Lawn Care Essentials: Feeding & Watering

Part two in a three-part series on environmental lawn care

Your lawn should be an asset to both your landscape and your lifestyle. Unfortunately, many homeowners have unwittingly turned their lawns into economic and environmental liabilities through over-fertilizing and over-watering.

Americans apparently feed their lawns the same way they feed themselves: too much and too often. For example, if you are currently preparing to pull out your spreader brimming full of 10-10-10: Stop!

Spring is the wrong time to fertilize most varieties of grass. Feeding your lawn now will simply encourage rapidly growing grass to grow even more vigorously. Moreover, it is likely that much of the quick-release fertilizer you might be using will release itself with the next downpour right off your lawn and into the nearest stormwater inlet.

If you are grasscycling your lawn, allowing clipping to remain behind when you mow, you are actually returning a prodigious amount of nitrogen and other nutrients to your lawn. Why buy “fake” or synthetic fertilizers, possibly manufactured from foreign oil, when you can recycle the real thing for free?

For most cool weather grasses, such as the fescues and Kentucky bluegrass, feeding can be put off until the fall. And before you start loading up on bags of fertilizer, take time to have your soil tested.

An inexpensive, eight-dollar soil test kit, available from your local Cooperative Extension Service, will provide you with complete information on the appropriate type of fertilizer to apply to your specific soil and turf variety, as well as the proper application rate and schedule. It will also include important advice regarding your soil’s pH and potential need for lime application. (Learn more about soil testing by viewing Putting Your Soil to the Test, April 10, 2009.)

In addition, stay clear of quick-release, water-soluble fertilizers that promise fast-greening. These will produce fast foliar growth and do little for root development and overall plant vigor. Instead, consider natural organic sources like compost or composted manure, or select other slow-release fertilizers such as IBDU, sulfur-coated urea, ureaformaldehyde, or methylene urea.

Well-intentioned homeowners often water their lawns improperly and at great cost. Consider that during midsummer, it can easily take 6,000 gallons of water per week to keep a typical quarter-acre lawn green and lush -- enough to fill a good-sized swimming pool once every month.

Common mistakes include watering by hand or relying on light, frequent water applications. This approach encourages roots to reach up to the soil surface for moisture, which is one of the most common causes of thatch. Moreover, these shallow root systems make lawns sensitive to temperature extremes, drought, and soil compaction. Frequent watering also encourages the germination of troublesome weed seeds.

Over-watering is much like over-fertilizing. An abundance of water results in faster, excessive leaf growth, which depletes a lawn's natural energy reserves and weakens its disease resistance. The artificially high moisture and surface humidity conditions are also ideal for the growth and spread of disease pathogens.

Over-watering can also waterlog your soil, leading to reduced soil aeration, as well as soil compaction and problems injurious to the plant's roots.

For the healthiest possible lawn, water only when absolutely necessary, such as when grass starts to experience drought stress, usually indicated by the lawn losing color or becoming dull, or when grass fails to straighten up after being walked upon. Of course, during a prolonged drought, such as last year’s, it is probably easier to simply let your lawn go dormant until rain and cooler weather return.

For newly established turf areas, make sure that moisture soaks into the soil sufficiently to moisten the root zone. You can easily check water penetration by simply inserting a screwdriver.

During hot, dry weather, your lawn may require up to one inch of water every five to seven days. To irrigate properly, try to water only during the morning, as midday watering can lead to scalding and wasteful evaporation, while late-day or nighttime watering invites disease.

Apply approximately one inch of water to each area of your lawn and overlap the watering patterns. To ensure adequate coverage, set up one of more inch-high containers under the path of the sprinkler to measure application. Empty tuna fish cans are perfect gauges.

Stop watering whenever runoff occurs, especially on slopes or on compacted, dry soils. That may mean turning the water on and off in cycles to allow moisture to soak into the ground. It may take a bit more time, but it is better than watching water run into a stormdrain.

And finally, stay off your grass while the lawn is wet. Wet soil is easily compacted, which provides an ideal environment for many stubborn weeds. In addition, walking on wet grass can potentially spread fungal spores and other disease organisms.

Copyright 2009, Joseph M. Keyser

Grasscycling: Mower Power to Your Lawn

Part one in a three-part series on environmental lawn care

There is no question that lawns play a central and emotional role in the American landscape. After all, we spend billions of dollars pampering the patches of turf around our homes, in addition to a disproportionate share of our personal time and energy. If your back is already aching – and your wallet feels lighter – you might want to consider joining the grasscycling revolution!

Grasscycling is a proven system for maintaining lawns, which actually allows them to maintain themselves, saving you a lot of effort. It is also the easy, natural way to ensure a healthy lawn, which allows you to recycle valuable nutrients while saving money on fertilizers and other soil amendments.

The program begins when and where the mower blades hit the grass. First of all, grasscycling means grass-recycling, leaving clippings behind as you mow. Bagging and hauling bags to the curb will become a sweaty memory.

One of the most important keys to grasscycling is to mow more and cut less. Most lawn jockeys favor mowing once every week, usually on an otherwise quiet Saturday. All of weekend suburbia seems to resonate with the whine, whirr, and putter-putter-put of lawnmowers, and perhaps just a bit of grunting.

With grasscycling, lawns are mowed when the grass needs cutting, rather than sticking to an artificially imposed schedule.

During the active growing season, research and experience have shown that mowing frequency should be increased to once every five to six days. Cutting more often is easier than waiting too long and then trying to tackle a lush jungle of tall grass.

More frequent and proper cutting will also yield smaller grass clippings which can readily filter down to the soil surface and decompose within days. As the grass particles break down, they will release a treasure trove of nutrients and micronutrients, while also providing a small amount of organic matter, all of which will help to feed hungry earthworms, the soil, and your bit of emerald heaven.

If the prospect of mowing more often puts you off at first, remember that by grasscycling you are not stopping every five to ten minutes to empty the mower bag, putting clippings into a bag or container, and dragging heavy clippings to the curb. In fact, grasscycling typically saves about 40 percent of the time traditionally spent on lawn chores.

Also keep in mind that during the slower growing season, usually the hot, dry summer for most turf varieties, you may not have to mow for ten days or even two weeks at a time – unlike the mowing addicts who continue to mow each week, mostly kicking up dust and pebbles and contributing to smog. Finally, factor in that your naturally maintained lawn will prove to be more weed-free and self-feeding, and you will realize that grasscycling provides a significant net savings in time, effort, money, and environmental impacts.

The basic system relies on a series of simple rules. First, always mow your lawn when the grass is dry. You have probably already noticed that wet grass cuts poorly. Damp clippings will cling to the blade causing ragged cuts; the mower deck (the blade housing) will become clogged, interfering with overall mowing; grass clippings will form unsightly clumps; and clippings won't be able to filter down to the soil surface. Even worse, there are a host of turf-killing disease organisms which are easily spread through a moist environment.

It is also important to sharpen your mowing blades at least once or twice a year to provide a clean, safe, and efficient cut. Dull mower blades will tear and shred the tips of the grass which can provide an entry point for disease organisms and weaken the grass plant. If your lawn looks gray or dull after mowing, or perhaps turns straw-brown a day or two later, your mower blade is likely dull and causing damage.

Cut at the correct height for your type of grass. Different types of grass require different mowing heights. Cool-weather grasses, including Kentucky Bluegrass, Fine and Tall Fescue, and Perennial Ryegrass should be cut no lower than 2.5-3 inches, and should be mowed at or before reaching four inches in height. Warm season grasses, such as Zoysia or Bermudagrass, should be cut to between one-half and one inch, and cut when they reach two inches.

These heights are generally taller than those traditionally used – but for good reason. Taller grass provides more "energy" for the plant's ever-deepening root system, leading to a healthier, more drought-tolerant lawn. Taller grass helps shade the soil, which can keep soil cooler during hot weather, and provides natural weed suppression by overshadowing some weeds and preventing weed seed germination.

If grass is excessively tall, either slowly work it back its proper height by mowing several times within a week or two, or bag those clippings and use them as a thin mulch around shrubs, flowers, or vegetable plants, or add them to your backyard compost pile.
Another option with tall grass is to “double-cut” it. Simply mow your lawn twice, with the second cut perpendicular to the first passing. The second mowing will further cut up longer clippings and break up any clumps.

And, in the spirit of cutting less, avoid shocking your grass by removing more than a third of the plant’s total height. Mowing is actually just a form of frequent pruning, and less is more, especially when preserving the health of the grass plant.

Copyright 2009, Joseph M. Keyser

Success in a Soggy Garden

Many homeowners are frustrated by having low-lying areas in their yards which are always a bit on the soggy side. Fortunately, these wet areas can be turned into desirable landscapes which are beautiful, easy to maintain, and beneficial to the environment.

Using native or indigenous plants and a bit of creativity, you can transform mucky soils into lively gardens which can provide wildlife habitat, filter excess nutrients and pollutants from stormwater, recharge groundwater supplies, and control flooding. Natives are essential to this reclamation of wet areas. Over thousands of years, they have adapted to rainfall and seasonal temperature patterns; if you have a niche, they can and will fill it.

Before you start, you must consider whether your proposed garden’s location is near a building, public area, or pathway, where flooding might be a problem or where it might cause property damage. The goal is to take advantage of these wet areas, not to haphazardly create a pond or wetland, which requires extensive planning and effort.

Also, how will your wet garden fare during the summer? It is advisable to choose moisture-loving plants which can also tolerate semi-dry conditions. Most native plant lists and nurseries can suggest good possibilities. Perhaps you can divert some rainwater from your roof or patio toward this garden during dry spells. If so, slow the flow of that water by first directing it across a buffer strip of turfgrass to prevent potential wash-outs.

Next, develop a garden plan. An easy way to “design” the shape of your garden is to use a garden hose connected end-to-end. Move the hose around to match the outside contours of your soggy patch, or adjust the hose until you are pleased with a basic outline, whether oval, kidney shaped, or free-form.

What sort of garden will it be? If you are simply looking to fill a sunny area with trees and shrubs, look to large deciduous trees such as red maple, green ash, and white oak, or evergreens like the eastern red cedar or common juniper. In more closed quarters, you will find that many smaller trees and shrubs are commonly understory residents, and do well in a range from full sun to partial (and even full) shade, such as the ever showy shadbush, witch hazel, arrowwood viburnum, tasty elderberry, or redbud.

If your wet landscape is already under a shady canopy, select medium-sized specimens like river birch, spicebush, mountain laurel, or sweet pepperbush – usually a coastal plain plant, but a delightful magnet for butterflies and other wildlife.

Another approach is to underplant these or existing trees and shrubs with ferns and ground covers creating the illusion of a lush “forest floor.” Easily-established possibilities include Christmas, cinnamon, and sensitive ferns, although you might also want to tuck in – or substitute – clumps of wild ginger, wintergreen, and mountain stonecrop. These are all evergreen natives and a vast improvement over invasive English ivy. Plant them in natural-looking clumps of three-five per individual species.

Naturally, if your basic goal is merely to cover a muddy depression in your lawn, you can simply use these and other ground cover plants in groups by themselves.

Sunny wet zones allow you to plant for brilliant color and wildlife, especially nectar-feeding butterflies and hummingbirds, and other birds. Favorites include cardinal flower, great blue lobelia, wild columbine, foamflower, Virginia spiderwort, New York ironweed, wrinkleleaf goldenrod, Rudbeckia species like black-eyed-susan, New England aster, swamp milkweed, and Eupatorium species like Joe-pye-weed. These offer a tapestry of hues from red and yellow to pink and dark purple, and range in height from two or three feet to over seven feet; plant taller specimens toward the inside of your bed.

Regardless of sun or shade, you should always begin your project by applying a mulch layer several inches deep. Use a shredded hardwood mulch, which is less likely to wash or “float” away during a storm.

All of the species listed above are available through specialty nurseries, although local nurseries and garden centers are now featuring an expanding variety of natives. There are scores of other readily available plants suitable for your soggy garden.

Copyright 2009, Joseph M. Keyser

Peachy Ideas for Your Patio

There has been a Lilliputian revolution going on in the world of fruit. While most everything in our culture has been getting super-sized, horticulturists and plant geneticists have been toiling away, developing dwarf and super-dwarf varieties of fruit trees ideally suited for the smallest backyard or patio garden. You can almost smell the peaches ripening from your bedroom window!

Edible landscaping has come a long way from an earlier period when backyard gardeners seldom mixed their media: fruit and veggies went to one corner, and ornamental plants to another. Today, seed companies who used to stick to sunflower and marigold seeds now offer a dazzling variety of dwarf fruit trees. If space is an issue – no problem! They can ship you a dwarf “Fruit Cocktail” tree featuring grafts of apricot, peach, nectarine, and plum.

More telling are the non-garden gourmet catalogs like Harry & David, who sell “Patio Lemon Trees” along with their mango-of-the-month club. Smith & Hawken, best known for upscale gardening furnishings, recently ran two catalog pages featuring gourmet olive trees, various dwarf citrus, even a pomegranate shrub.

Can bananas for the Beltway be far behind? Actually: no! A recent conversation with fruit-and-nut guru Mike McConkey at Edible Landscaping in Virginia found Mike very excited about his Novak Super Dwarf Banana, a mere three-to-four foot variety, which he had been growing in a 25-gallon pot. The super dwarf had started to produce banana “hands,” the technical term for the bunches of fruit (“banana” itself is derived from the Arabic word for finger). Yes, we have some bananas.

Mike did caution that to produce fruit, the plant needs a substantial container, about the size of a half-whiskey barrel. Novak can be grown in smaller pots, approximately three gallon capacity, as a wonderful ornamental and conversation piece, perhaps under-planted with ‘Black Heart’ sweet potato vines or colorful flowers, but don’t expect it to raise a hand – or lift a finger. Remember that tropical bananas will need to be protected from frost, which is also true of container-grown figs, especially the less hardy varieties.

My rooftop garden, by the way, has been fig-friendly for years. I successfully raised two ‘Hardy Chicago’ figs in ten-gallon pots on my rooftop garden for about four years, until they outgrew their containers. During that time, we harvested several colanders of fruit annually – perhaps more, but we tended to eat as we picked. And while we were perhaps lucky to have experienced mild winters during that period, I suspect that figs capable of surviving Lake Michigan winters can easily handle our less severe climate. However, consider over-wintering your container-bound fig in a dark, cool space to play it safe.

My aerial edible landscape also hosted several varieties of dessert grapes in large tubs, with vines trained along a railing. Like my figs, the vines were gifts from a friend, and eventually I handed down my pass-along plants to schools with better growing environments. For use on patios, Mike suggested the seedless Jupiter variety, a reddish-purple table grape released by breeders at the University of Arkansas in 1998. Jupiter produces large Muscat-flavored fruits, although pot or tub-grown specimens may have smaller and fewer fruit. Still, what better backdrop for an afternoon wine and cheese reception?

And then there are patio peaches. Scores of them. Dwarf peaches can be grown in five-gallon containers and offer rich green, red, or purple leaves, fragrant, pink flowers -- sometimes even showy double flowers -- and a variety of freestone fruits with yellow or orange flesh and a blush of red. Most varieties are self-fertile (you only need one), and a one-gallon plant will likely produce fruit in just one year. Best of all, these dwarfed delights will often reach only four to five feet at maturity, helping them fit in even the smallest patio space.

As life is seldom a bowl of cherries, you might want to grow your own, starting with tasty, tangy bush cherries. Among the most popular are the White or Red Nanking Cherries, which can reach six feet or slightly more. These Chinese natives are extremely cold tolerant, and while they can form a wide-spreading shrub, great for hedges or foundation plantings, the patio gardener can also prune and train the plant as a miniature tree.

The fruits of these “Manchu” cherries seem to range from somewhat sweet to tart, and are often used in jams or pies. However, aficionados of the plant are often content with the numerous small pink buds which open to a fragrant, snowy white.

Keep in mind that Nanking cherries are not self-fertile, and you’ll need more than one to ensure cross-pollination. For easy-going patio use, Mike McConkey recommended several four-foot tall, fall-fruiting specimens developed by the acclaimed New Hampshire breeder, Elwyn Meader, whose bush cherries include Jan, Joy, and Joel, with Joel being both self-fertile and the most flavorful.

More choices? In the world of dwarf and super-dwarf patio fruits there are always more options. Most of the available plants are offered through on-line or mail order sources, but they range from columnar apples, for a special taste of espalier, to the intensely fragrant, pink-ruffled blooms of apricots. And we haven’t even mentioned bonsai possibilities, or dwarf nut trees, or even berries! Pretty obviously, you can afford to think big when you start thinking small.

Copyright 2009, Joseph M. Keyser

Lawn Care - Not Warfare

Spring is the most vulnerable time of year for lawn owners. Each week, a mounting chorus of advertisements, garden columns and television programs brazenly endorse a lethal arsenal of weed killers and pest annihilators. A chemical solution for every problem -- real or imagined. How did Mother Nature get by without us all these years?

Lawns can play an important part in our landscape: providing a welcome, green space for children, backyard barbecues, and other outdoor activities, in addition to their aesthetic value. Lawns also contribute significant environmental benefits: preventing erosion, nutrient runoff, filtering air, and providing natural "air conditioning" during the summer.

However, all of those advantages are lost when lawn care becomes warfare. When children and pets are at risk by crossing treated turf areas, or when sprays endanger the health of individuals who are immune-impaired or suffer from respiratory problems, we have to measure the real costs of lawn perfection. Are nodding violets, tasty spring onions, and edible dandelions so terrible that we're willing to imperil the health of ourselves and loved ones?

Instead of filling shopping carts with toxic solutions, we might borrow from the Hippocratic Oath and first do no harm. When dealing with nature, less is almost always more. And the best system for lawn care is actually simple and inexpensive.

Mowing Tips.
Mowing comprises about 95 percent of lawn care -- yet mowers and cutting blades are the most overlooked elements of maintaining a healthy lawn. Tune up your mower engine -- or look for specials for professional tune ups. An efficient engine will run smoother and faster, cut grass more quickly and evenly, and facilitate grasscycling by chopping grass into fine particles. It will also cause less air pollution, use less fuel, and save mowing time. Sharpen your blade. Carefully remove the blade and bring it to a shop for sharpening (covered by most tune ups). "Yardening" guru Jeff Ball recommends buying an extra cutting blade to switch to during mid-season. Sharp blades provide a clean cut which will heal quickly. Dull blades rip and tear grass, opening vascular tissue to disease organisms. Poor cutting also results in lawns taking on a dull, brown appearance -- which many lawn jockeys improperly try to correct by fertilizing! Alter your mowing pattern to avoid soil compaction. Cut high -- taller grass will develop proportionally deeper, healthier roots, resist drought and summer heat, and naturally prevent most broadleaf weed seeds from germinating. Fescues and bluegrass should be cut no lower than 2-1/2 to 3 inches; zoysia at about 1-1/2 inch.

A Proper Diet.
Millions of advertising dollars are spent annually to sell fertilizers or "fertilizer programs," especially in the Spring, when lawns have no need for supplemental nutrients. Overfeeding is a principal causes of turf disease. A quick jolt of nitrogen applied now will result in a wild burst of growth -- and lots and lots of mowing! And the grass will be leggy and weak, unable to handle stress caused by changing temperatures and too much or too little rain. Feed your lawn with clippings: grasscycle your lawn and recycle all of the free nutrients in every grass particle. And hold off fertilizing until the fall, when it is appropriate.

Watering.
Improper and over-watering is another cause of lawn disease. Unless while establishing a new lawn or overseeding, you don't need to water at all. Lawns thrive when roots are encouraged -- and allowed -- to grow deep. Watering creates a hydroponic zone at the top of the soil, making grass lazy and easy prey to drought and the scorching summer sun. Forget watering, and don't worry when fescues and other cool weather grasses brown out during the summer: dormancy is normal -- and inexpensive. Lawns will green-up when cooler temperatures and rainfall return. The environmental and economic cost of keeping a lawn green during the summer is staggering: hundreds of thousands of gallons of water for most lawns. Additionally, improper watering is a major culprit in fungal diseases, especially for folks who water in the evening. Of course, you can always buy fungicides -- or you could just stop watering. Incidently, overfeeding and overwatering are leading causes of thatch. So why bother?

Weeds.
Homeowners have been sold an unrealistic picture of a healthy lawn. They expect a perfect monoculture, like a putting green. Weeds are never tolerated, although most of them have more right to be in our soils than the hybridized turf varieties we plant. A vast armada of herbicides are available, many with decidedly lethal brand names. And yet weed control can be chemical-free, for the most part. Perhaps the key ingredient is patience. The fact is that most weeds cannot compete or gain a foothold in a dense, healthy lawn. And weeds can be pushed out by grass -- but it will take time. Nature thinks in glacial terms: seasons and years. There are no quick fixes.

To grow the most vigorous lawn possible, there are certain steps to be followed:

• Test your soil -- contact the office of your local Cooperative Extension Service and ask for an inexpensive soil test kit (around ten dollars). Some garden centers and nurseries also offer soil testing services, but usually for about 50 dollars. The investment is more than worthwhile: You'll learn exactly what to feed your lawn, how much lime to apply, etc. Since many weeds grow in poor or acidic soils, you can make them go away just by correcting your soil's chemistry.

• Aerate your lawn -- it's a breath of fresh air for roots and soil, and one of the most recommended practices for relieving compaction, reducing thatch, and encouraging deep and extensive root growth -- all of which will force out "undesireables." Some tough weeds, like plantain, will actually thrive in compacted soil -- looser, aerated soils will resist such weed incursions. You can rent aerating machines or hire a lawn service.
  

• Select the proper grass variety. Check with your state Cooperative Extension Service for advice on the best varieties of grass for your lawn, considering soil type, exposure, existing grass type, etc. The right grass for the right place will give you long-lasting results.
  

• Make a salad. While you wait for weeds to naturally disappear, you can always hand-pick some of the tougher weeds. Many are edible (another argument against pesticides), while others are attractive and only last a short while. Be sure to remove bulbs, in the case of wild garlic and onions, the taproots of tasty dandelions, and as much of the rootstock as possible of other perennial or pernicious weeds.
  

• Topdress soil with organic matter. Instead of fertilizing this year, consider spreading 1/4 inch of compost on lawn areas to further loosen heavy clay soils, break down thatch, and improve soil ecology. Seed and overseed again. Getting soil in shape goes hand in hand with seeding to develop an increasingly dense lawn. Prepare soil and overseed in the Spring, or overseed after topdressing.

Overall, you will find that working with your lawn is easier than working against it. The best, longest-lasting solutions are the simplest -- although they are not the quickest. Balancing the value of human and environmental health against that of an award winning, chemically-dependent lawn, and you will probably decide to change some of your lawn care habits and put up with some weeds.

Copyright 2009, Joseph M. Keyser