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jill_wingett

Vigoro weed & feed killed my grass - now what?

jill_wingett
10 years ago

While I was on vacation my well meaning neighbor was caring for my yard. He sprayed vigoro weed & feed everywhere & now my grass is dying.

I'd been using milorganite & had some clover patches & a few broadleaf weeds but nothing that I would have ever considered spraying the whole lawn for!

I originally seeded the yard in the fall of 2011, using penningtons Midwest mix, which had grown really well for me. I'm in zone 5b, Indianapolis. We've had rain every day for the last week, but my grass isnt coming back. its been about 2 weeks since he sprayed. Any ideas on how to bring back/save my yard?

Comments (5)

  • maplerbirch
    10 years ago

    What is it about Vigoro that would do that? I'm not familiar with this product and why it would suddenly kill grass that doesn't appear to have too much of anything on it?

  • dchall_san_antonio
    10 years ago

    It might have been too hot that day when he sprayed.

    Fall (Labor Day) is the best time to reseed for your location. Find that same grass seed and do it again.

    What is your watering regimen (frequency and duration)? Weeds usually indicate watering wrong.

  • jill_wingett
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    We've had close to record rainfall in Indianapolis this spring, so I haven't really had to water at all yet. When I watered last year, it took about 4 hours with a sprinkler to get a tuna can full of water onto each section of the yard.
    With the drought last year, I watered a couple of times a week, since it was the first summer for the grass.

    I over-seeded last fall & again this spring, so didn't use any pre-emergents. The lawn was filling in great, with just a few bare spots.

    I was super excited because I have the worst soil imaginable. We're the last street in the subdivision & I think my yard contains all the back fill from all 800+ houses here! In the fall of 2011 I cleared out all the weeds & rubber mulch left by the previous owner &spread yards of a compost/topsoil mix over the existing dirt before I spread the seed. It was a miserable job, but finally having a lawn made it worthwhile.

    Then I came home to a yard that is half brown, dry & dying.

    From your reseeding comment, I'm guessing i'll have to live with it now & that's my best bet for a lawn NEXT summer. Should I dethatch it before I seed to get rid of the dead stuff? Will aerating it help?

    I'll try anything at this point!

  • dchall_san_antonio
    10 years ago

    Aerating won't help.

    Yes, next summer your lawn should be much nicer. Fall is the very best time to seed.

    Dethatching won't help. Spraying molasses and/or milk on the soil at a rate of 3 ounces (of each) per 1,000 square feet will help regenerate the microbes needed to decompose the dead grass you have.

    Mother Nature has provided for her wonderful weeds with too much moisture. Ideally you would allow the soil to completely dry out at the surface before watering again. In the hot heat of summer that usually takes a full week. Let the grass tell you (by wilting) when it needs to be watered again. Then water a full inch.

  • jill_wingett
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for your advise! How often should I spray the milk/molasses? Should I continue to use the milorganite monthly as well?