Frank wrote:
....
First thing is a crabgrass pre-emergent. ...
I do some seeding in the spring but fall is better. ...

Preemergent treating and seeding aren't mutually conducive. Will have
to wait if treat this year -- in NE may not be too hot too soon; here
would be near fatal to trying to spring seed and get stand w/o having
_way_ excessive water costs.

Fall would be better but depending again on area and needs, probably
better bet will be tillage instead. But, again, County Agent will have
the scoop for the area once knows the situation.

--

On Mar 14, 2:38*pm, dpb wrote:
Frank wrote:

...

First thing is a crabgrass pre-emergent. *...
I do some seeding in the spring but fall is better. *...

Preemergent treating and seeding aren't mutually conducive. *Will have
to wait if treat this year --

You are correct that the commonly used pre-emergents can not be used
when seeding. I was wondering when someone was going to point that
out. However there are pre-emergents, eg Tupersan that can be used
when seeding, though they are a lot more expensive

There are some many things in other posts here that are wrong. Like
the one saying to put down pre-emergent and then wait until it's no
longer effective to seed. If you do that, you're going to be seeding
so late that the whole thing is doomed.



in NE may not be too hot too soon; here
would be near fatal to trying to spring seed and get stand w/o having
_way_ excessive water costs.

Fall would be better but depending again on area and needs, probably
better bet will be tillage instead. *But, again, County Agent will have
the scoop for the area once knows the situation.

This is the best advice. You can seed in Spring, but by far the best
time is Fall. In Spring, you have major competition from weeds, the
amount of water you have to be able to supply is higher and
increasing, and then before the turf has substantial roots, it's July
and hot.

I'd get through one more season, then re-seed in the Fall. I'd kill
off the whole lawn early Sept. IMO, if you have crap grass, it
usually includes a lot of grass and weeds that can be difficult. If
you overseed, you still have those there. Instead of having some
coarse, poor color, disease prone grass mixed in, I'd just kill it all
with Roundup (glyphosate) and start over. You can reseed a week after
applying it. Actually, it usually takes a couple weeks for everything
to die off anyway. Use a high quality mix and use a starter
fertilizer. I live in NJ and prefer a mix of tall fescue and blue
grass. There are tall fescues available that are endophyte enhanced
which is a plus.

If you do seed in the Spring, you better have a sprinkler system and
plenty of water available and be prepared to deal with big weed
problems. If you seed in Fall, the grass has many more months to
put down roots and become established before you get to the heat and
stress of July.

Also, most of the county agri extension services will test soil for
$15 or so and give you a report. Then you will know the PH, whether
you need lime, etc. Another key thing, you should have 6-8 inches of
good quality topsoil. If you don't then I would strongly consider
fixing that. Having good soil can avoid years of struggling with
disease, fungus, grass dying, etc. And it can greatly reduce the
watering needs, so if you water your lawn and pay for the water, $500
spent on topsoil or soil ammendments like compost now can quickly pay
back.

Then, next spring, put down a pre-emergent crabgrass control with
ferilizer and you should be in good shape for next season.










--

Why can't we all get a lawn..?

On Mar 14, 6:43*pm, wrote:
On Mar 14, 2:38*pm, dpb wrote:

Frank wrote:

...

First thing is a crabgrass pre-emergent. *...
I do some seeding in the spring but fall is better. *...

Preemergent treating and seeding aren't mutually conducive. *Will have
to wait if treat this year --

You are correct that the commonly used pre-emergents can not be used
when seeding. *I was wondering when someone was going to point that
out. * However there are pre-emergents, eg Tupersan that can be used
when seeding, though they are a lot more expensive

There are some many things in other posts here that are wrong. *Like
the one saying to put down pre-emergent and then wait until it's no
longer effective to seed. *If you do that, you're going to be seeding
so late that the whole thing is doomed.

*in NE may not be too hot too soon; here

would be near fatal to trying to spring seed and get stand w/o having
_way_ excessive water costs.

Fall would be better but depending again on area and needs, probably
better bet will be tillage instead. *But, again, County Agent will have
the scoop for the area once knows the situation.

This is the best advice. *You can seed in Spring, but by far the best
time is Fall. *In Spring, you have major competition from weeds, the
amount of water you have to be able to supply is higher and
increasing, and then before the turf has substantial roots, it's July
and hot.

I'd get through one more season, then re-seed in the Fall. * I'd kill
off the whole lawn early Sept. *IMO, if you have crap grass, it
usually includes a lot of grass and weeds that can be difficult. *If
you overseed, you still have those there. * Instead of having some
coarse, poor color, disease prone grass mixed in, I'd just kill it all
with Roundup (glyphosate) and start over. *You can reseed a week after
applying it. *Actually, it usually takes a couple weeks for everything
to die off anyway. * * Use a high quality mix and use a starter
fertilizer. * *I live in NJ and prefer a mix of tall fescue and blue
grass. *There are tall fescues available that are endophyte enhanced
which is a plus.

If you do seed in the Spring, you better have a sprinkler system and
plenty of water available and be prepared to deal with big weed
problems. * *If you seed in Fall, the grass has many more months to
put down roots and become established before you get to the heat and
stress of July.

Also, most of the county agri extension services will test soil for
$15 or so and give you a report. * Then you will know the PH, whether
you need lime, etc. * Another key thing, you should have 6-8 inches of
good quality topsoil. * If you don't then I would strongly consider
fixing that. *Having good soil can avoid years of struggling with
disease, fungus, grass dying, etc. * And it can greatly reduce the
watering needs, so if you water your lawn and pay for the water, $500
spent on topsoil or soil ammendments like compost now can quickly pay
back.

Then, next spring, put down a pre-emergent crabgrass control with
ferilizer and you should be in good shape for next season.





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I should have also added, if you decide to wait until Fall to re-seed,
then I would put down a combo fertilizer and pre-emergent crabgrass
control this Spring. That will give you a better looking lawn with
what you have and go a long way toward getting rid of the crabgrass.