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| At what point do you start mowing a new lawn? I'm at day 15 and its getting long! Too long for Bermuda I think? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Here is a shot from further out. Established from La Prima XD seed. |
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| Mow it when it needs mowing. :) Make sure you are using a good, sharp blade. You don't want to rip any of the new grass out of the ground. |
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- Posted by texas-weed 7A (My Page) on Tue, Jul 24, 12 at 22:34
| You mow when it needs it, and you are overdue. |
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| That's what I thought... I just heard that you're supposed to wait a while before mowing when its a newly seeded lawn! Thanks guys! |
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- Posted by texas-weed 7A (My Page) on Wed, Jul 25, 12 at 9:40
| Just make sure your blade is good and sharp, and the ground is firm and not muddy. A dull blade will pull the young seedlings up out of the ground because they do not have roots set deep enough. If it is muddy the wheels will smash the tender seedlings into the mud and leave ruts. Also start thinking about applying your first nitrogen fertilizer application in a couple of weeks. I assume you used a starter fertilizer already. |
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| I did use a 10-10-10 general purpose right after spreading the seed, I have another 40 lb bag of it, can I use that or do I need a 30-0-0? |
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| Nitrogen only. Read texasweed's Bermuda bible. It has everything in there |
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| I know a higher N to P and K ratio would be ideal, but I guess my question is I wouldn't be doing any harm by putting that (10-10-10) out there would I? |
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| Can't really answer that without a soil test. Too much P & K is bad for the environment |
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| Use it if you got it. Not using fertilizer you've already purchased is bad for your wallet. |
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- Posted by texas-weed 7A (My Page) on Wed, Jul 25, 12 at 23:01
| Well this one is a bit difficult to answer, but I think I have a decent answer. One thing about the synthetic fertilizers is they if you keep them cool and dry they last a long time in storage. So I would not use it this season and just use straight nitrogen for the remainder of the season. Then next spring use the 10-10-10 for the first application. |
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| Thanks for the tip! Looking forward to seeing it fill in the rest of the way. |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Fri, Jul 27, 12 at 11:49
| Your bermuda will not spread laterally until you mow it. The more often you mow it, the more lateral spread it will have. Only then will you see it start to fill in. |
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| Week 3 after the first mow. How long should you wait before mowing again while trying to get it short & follow the 1/3 rule? |
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- Posted by dchall_san_antonio 8 San Antonio (My Page) on Sun, Jul 29, 12 at 18:35
| About 2 days. Reread nearandwest's reply from 2 days ago. More frequent mowing will help it spread. |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Sun, Jul 29, 12 at 20:22
| Yes, agree with dchall. 2 days, and no more than 3 days. And each time you mow, go in a different direction. Think of a clock sitting in the middle of your yard where 12 is at your house, 6 is at the street, 3 is at your driveway, and 9 is directly opposite of 3. Looks like you just mowed in the "3 to 9" direction. On your next mowing, mow from your house toward the street; this is the "12 to 6" direction. Then, the following mowing will be in the "2 to 8" direction. Then the next mowing will be in the "4 to 10" direction. Then go back to the "3 to 9" direction and repeat the process all season. This is how turf managers create the checker board pattern on turf grass. The reason for mowing in a different direction each time is that it causes the grass to stand up better. Mowing in the same direction every time causes the grass to lay down, and also causes unnecessary wear on the grass. Does this make sense to you? |
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| Sure does, thanks! I was thinking Tuesday myself! I'll spread the Nitrogen around after it starts thickening up next week, it will be 4 weeks then, does that sound reasonable? Bible says every 30-45 days. How about watering, I cranked back to ~1" every 3-4 days, how long should you wait till you go 1"/week? |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Mon, Jul 30, 12 at 9:53
| The grass is still very young. You should stick with the watering schedule you currently have for now. The 1"/week schedule is for established turf, that should be your watering schedule starting next season. Fertilizing next week will be fine. Just remember to water it in immediately afterward. One more thing about mowing. I would suggest that you always mow when the grass is dry (usually late afternoon or evening). You get a better quality of cut on dry grass versus wet grass. |
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| Well I've mowed a few times now, down to 1-2", and its looking worse than ever. Am I over/underwatering? Does it need fertilizer? HELP! |
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| This is about 32 days since seeding. It had such better color right after that first mow!! |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Wed, Aug 8, 12 at 23:31
| Yes, the reason it had better color after the first mow is because there was so much more leaf blade visible. You have removed a lot of the leaf blade as you have lowered the height of cut. I think you need to be more patient. For only having been 32 days after seeding, there is a LOT of grass in that lawn. (32 days is only four and a half weeks) What is your watering schedule right now? In that earlier post, do I understand that you are currently mowing somewhere between 1" and 2"? Are you applying 1 lb. of Nitrogen every 4 weeks? When is the last time you fertilized, and what did you use? Keep your chin up. You're doing fine. |
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| I am still watering every 3-4 days about 1". For mowing, I tried to follow the 1/3 rule, the pics from yesterday were after my 4th mow in 10 days. This is the first time I brought it this low, to 1-2". After mowing yesterday, I applied the 10-10-10 I had left over at a rate of roughly 12 lb product per 1000 ft2 of lawn (100/10=10 so this is close to the bible rate). I watered after applying the fertilizer. Thanks for the encouragement, it's wildly disappointing to go from lush green to dull brown in 10 days. |
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| Edit: I've only applied fertilizer twice: once before seeding, and once yesterday after mowing 32 days later. |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Thu, Aug 9, 12 at 11:05
| You waited too long to apply fertilizer. But that's okay. So you applied 40 lbs. of 10-10-10 fertilizer over 4,000 sq.ft., which means that if you spread it evenly, you appplied 1 lb. of Nitrogen per 1,000 sq.ft. which is the correct rate. When I was growing-in the Eagles Landing Country Club in Stockbridge, Ga. we applied fertilizer to our Tifway 419 bermudagrass tees and fairways every 7 days (alternating between 34-0-0 and 19-19-19). But that was because we had to get them grown-in in 8-10 weeks. If I were in charge of growing-in your lawn at this point I would kick it up a few notches, and here is what I would do. I would water every 2-3 days instead of every 3-4 days. Keep your mowing height where it is, and don't go any lower. I would start looking for some ammonium nitrate (34-0-0) and have it on hand. Keep it stored in a cool, dry place. If you do find 34-0-0, you'll only need to purchase one bag. It will last you for the remainder of the season. If you can't find ammonium nitrate, get the highest Nitrogen fertilizer you can find, with one exception. Do not use 46-0-0, which is straight urea. It has a very high burn potential. Be prepared to apply the fertilizer you choose 14 days after your 10-10-10 application. Apply it at the 1 lb. Nitrogen per 1,000 sq.ft. rate. Water it in thoroughly. And then be prepared to mow every 2 days, and don't go 3 days without mowing. You'll see why. Your grass will green up and you will start to see the lawn filling in even more. If you want to see how far you have come this summer, go back and look at the pictures of your lawn back in June. I did. Your lawn has come a long way. You're doing well. |
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| Thanks for all the advice and the kind encouragement. I will try my best to keep up that kind of mowing schedule but my neighbors are going to think I've gone crazy! I will try the nitrogen application in two weeks. The watering every 2-3 days, is that a full 1" each time? |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Thu, Aug 9, 12 at 12:30
| I would say to keep your watering amounts the same for now, but water every 2-3 days. This is only temporary for about the next 30 days. The purpose of this is to get your bermuda moving and filling in. As the day length continues to get shorter, the window of opportunity for growth and development of bermuda continues to close a little more each day. By late September-early October, your schedule of mowing, fertilizing, and watering will be greatly reduced in preparation for winter survival. |
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| 1 Week update! This is just over 5 weeks total, 1 week after 10-10-10 application. Its looking a bit healthier but no drastic changes. I've mowed 3 times in a week! |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Tue, Aug 14, 12 at 22:28
| You should be prepared to fertilize again on 8/25/12 which is a week from this coming Saturday. Your lawn needs a swift kick in the grass!!!! You should be using 34-0-0 at that time if you can find it. Git-r-dun!!! And yes, it IS looking better. |
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| Thanks man! This is like lawn care coaching... Awesome! So I noticed a bunch of small mushrooms this morning on my way to work, anything to be concerned about? |
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| Here's a shot from further out |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 23:12
| No, not too much to worry about. Sporadic mushroom presence is a sign that your soil has organic matter content that is decaying. It's also a sign of excess watering, but that is what you need to do right now. Those 'shrooms will be gone soon. Between now and early October, I suspect you will have another dry heat wave in the Atlanta area. Your grass still has some opportunities to fill in completely. Push it! Push it! Push it! |
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| Update! I applied a 14 lb bag of 29-0-2 on Saturday 8/25 like nearandwest suggested and here is 4 days later right after a mow. Looking better? |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Wed, Aug 29, 12 at 20:50
| It is looking better and it IS filling in. Go back and look at the picture you took on 7/24 and compare to how it looks now only one month later. This is about 7 weeks now. There is still more growing weather ahead. Patience. |
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| Thanks. Seems like the nitrogen application is helping the color too. How long should I wait before the next application, a full 30 days? |
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- Posted by nearandwest 7 (My Page) on Thu, Aug 30, 12 at 23:37
| No, there was a reason why I suggested 34-0-0 for your most recent N application...because it is 100% quick release. Sometimes 34-0-0 can be hard to find. I don't know about 29-0-2. However, I would suggest you apply 1 lb. N around Sept. 21...this will be your final full application of N for the season. After this, you will be applying potash for the Fall season, and for Winter hardiness. After October, it will be time to start preparing bermuda to "go to sleep" for the Winter season. |
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