easier to control when you have properly identified them and know their life cycle. Crabgrass and bermuda grass are not the same by any stretch.

Secondly, you will want to correct the things that you are able to.  I would definitely address the sprinklers as they are a key element in having a thick, healthy lawn. Sprinklers should be checked regularly throughout the season and adjusted as needed for time and coverage. Poor soils could be amended or replaced. Tough perennial weeds like dallisgrass and bermuda should be sprayed out a few times in August and September to help eliminate them. There are no guarantees on totally killing bermuda, but one can definitely hurt it badly.

The third step is to get the lawn thickened up with the desirable grasses, but only after one has worked on the sprinklers and perennial weeds. Preparation of the site is very important. Aeration and dethatching assure that the seed will make good soil contact and increase your chances of good germination. The area should be smooth and open up enough to allow the seed to drop down to the soil below. In thin spots or areas where one is essentially reestablishing a lawn, the use of a ¼ inch of humus to cover the seed will help hold onto moisture and heat to establish the new seedlings. Finally, the addition of a starter fertilizer high in phosphorus (the middle number on the bag) will assist the seedlings to grow faster and with a healthier root system going into the winter months.

That’s basically it. It is not rocket science, but it is important not to cut corners. If you would like a free evaluation of your lawn and some free advice you can call Weed Man at 559-266-1624 or check out our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

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Effective Crabgrass Tools Absent From Store Shelves...A Follow Up

You may be looking for an effective way to get rid of crabgrass from your lawn.  Many products prior to 2012 contain MSMA in products like Weed Hoe, or Trimec Plus.  Well you won’t find it on the nursery or garden center shelves now and probably never again.  As a professional lawn care operator, we have until the end of 2013 to use MSMA and then we must find some alternatives.  There are several products now on the market for homeowners for post-control of crabgrass and they all contain quinclorac.  I have not had good success at all in the Central Valley of California getting any significant control using this or Drive as the trade name.  Maybe you will be lucky and make it work, but my guess is that it won’t and you will be out the time and expense you have invested. 

What are your alternatives?  1. Cutting it out. 2. Ignoring it and letting the frost take it out in November. 3. Hiring a lawn care company that still has some on hand to selectively remove the crabgrass out.

What is the future?  There are some products in development and a few that could be useful in certain cases.  There is a product called Tenacity that has some decent post emergent control on crabgrass, but it will only be recommended for cool season turf as Bermuda will turn temporarily white following application. 

My hope is that EPA will be open-minded and see that our industry has no great alternative to MSMA for crabgrass and even more so for dallisgrass control and that MSMA registration for use on turf grass would be reinstated.  I have heard it suggested that the data supporting a ban on MSMA was flawed, but I can’t say for certain. 

For a free consultation on your lawn call Weed Man at 266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.  We would be happy to come out and show you the proper way to cut out crabgrass and not damage your lawn if you want to care for your lawn on your own!

What’s In YOUR Lawn?

My guess is that if you skipped putting down a pre emergent or put it down incorrectly then you may be seeing a new crop of crabgrass emerging from your lawn by now.  Crabgrass is an annual grassy weed that can germinate from early February through September.  It is aggressive enough to overtake any lawn type including bermudagrass.  Crabgrass has broad, translucent spring green colored leaves. 

Now that it is in your lawn you are left with only a handful of choices.  One is to ignore it and just appreciate the fact that it is green.  A second choice is to cut it out using a sharp knife and cutting off the roots at the soil line.  The growing points are all above ground and will not grow back.  This will avoid leaving craters throughout the lawn from pulling it out.  I like using the cheap steak knives you can find at the Dollar Stores.  This option is preferable when dealing with 100 or less plants unless you have more time and patience than I do.  The third choice involves a trip to the nursery or local garden center and finding a sprayable herbicide for killing the existing crabgrass.  This is not a viable option at all as the over the counter products are not effective in our area.  Please don’t waste your time and money.  The fourth and final choice is to hire a licensed professional that still has access to products containing MSMA.  This product will selectively remove crabgrass out of a lawn with 3-4 applications about a week apart.  Some yellowing can occur and other new seedlings can continue to sprout as we move through the summer months.  As a lawn geek, I see only options 2 and 4 making any sense.  If I could cut it out then I would elect that option.  If the task was too monumental for my available time or abilities then I would call someone like Weed Man that can guarantee the results.

Bottom line with crabgrass is prevention.  A pre emergent herbicide applied in the spring can prevent the summer problem of crabgrass along with proper cultural mowing and watering practices.  

If you would like a free opinion on what is the best option for your lawn and its weeds, insects, or diseases give us a call at 266-1624 or look at our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

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Is There a Fungus Among Us?

Brown Patch

Summer has arrived with its excessive heat, limitless sunny days, and absence of rain.  The struggle for the homeowner is deciding what is responsible for the brown sections of the lawn.  Is it the sprinklers that aren't covering well?  Is it the lawn guy’s fault because he just fertilized, broke a sprinkler, or repeatedly cuts the lawn too short?  Did someone in my family toss or leave something on the lawn causing it to turn brown?  Is the neighbor’s dog or cat squatting on the lawn?  Are there lawn bugs?  Is it bad soil?  Aliens landing?  Perhaps even a fungus?

An experienced and knowledgeable professional should be able to identify and eliminate most of the above causal agents by taking soil samples, looking at patterns, asking questions, and getting on their hands and knees to look at the soil, thatch, and leaves.  I maintain that lawn diseases are too often made the scapegoat when really something else is causing the problem.  I can’t tell you how many times we have been told that ”My gardener says that I have a fungus” when they just have dry spots in the lawn.

Make no mistake.  We do experience a good deal of disease activity on tall fescue, bluegrass, and ryegrass lawns in the summer months.  Many of these are soil borne or at least lay dormant in the soils or thatch until the proper conditions arrive.  Symptoms are usually spots or circular rings in the lawn unlike many sprinkler or insect patterns.

Brown Patch is probably the most common lawn disease in our market.  It likes hot sunny areas, ample irrigation, poor air circulation, warm nights, and late evening watering.  You can’t control the weather, but you can manage the amount, frequency, and timing of your irrigation.  Deep, less frequent watering that is done between 3-6 am is best.  The sun can then dry out the lawn and leaf blades by mid morning reducing the period of leaf wetness.  

Southern Blight is another fungus that infects the same cool season grasses during the summer.  It has sclerotia, seed like structures, that hibernate in the soils and thatch until the conditions are favorable for “germinating”.  Typically yellow to brown rings of 1-12 feet in diameter will form. We do not feel the watering schedule has a significant impact on its spread or damage.  A preventive fungicide is the key for this one.

Pythium is a water mold and it loves wet and saturated conditions for its spread and infection of the cool season grasses.  It will appear as spots of greasy matted leaves in lawns generally over watered.  This is the least common of the three and can mostly be managed with proper watering practices and use of a fungicide as needed.

We have found that prevention with fungicides is a terrific option. Some offer up to 30 days of protection in our area.  

For more information on lawns please check out our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com or call us at 266-1624.

Mowing 101

There are few things nicer than the smell and sight of a fresh cut, lush, beautiful lawn.  Although mowing is not complicated, there are some best mowing practices.  Proper mowing habits can extend the life and vigor of your lawn for years to come whereas poor mowing habits can take a good lawn and make it a poor lawn faster than you might think.

Mow regularly so that you are removing 1/3 or less of the leaf length in a single mowing.  Weekly mowing is advised and during a spring flush of growth a second could be needed.  If the grass has gotten ahead of you and it is twice or more the normal height it would be best to raise the mowing height and come back a day or two later and lower gradually until you reach the preferred height. Do not allow excess clippings to remain on the lawn. Mowing too much off at once will shock the grass and result in scalping.  Two weeks between mowing is too long for a healthy growing turf.

Mow at the proper height for the grass type.  I would recommend 3 inches for tall fescue, 1-2 inches for common bermuda, and 0.5 to 1.5 inches for hybrid bermuda lawns.  Taller cuts result in deeper roots, cooler soils, less stress, and fewer weeds in most cases.

Replace or sharpen dull mower blades regularly to maintain a clean cut. Dull mower blades result in a raggedy cut.  Aesthetically, the lawn will have a dull look and potentially more susceptible to disease.  
Edging should be vertical not beveled off.  A vertical cut along walks and driveways keeps the mowing height in the ideal range leaving a healthier stand, cooler soil, longer root system and a more competitive situation against invading weeds.  If you like the idea of your lawn slowing shrinking away and weeds coming in then scalping down the edges with a string trimmer may be just what you are looking for.

Mow patterns should be varied regularly.  This will help reduce the rutting and spread out the compaction of repeatedly rolling over the same lines time after time.  It also helps reduce the grain of the lawn as it gets mowed from various directions.

Recycle the clippings by using mulching mowers especially during non-flush periods of growth.  The clippings will add much needed organic matter and nutrients to enrich the soil and feed the beneficial microorganisms in the soil.
Mow at a slow enough speed as to allow a good clean cut.  Mow at full throttle.  Going too fast will result in an incomplete cut and possibly excessive piles of clippings.

Other things include removing obstacles and debris before mowing, ensuring that the wheels are evenly inflated or the wheel height settings are all the same, mowing dry grass is preferred over wet, and always being careful of toes when backing up the mower.

For more information on lawns and lawn problems check out our website at Fresn.WeedManUSA.com or call Weed Man at 266-1624.

It’s a Weed, It’s a Grass, No It’s a Sedge!

I know you have seen them. They hibernate in the winter, but by late April they have started to pop up in your lawn. You mow the lawn and for the most part they have disappeared, but by the next afternoon there they are again sticking up above your lawn. Many call these grass-like weeds nutgrass, but actually they are in the sedge family.

The sedge family will have thicker leaves that come in sets of three with triangular stems which is unlike the grass family that has flat or oval stems. In the Central Valley we are blessed with two main types; yellow and purple nutsedge. The color referenced in the name refers to the color of the flower head with yellow ranging from yellow to light brown and purple having a reddish tinge to it. Hopefully you are mowing weekly or as needed and never see the formation of a seed head.

Yellow Nutsedge

Really, I look at the leaves and the underground nutlets to help me determine which one I am dealing with along with my nose and taste buds. Yellow nutsedge has a more slender and lighter green leaf than purple. It tends to grow taller as well. Underground tubers or nutlets form on the terminal end of the rootlets and are round. They are tasty and edible, too and much better if the dirt is washed off first. Purple nutsedge on the other hand has a denser, shinier, thicker, and more blunt leaf. Its underground tubers are scaly and can form in chains like Christmas lights. The soil around them has a distinct smell and the nutlets are bitter tasting. The nutlets can get much larger than the yellow nutsedge at maturity. 

Purple Nutsedge

The key to control is by managing the development of further nutlets. A healthy nutsedge plant will be collecting the sunshine and nutrients to expand both above ground parts and storage of carbohydrates in the formation of tubers. The goal therefore is to disrupt the happy leaf factory. Years ago, Kern County Farm advisor Harold Kempen showed that regular hand pulling of the plants could reduce populations by 60% in the first year and close to 80% or so by year two. Obviously pulling helps, but that is not very practical. There are several selective herbicides that will “hide” the above ground parts for 4-6 weeks thus slowing down the tuber formation and further expansion. I have not seen any silver bullets that fully eliminate nutsedge populations in 1 or 2 sprays, unfortunately. Persistence is the key to reduction and eventual elimination.

Finally, I would advise not over watering the lawn or flowerbeds as this favors expansion as well. Once established, they will do just fine under normal watering practices. If you would like to know more about nutsedge and proper control measures call Weed Man at 266-1624 or visit us at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

Don't Let Moss Grow Under Your Feet

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You have probably seen moss growing on trees and rocks in the forest and perhaps you are growing some right now in your home lawns. In lawns, it’s that soft, dense, cushiony green mat competing for space with your lawn. Moss is a rather primitive plant that forms a dense mat on the soil surface. It absorbs nutrients and water primarily through its leaves and needs some sunlight to photosynthesize and make food. Their rhizoids are not true roots and serve primarily to anchor the plant to the soils; not absorbing water and nutrients. Mosses spread primarily by movement of spores via wind or water. That’s enough of the biology lesson.

Why is it growing so happily in certain lawns? It is an indicator of potentially poor growing conditions like poor drainage, over-watering, shade, compacted soil, poor fertility, and low pH soils in many cases. The long-term solution to keeping moss out is to change the factors that favor the moss infestation and create more favorable conditions to grow grasses.

I would suggest starting the process by treating the moss and raking out the dead plant material. There are several good moss-control products that usually include some form of ferrous sulfate and come in sprays or granules. This is usually done in 70 degree weather and causes the moss to turn black. (Keep off the walks because it can turn them orange.) It should then be raked out. After this, I would aerate heavily and reseed the area with a shade loving grass and keep the mowing height above 3 inches if possible to favor the grass over the moss. If the area is heavily shaded, the surrounding trees could be thinned out to allow more sunlight. Don’t over water lawns, and address poor drainage issues as needed. A soil test will tell you if you need to correct the soil pH.  Soil pH levels below a pH of 6.0 should receive a lime treatment. Regular feeding of the lawn should also favor a healthier and more competitive lawn as well.

Moss is growing there for a reason. Without some positive changes in cultural practices it is not likely to go away completely any time soon. These steps may need to be repeated for a few seasons to make significant changes in the lawn density. You should aerate and feed the lawn regularly, mow high, let proper light in, and treat, rake, and seed as needed in spring or fall. 

If you have questions about moss, moss treatment, aeration, proper fertilization, irrigation, or any other lawn problems call us at Weed Man 

(559) 266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

I’m Looking Over a Three-Leaf Clover

White Clover

Perhaps you have noticed that many school yards around town have an abundance of weeds with white pom-poms throughout the lawns.  What you are likely seeing are patches of white clover that really thrive this time of year.  No, it has nothing to do with the students or faculty or the presence of Leprechauns.  Clovers are legumes and part of the pea family.  As a legume, their roots have symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria which basically allow them to take nitrogen from the air and make it available for uptake by their roots.  Clovers can take advantage in soils that receive little fertilization by making their own and out competing the lawn and other weeds.  They can be good for soil building.  On the negative side, the flowers attract bees which can result in bee stings.  Some clovers like California Burclover produce spiny burs that can be painful on bare feet and become attached to pet’s fur.

There are numerous types of clovers in our area.  Clovers can be annuals, biennials, or perennials.   California Burclover (Medicago  polymorpha)and Black Medic (Medicago  lupulina) are very common annual clovers that invade lawns.  Both of these grow in a low prostrate manner from a single taproot and produce bright yellow flowers.  The leaflets form in threes and are oval shaped.  In flower beds you may see upright-growing sweet clovers like yellow sweetclover (Melilotus officinalis) which may grow 2 or more feet tall.  And finally you will see white (Trifolium repens) and strawberry clovers (Trifolium fragiferum) which are perennials in lawns, school yards, and parks throughout the state.  Their creeping stems can root at the nodes into the soil below. Their common names come from their mostly white or pink-strawberry flowers that can be very prominent.  The white clover also has a white cresent mark on its leaves.  Strawberry clover does not have this distinct marking on the leaves and is generally a more robust and aggressive plant.

You may wish to keep clovers in your lawn for their ability to add some nitrogen to the soils at no cost to you or you may like the appearance of the plant and its flowers.  Others of you may not like the patchy appearance of the clovers, not like to be stung by bees, or not like to be poked by burs.  Lawn fertilization will help the lawn grasses compete better with the clovers and reduce their advantage   Unfortunately, mowing will not reduce the presence of clovers, but you should still regularly mow the lawn.  The annual clovers may be able to be pulledout by the taproot after a good rain or irrigation, but established white clover patches will not be easily pulled out.  The use of selective herbicides are the best and easiest solution for these.

For more information on clovers and other weeds call Weed Man at 266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

Spotting Spotted Spurge

Spotted Spurge in Lawn

You may or may not know what spotted spurge is, but chances are you have seen it in lawns and especially flowerbeds during the summer months.   Spotted spurge (Euphorbia maculata) is a summer annual broadleaf weed that is native to the eastern United States and is extremely common here in central California.

It grows very close to the ground and forms a dense mat of pinkish-red stems, deep green leaves with a purple spot in the center, and a center taproot pegging it to the ground.  The taproot may extend down as far as 24 inches! If the plant is pulled or broken, a white, milky latex-like sap will ooze out.  This sap can be irritating to some people’s skin.  Its leaves are in opposite pairs along the stems, and the flowers, stems, fruit, and leaves are covered with tiny hairs.

Spurge usually starts germinating in late March or April as the soil temperatures reach 60 degrees F, but really thrives when soils temperatures are 75-85 degrees F.  With little water and sunlight the seed will germinate successfully.  UC Extension literature states that it can produce viable seed within 5 weeks of germination, but I swear that it seems more like overnight.  A single plant can produce thousands of seeds that can germinate immediately if the conditions are right.  If you have ever pulled up spurge plants you can see the massive amounts of seed left behind on the soil surface.  Ants like to help move these around, too.  Maybe they like the shade it produces or perhaps it is a source of food for them.

Now we know when and what to look for in our search for spotted spurge, but how do we reduce its presence in our landscapes?  Culturally, we can watch for weeds in plants and soils we purchase to add to our landscape.  Try to pull, hoe, or spray plants before they have a chance to go to seed. Mulching the soil surface with 3-4 inches of bark chips can also reduce weed germination by shading the soil below and reducing the needed sunlight for germination.  Anything less than 3 inches is only cosmetic in terms of weed control.  In lawns, thin areas should be filled in with sod or reseeded and then fertilized and mowed at 2 inches or higher to increase the competitive edge over the spurge.

Pre emergent products like Amaze, Preen, or Dimension applied starting in March, will significantly reduce spurge populations through root inhibition.  Multiple applications may be needed for season-long control.  Post emergent products come in both selective (broadleaf herbicides for lawns) and non-selective types such as Roundup where sprays must be carefully directed to hit the weeds only.

Spurge will be here for years and years to come.  If you would like to know more about spurge, or other weeds that you wrestle with, you can call Weed Man at 559-266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

Please Water Your Lawn...Responsibly

It is now time to start thinking about watering your lawn, trees, shrubs, and flowers. It’s starting to warm up and you are probably seeing a few lawns showing signs of dry spots. I watered my lawn for the first time since October on March 1^st. We want to strive to use our precious water resources responsibly which means not wasting it.

Broken Sprinkler --bradleygee

How do we waste water? Some people may over-water their landscape because they never shut it off during the winter months. Others may water during rainy periods. Some may have poor sprinkler coverage and water extra to help hide the weak spots. Others may not over-water, but they have sprinklers that spray driveways, walks, and city streets and water ends up in the culverts instead of the lawn. Some sprinklers are being blocked by plants and do not hit their intended targets, leaving a dry spot a few feet away, while at the same time, leaving a swampy lake at the base of the plant. Unfortunately, many homeowners turn on their irrigation clocks in March or April and turn them off in October or November with no seasonal adjustments addressing the temperature changes or the plant’s needs. Then there is the obvious geyser that is the result of broken lines, risers, or damaged sprinkler heads that roar through large quantities of water day after day until someone takes the time to fix it. These problems do not take care of themselves...really!

Okay, so where do you start. The very first day that you turn your irrigation clock to the on position, you should take the time to observe every sprinkler or emitter on every station. Note the patterns, coverage, and especially look for leaks or non-functioning heads. These need to be fixed immediately and checked periodically throughout the season. I would also recommend looking at the running time on each station to see if it is appropriate for the season and plant type. You should note if any runoff occurs and certainly make adjustments when you see the soil is too wet or too dry throughout the season. The City of Fresno and our website has information on the correct minutes per week broken down by month as a conservation guideline.

Water rates will soon climb much higher, so I would highly recommend looking at switching to more efficient smart time clocks and precision nozzles. The smart clocks and moisture sensors can help make logical seasonal adjustments to the plant’s needs and save significant amounts of water. Plants really don’t like too much water, or too little. The new lower precipitation nozzles really reduce runoff and have much higher water efficiency, especially over traditional spray nozzles.

We live in a desert and water is essential for growing plants and people. Let’s not waste it. For free assistance with sprinklers you may call the City of Fresno or Aqua Man, our new irrigation division. You can call Aqua Man at 475-7777, Weed Man at 266-1624 or check out our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com to find out more about irrigation or weed control.

Bermuda Grass – Is it Wonderful or a Weed?

We are all familiar with Bermuda grass.  It thrives in our Central Valley climate.  Bermuda is a strong lawn choice in the Valley as it can take the heat and tolerate moderately low levels of irrigation.  If you are trying to grow Bermuda as a lawn grass you probably like the fact that you can treat it sparingly and it will survive, or you can water, fertilize, and mow on a regular basis and it will provide you with a good looking lawn for years to come. 

Bermuda grass does have its limitations though.  It tolerates almost no shade and it goes dormant in the winter months leaving a tan landscape of dead leaves and stems. It has no ability to compete with winter weeds as it lies dormant making it a mottled mess if no measures are taken to prevent the weeds.  Bermuda is very invasive and able to mend open spots through rhizomes and stolons. Surprisingly it does not out-compete crabgrass though.  Keeping Bermuda in bounds and out of the nearby flowerbeds and the neighbor’s tall fescue lawn is a challenge as well.

A weed is a plant out of place.  This describes Bermuda when it is growing in what is supposed to be a tall fescue, bluegrass, or ryegrass lawn (or flower bed).  During the summer months Bermuda grass can progressively invade a lawn unnoticed as both the grasses are fully green.  As temperatures drop and the Bermuda becomes dormant, the realization of the damage is fully seen.  The key to managing the Bermuda population is to identify it early and take steps to suppress it with Turflon or spot-treat it with Roundup and reseed or sod. Applications should be applied to actively growing plants from April – September.  Once the Bermuda makes up more than 25% of the grass mix you can live with it and let it go, or at some point, kill off areas and start over.  Bermuda is not easy to kill once established, even with multiple applications of Roundup.

If you have a Bermuda lawn and it receives plenty of sunshine, I think it makes a great lawn. It should receive regular feeding, watering, mowing, and necessary weed control throughout the year.  If you have it and you love it, but the trees have grown and the shade is so heavy that you have more dirt than grass, it is time to change grasses or shrink the shape of the lawn to what areas are growing well.  If you have Bermuda and hate it and want tall fescue instead, you will need to apply Roundup 3-4 times over a period of 2-3 months starting in August.  After putting in the new lawn you will need to watch carefully for emerging Bermuda stolons and treat every 2-3 weeks with Turflon to suppress the Bermuda selectively. 

If you have any lawn questions please call Weed Man at 559-266-1624, visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com or check out our Facebook page at Facebook.com/fresnoweedman

Is your Lawn Looking Sad?

Spring is just around the corner and many of you will want to get out and work on the yard. To your dismay, your lawns may fall short of perfection due to “bald spots” or thin turf as a result of pet damage, weeds, sprinkler coverage, fertilizer spill, or any other number of things.  I would like to say “That’s easy.  Just sprinkle a little seed out there” and all will be well, but it is a bit more complicated than that.

First I would determine what it was that caused the turf to thin out or disappear altogether.  If it is something that you did wrong then I would be sure to not do it again and maybe hire a professional.  If it thinned out due to shade then you need to find another grass or plant material that can tolerate the increased level of shade or open up the trees to allow more light in.  Grass does not grow here without adequate water, so be certain your sprinklers cover well.   I know this sounds really basic, but these are the problems that are often ignored and we repeat the same thing year after year and get the same mediocre results.

The next step is to determine what kind of lawn you have and learn what makes it happiest.  Tall fescue, ryegrass, and bluegrass lawns generally stay green year-round if they get fed, watered, and mowed regularly.  They thrive on 50-75 degree weather, tolerate some shade, don’t spread well or none at all if damaged, and don’t compete well with warm season grasses like bermuda.  Bermuda thrives on 70-100 degree weather, but can spread by rhizomes and stolons to repair thin turf under good growing conditions.  Don’t try to reseed bermuda in the winter, early spring, or fall because it will have little chance to establish.  Don’t seed tall fescue in the middle of summer or winter either for similar reasons.

Pet Damage (dog spot)

Finally there is the matter dealing with the threat of crabgrass.  It will out-compete all lawn types from March through September.  It starts to germinate mid February and if there is a history of crabgrass in the lawn I would not feel good about the chance of successfully seeding a lawn during this time frame.  For cool-season grasses like tall fescue, I would delay seeding efforts until October 1.  If I had bare spots or thin weedy spots I would consider resodding those areas February through early May to allow establishment prior to our hot summer months.  Bermuda can be sodded most any time, and it does have the ability to fill in by itself under good conditions and without seed or stolons in many cases.

If you are not sure about what to do with your lawn we will give you a free evaluation quickly.  Call Weed Man at 559-266-1624 or visit us at fresno.weedmanusa.com to learn more or schedule a free evaluation.

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Dandelions, Clovers, and Stickers…Oh My!

We are quickly approaching the time of year that I love.  Days are getting longer and temperatures are slowly moving up to near perfection. Flowers will be blooming and trees will be pushing new growth.   I can just imagine the smell of the freshly cut grass.   Life is good isn't it!

Dandelion

From my perspective this is also a happy time for many of our favorite weeds.  As soils warm up crabgrass will be popping up in late February.  The winter weeds including dandelion, clover, prickly lettuce, groundsel, henbit, chickweed, sowthistle, cheese weed, filaree, mare’s tail, wild celery, fleabane, Poa annua, and others will enjoy this burst of sunny days as well.  They will start to grow rapidly, flower, and go to seed in order for them to spread into next year.  It’s great for them and for us as a weed control service as well.  Like long hot summers in Fresno, we can pretty much count on weeds year after year.

Weeds are invasive plants that just find opportunities to thrive in lawns and landscapes.  In some cases there are decent pre emergent products to prevent their germination, but others will be missed.  Some weeds like clovers are often an indicator of soils that are low in fertility.  Because they are legumes and can fix their own nitrogen, they are able to have a strong competitive advantage over dormant or neglected lawns.  Have you seen many of the school’s lawns lately?

Selective post emergent broadleaf weed control products can offer effective relief from a majority of the broadleaf weeds.  Greater plant safety is often noted on tall fescue and ryegrass lawns over bermuda lawns that are waking up from dormancy where some caution should be taken.  Weeds themselves should be actively growing and not freshly mowed at the time of application.  Irrigation or rainfall following the application in the first 24 hours may reduce effectiveness as well.  In some cases a second or third application may be needed to achieve complete control.

Not all lawn care products are alike and certainly not all landscaping providers are alike. I know when I am looking for help, I want to talk to live people that know what they are talking about, they’re honest, and they keep their promises and stand behind their work.  Weed Man lawn care is fully licensed and has all technicians nationally recognized as Landscape Industry Certified Technicians by the end of their first year. Results are guaranteed.  Feel free to call us for a free lawn analysis and quote at 559-266-1624 or visit our website at Fresno.WeedManUSA.com.

Crabgrass Management Starts Now

Crabgrass is a pesky annual grassy weed that loves irrigated lawns here in the Central Valley. It gets really large and very apparent in lawns by mid-summer, but by then it is much more difficult to control. Left unchecked, crabgrass can rapidly take over a nice lawn in a matter of a few years.

Here’s the problem.  You will not find an effective product for controlling existing crabgrass or dallisgrass on your store or nursery shelf.  MSMA, found in Weed Hoe and Trimec Plus, is no longer available to homeowners and was the only product that actually worked on the removal of unwanted crabgrass unlike the products offered now.  There are several products now on the market for homeowners for post-control of crabgrass and they all contain quinclorac.  I have not had good success at all in the Central Valley of California getting any significant control using these.  Maybe you will be lucky and make one of them work, but my guess is that they won’t and you will be out both the time and expense you have invested. 

Prevention is the key to crabgrass management especially without a reliable product for managing actively growing crabgrass plants.  Ideally, a pre emergent herbicide should be applied at the proper rate prior to Valentine’s Day.  There are a number of products out there (some better), but unless they are applied before seed germination at the right rate and uniformly the results could be less than desirable. We actually apply two applications to ensure better results.

What is the future for crabgrass control?  There are some products in development and a few that could be useful in certain cases.  There is a product called Tenacity that has some decent early post emergent control of crabgrass, but it is only recommended for cool season turf as Bermuda will turn temporarily white following application.  Other herbicides have also shown some respectable control of 1 to 2 leaf crabgrass (tiny) as well.  A sharp knife works well, too unless you have hundreds or thousands of plants. 

Why risk your lawn to crabgrass invasion when the cheapest and most effective solution is prevention with pre emergent herbicides.  Have your lawn treated either by yourself or a professional today.

New Year’s Resolution – “I Will Treat My Lawn Nicely”

Lawns are often taken for granted or even neglected and certainly don’t make most people’s resolution list.  I think it is time to change that and start by spreading a little wealth and effort in the direction of one’s lawn and landscape.  The lawn, trees, shrubs, and flowers are a vital part of the home and they certainly add to the value of the property.  Industry experts say a nice landscape can add 15% to the value of a home and for most of us with a home, it is the largest asset we have.  The experts did not say how much an unattractive landscape impacts the home’s value, but you can be sure it is not positive.

What can be done to have a better lawn and landscape in 2013? First I would recommend taking inventory on the current condition of the yard.  That would mean checking the sprinkler system, the shading/sunlight and exposure, the soil condition and drainage, etc.  Landscapes change over time.  The wonderful hybrid bermuda lawn you had 10 years ago may now be only a thin, spotty stand now due to heavy shade conditions as a result of your trees growing up.  The great sprinkler coverage you once had may now be compromised due to plants covering heads, dirty nozzles, or reduced water volume or pressure.  Many times it was never that good in the first place.

Assuming that you now have conditions suitable to grow healthy lawns and plants you are ready to attend to their needs.  Like you and I, they need to be fed regularly.  Proper nutrition helps them grow at a healthy rate and compete with pesky weeds, diseases, and insects competing for their space.  Proper mowing heights and regular mowing encourage a dense turf that can better compete with invasive weeds.  Some weeds like crabgrass and spurge can forge their way into most any lawn; good or bad.  Pre emergent products should be applied starting in February in order to keep them out.  Other weeds like invasive bermudagrass and nutsedge need to be dealt with on an individual basis. 

By the way, did you know that homeowners no longer have access to any products that work well for the removal of existing crabgrass or dallisgrass since the removal of MSMA products like Weed Hoe in 2012?  This year, 2013, is the last year that professionals can use MSMA so PREVENTION is the word from now on….period.

You need to decide if your lawn and landscape is important to you.  It cannot take care of itself.   If you want good results without all the hassles then call a professional that knows what they are doing.