The Landscape Thread - June Edition!

[Sirhornsalot]

Again, this Landscape Thread will be posted in four posts because for whatever reason the message board software is having trouble dealing with JPG attachments. 

Grubs, Chinches, Oh my!

 
Tis' the season for the ugly grub worm to be munching on the roots of your turf grass. June is typical when grub treatments are applied to lawns however this year grub worms began feeding in the first part of May for whatever reason. We moved our treatments up accordingly.

Grub worm damage is best recognized by the yellowing turf that is lethargic, doesn't stand upright no matter how much water you put on it. And the affected turf area will continually become thinner and larger in size. Unlike lawn fungus, it has no particular shape or pattern.

An example of a lawn damaged by grub worms, below:

Below is the one-year cycle of grub worms:

Chinch bugs are striking early this year as well. Normally, we see them show up in the late summer and you know their damage by the look of the turf. They most often hit St Augustine or Zoysia turf, but can hit Bermuda as well. Their damage will have turf that looks completely depleted of moisture - as if someone took a blow torch to that spot. It almost looks burned. Chinch bugs are visible in the turf if you look closely.

Chinch bugs, below:

Damage left behind by Chinch bugs, below. Note how it's close to a concrete source, which is common with Chinch bugs.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

WHAT TO DO

Upon observing grub or chinch bug for the first time, it's important to respond relatively quickly. Most products that designed to kill grub worms will also be instrumental in killing chinch bugs. Still, it's best to look at the label before buying the product to make sure. Retail products are not as strong as commercial products, so two applications two weeks apart will likely be required.

If the Chinch bug damage shows an infestation, a simple granular product will be insufficient. The lawn will need to be sprayed with a product such as TalStar which will kill chinch bugs on contact. The liquid spray allows for an effective chemical-to-insect contact.

MANKIND vs WATER RESTRICTIONS

While rainfall in Texas has picked up considerably over couple months, we're still in a bad position as far as meeting water demands of the populace. Lake Travis is still very low. San Antonio water restrictions are in full swing. The Metroplex lakes are still 4-5-6 ft below average in many cases. Parts of Lake Lavon are now pastureland. Wichita Falls, well. . . . they're considering taking "used" water and recycling it through a filtration system.

Weather and climate are cyclical, meaning, today's drought is a flood event in 10 years. So the variations of our weather are extreme in many cases and we're on the dry end of that extreme right now. In response, cities around the state are implementing water restrictions.

At the same time, homeowners have tremendous investments in the lawns and landscapes. While we want to help with the water issue, we don't want to lose our investments.

HYDRETAIN

Hydretain is a relatively new product that is designed to help lawns cope with water restrictions and live healthier on less water. The product is applied, the homeowner waters the product into the turf. The product attaches itself to the roots, creating a water bubblet on the roots. As you water or with rainfall, the bubblet grows and contracts when the plant draws on the water. During this process, the water is oxidized, recreating the rainfall effect and thus, creating healthier plant life despite using less water to accomplish it. You can learn more at www.hydretain.com

One treatment will last three months. We're in the process now of applying this product to our lawns to protect them through the toughest part of the summer - June-July-August. Completely biodegradable and harmless to people/pets.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

CHECK YOUR CRAPES!!!

Now is the time to start looking hard at the trunks and limbs of your Crape Myrtles. What you'll be looking for is shown in the picture below - Scale. Scale looks like white crust, but is actually an insect that is living off the juices of the Crape Myrtles trunk/limbs. In doing so, they excrete a substance that is sticky, sweet and attracts other insects, such as ants. 

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Baby Aphids on the backsides of Crape Myrtle leaves, below

Aphids will also attack Crapes at this time and like Scale, they excrete a sugary substance that attracts ants. So if you have ants all over your Crapes, it's not an ant problem - it's a Scale or Aphid problem instead. Kill the Scale and Aphids and the ants leave.

A retail product you can use to kill Scale and Aphids would be Malathion. Mix with water in a pump sprayer. A second application a week later may be needed.

WHAT ELSE???

Now is the time for the second fertilization of the season. You want this down well before July's heat sets in. Once applied, plan on watering you lawn for two days in a row in order to get the product into the turf. Fertilizer left on turf without watering in will burn the turf.

Weeds are less of a problem in the middle of the season so you're able to use a straight fertilizer if you wish. The nitrogen level in your fertilizer (for St Augustine lawns) needs to be less than 20, no higher. St Augustine is already a thirsty turf. The Nitrogen in Fertilizer enhances a grass's thirst for water. So a high nitrogen fertilizer is going to cause issues for a St Augustine lawn in the middle of the season.

Right now, we're applying a product called Triple 18 (18-18-18) Hydromulch Special, which is a specially created product we get from a factory in Greenville, Texas. It's water based so it only hangs around for a month, but what it does in a month is special.

Bermuda lawns can handle a higher ratio of nitrogen, anywhere from a 35 on down. Plenty of sun and heat and just add water. Bermuda's natural drought tolerance will kick in and no burning will occur (unless applied too heavily).

ANTICIPATED QUESTION . . . 

Question - Can I sod my lawn in the middle of summer . . . . 

Answer - A conditional yes. If you're going to be around for two weeks and are willing to hand water or can water via system in the evenings, then yes. Your sod will work out fine. If you can't give two weeks of good attention, don't try it.

St Augustine and Bermuda need sun, heat and water to grow and thrive. St Augustine needs more water than sun. Bermuda needs more sun than water. So as long as you're giving those three things, you're good to sod.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Aaron, there's some problem with posting pictures. Sometimes it accepts it. Sometimes it doesn't. I still don't have the full landscape thread in here after having to break it up into several posts.

Help?

 

[Sirhornsalot]

I had the pleasure of meeting Bear19 today. James came by today to pick up his Horse Herb ground cover and we were able to talk for a good long while.

It's always great to meet members in person and I look forward to seeing James again at a tailgate in the future!

 

[Bear19]

It was my pleasure Mark. Greatly enjoyed the conversation.

Got half of the horse herb in yesterday and the other half this morning. I'm whipped.

 

[gmcc]

Although I don't post a lot, I really enjoy your landscape articles.  Since I'm old as the dirt I dig in here at my house, landscaping is about the extent of my activities and your posts give me new things to do.  I appreciate them.

gmcc

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Although I don't post a lot, I really enjoy your landscape articles.  Since I'm old as the dirt I dig in here at my house, landscaping is about the extent of my activities and your posts give me new things to do.  I appreciate them.

gmcc

Man, it's a post like this that make my world go around. I'm so glad you enjoy these threads and that you've been helped along the way by them.

Thanks for the kind words . . . 

 

[Aaron Carrara]

Mark, I have low pressure on my sprinkler system. I have replaced several heads over the last year and that seemed to remedy my issues temporarily.

With the hot weather here I am looking to use the system again but the low pressure is back and I see I have more heads that need to be replaced.

My question is this: is there a maintenance procedure for sprinkler systems? What can I do to keep it running in optimal condition? I don't think I have a leak in the line anywhere...

Thanks!

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Mark, I have low pressure on my sprinkler system. I have replaced several heads over the last year and that seemed to remedy my issues temporarily.

With the hot weather here I am looking to use the system again but the low pressure is back and I see I have more heads that need to be replaced.

My question is this: is there a maintenance procedure for sprinkler systems? What can I do to keep it running in optimal condition? I don't think I have a leak in the line anywhere...

Thanks!

If you're not seeing any wet spots, then you likely don't have a leak.

Rather than change the heads when you have bad coverage, just remove the nozzle from the head (unscrews). Inside, there is a small filter that will collect dirt and silt over time and reduces the amount of water coming out of the head. Clean that out. Also, the tip of the nozzle itself can become clogged. You can use a pocket knife to clear them.

The only other thing you could look for is possibly dirt in the line. You can remove a head, turn the system on and let the water gush out of the head for a few minutes. Sometimes that will clear dirt in the line. Be careful to not let dirt back into the line after shutting the system off and getting the head back on.

 

[doc longhorn]

My landscaper (my wife) had our yardmen plant quatities of flowers called "Supertunia - Watermelon charm variety" .  They are in full sun and they floursihed very well, early in the spring.  Now they are dying and we don't know why.

What do you know about them? Yes, they get plenty of water and we haven't hit them with Scotts weed and feed yard fertilizer.  They are just dying for some unknown reason.  There are no grub worms either.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

My landscaper (my wife) had our yardmen plant quatities of flowers called "Supertunia - Watermelon charm variety" .  They are in full sun and they floursihed very well, early in the spring.  Now they are dying and we don't know why.

What do you know about them? Yes, they get plenty of water and we haven't hit them with Scotts weed and feed yard fertilizer.  They are just dying for some unknown reason.  There are no grub worms either.

Supertunias are a hybrid petunia and are a recently developed variety. With hybrids, sometimes their performance is unpredictable.

I can tell you that this particular hybrid is supposed to be fertlized every two weeks using a water-based, mild fertilizer such as ColorStar or Carl Pool. You should be able to get either on Amazon.

If not, then a low cost granular I would suggest would be the Sta-Green Azalea Food 10-5-4. It's a cheap, retail product sold at Lowes. I have about any product I could want at my disposal but have never been able to find anything as good as this stuff as an all around shrub/flower fertilizer. It's great stuff. Apply around the base, water thoroughly for a couple of days.

So with the growers' recommendation being an application every two weeks, it could be that this particular hybrid demands a certain amount of continuous nitrogen that apparently, is now insufficient in your soil in it's natural form. So you'll need to supplement.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Crew member killed this today at a customer's house in Leander. This is Hornsports member LonghornDoc's house. Doc had killed one just as big about a week prior to this. This is a Coral Snake and they are deadly. This is a nice sized specimen.

 
One note - to this point in the season so far, we have killed more snakes than we did the entire season last year.
 
 

 

[SFlonghorngirl]

Wow!! Stay safe SHA and crew!

 

[SFlonghorngirl]

Look at my first garden SHA!  Thanks for your help!!!

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Look at my first garden SHA!  Thanks for your help!!!

Way to go! Looks healthy and vibrant from end to end!

 

[joeywa]

Mark,

I just overseeded my back yard with a sun/shade mix seed from Simplot.  Mainly a rye grass blend.  My question is this; while this stuff is coming in nicely, I wonder what I need to do in the fall.  Do I need to overseed again with the same product, or should I go with something different.  The back yard is very finicky, as there is a ton of shade.  Add to that the amount of rain we get in the fall/winter/spring, and the dogs, it makes for a beast to keep bare spots at a minimum. 

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Mark,

I just overseeded my back yard with a sun/shade mix seed from Simplot.  Mainly a rye grass blend.  My question is this; while this stuff is coming in nicely, I wonder what I need to do in the fall.  Do I need to overseed again with the same product, or should I go with something different.  The back yard is very finicky, as there is a ton of shade.  Add to that the amount of rain we get in the fall/winter/spring, and the dogs, it makes for a beast to keep bare spots at a minimum. 

You're like taunting me, right? lol  . . it's so cool where you're at that you're able to grow rye in summer. Wow.

I would overseed at the beginning of fall and fertilize about two weeks later. Fertilize again at the end of fall. The key to keeping rye going is regular feedings. Rye can go through some nitrogen, fast, so feed every other month and keep the product to something like a 18-18-18 or close.