Rate my lawn plugs

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JHZR2

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I'm not one to obsess over lawns, and try to avoid a lot of chemistry to keep it. I did start the mowing season last weekend, and this weekend decided to rent an aerator on a whim. I have never done much of anything to our yard and are going in 10 years living here. The yards have been in service nearly 100 years too.

The aerator went well, though I have a section of my front yard that is very steep, and control was a challenge.

Anyway, here are some plugs from the front, rear, and side yards. Not too much thatch, good dark soil, and it's got good drainage and some sand in it (prime tomato growing area apparently).

Thoughts?

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I could take up the plugs but not sure if I will or not. I've heard putting sand in the holes helps drainage and all. Should I do that?

I guess I'll get a big bag of seed and oversees next. Might not be the best time of year, but we still have a while before it gets too dry or hot.

I avoid fertilizer, but given all this, should I apply something here now? FWIW, about a week ago I took samples from our eating garden, our flower garden, our front and rear yards, and under our holly trees and sent them to the Rutgers AG co-op for analysis. Haven't gotten results back though...

Thanks!
 
You need a spring weed/feed. And I would not put sand into the aeration holes. A few hot summer days and you won't be able to keep the soil moist.

A month after the weed/feed I would lightly top dress it with either organic compost or peat moss. Then buy a mix of over seed that contains a mix of sun/shade grass. Rough it in with a leaf rake, then keep it moist for a while until the new seed is tall enough to mow.
 
Don't rake up the plugs, leave them be they will go away on their own. I wouldn't topdress or fill them with sand, I'd leave them be.

If you've done any crabgrass preventer you cannot overseed now. If not have at it, but from the pics I'd focus on broadleaf weeds and not thickening the turf.

The soil does look good, though.

Can you get bay state fertilizer cheap anywhere near you? (similar to Milorganite). If you don't like chemicals you might like that.
 
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I've never done any crabgrass preventer or weed and feed. I dont own any. One time I did put down some grub control stuff, because we had grubs everywhere. That was 5+ years ago...

What's the best way to combat broadleaf weeds? I usually grow the grass long as I read it keeps dandelions and such down. In 10 years I don't recall seeing more than a few dandelions. This year we had a LOT.
 
I'm jealous of your plugs! Wish I had deep soil like that here. I have about 4" and that's only because I've added home-made compost from both Fall & Spring leaves to the grass for nearly 25yrs. Below that is red clay, river rock & limestone. A million years ago or so, this entire area was sea bottom.

I never use W&F because it's bad for any nearby trees, and I have plenty of those. The few spring weeds I have I control with the mower. I use the leaf catcher when the oak leaves/tassles are plenty and it all goes into the compost bin. Once the leaves & tassles have stopped, I switch to mulch-mower-mode and cut the grass as tall as possible.

Pre-emergent herbicides are far better than weed and feed, if you need to use something. Safer for trees too.

I do have problems with MONSTER grubs when emptying the compost bins. They look alien. They're at least 5/8" dia and about 4" long. Yuck....ugly bugs. They evidently gorge on food while bined and survive the heating process. The weight must be high at the bottom of a 4-1/2' pile that's sunk and compacted over time. Yet, there they are.

My thinking is healthy grass is the best defense against any weed, thus mine gets regular feedings, is left long during the hot Summer and this helps to provide a bit of shade for the roots & soil.
 
Solid 9.125 on a 10 point scale. Loss of points for top selection having different color from top to bottom. More grass needed on second from top as well.
 
A picture of a lawn plug really tells you nothing. Without a soil analysis there's no way to tell much beyond that the grass is green and the soil is dark with what appears to be some sand in it. Given the amount of clover in your photo the grass appears to be pretty sparse.

If you're looking to get rid of the crabgrass, dandelions and all that clover in your picture, for a small city yard there are lots of natural ways to control the weed issues and promote a fuller, healthy lawn. The key to the lawn care game is competition. You want to make things favorable for the grass and unfavorable for the weeds so the grass will naturally choke out a lot of those noxious weeds. It helps to leave the lawn relatively long in the fall and mow it fairly high.

While most people work their lawns hard in the spring, the best time to get it in good shape is in the fall. A lawn that is well prepared in the fall looks far better the next spring.
 
"weeds" will prepare and condition the soil and when appropriate, grass will take over.

I don't consider clover a weed at all, but the last step before grass thrives.

Pops, what are your "natural" interventions that the OP's "natural" processes aren't providing ?
 
The grass is by no means sparse. And I don't consider clover a weed either. It grows and covers and contains the underlying dirt just fine. Ive got far better things to do with my time, including other gardening or food crops, than ensure that my yard is 100% grass. But its still nice to try to keep after things a little...

Of course I clearly stated that I had sent multiple soil samples to our Ag college to get analyzed.
 
The plugs look like soil that is not really compacted. Does not appear to be tight clay.
When i see clover it makes me think the soil needs come nitrogen.

Since you went to the trouble of plugging it i'd use some fertilizer, perhaps you can get a slow release 10-10-10.
Hopefully the analysis will tell you if you need lime quickly before the plug holes close up. Unless you know the trend for your area. If the analysis indicates you need phosphate, i'd make sure to use that right after plugging.

I hate weed and feed,it works but i just hate you walk bare foot over a lawn that was bombarded with herbicide. I don't want the dogs to track it in the house either.

I would spot spray the broadleaf stuff if you are able. Rather than herbicide the whole area.
 
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Originally Posted By: JHZR2
The grass is by no means sparse. And I don't consider clover a weed either. It grows and covers and contains the underlying dirt just fine. Ive got far better things to do with my time, including other gardening or food crops, than ensure that my yard is 100% grass. But its still nice to try to keep after things a little...

Of course I clearly stated that I had sent multiple soil samples to our Ag college to get analyzed.


Then next time maybe when you send a photo of your lawn, you should say that clover is fine with you.

In all honesty, if you have better things to spend your time on (as you've stated), then the grass is perfectly fine the way it is, right?
 
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