I’m going to have to interrupt my planting / landscaping columns to cover a few timely issues that are dominating our phone lines at Possum’s. I will try not to go in too much depth, so I can cover more topics. If you want more details, we can help you with your questions at Possum’s.
Moles are doing their fall tunneling, and they are everywhere! The three step method of control still gets the best results. Kill the mole. Traps, mole patrol and talprid seem to work best. Manage the moles food source. Sevin, Aloft, and Grubz Out are very good at killing moles food supply. The third step is to apply a repellent to keep new moles out of the yard. Holy Moley and Mole and Vole repellent do a very good job. With the repellents, you can create a barrier around your property, so you use less repellent and save money.
Large Patch / Brown Patch / Zoysia Patch have been in lawns this fall; however, the lack of rain was keeping it to a minimal. The recent rains made it explode in some yards with those all too familiar circles of disease. In our warm season grasses, these diseases can be in irregular patterns as well as the circles. Map the areas you see the disease, since the disease is in the soil it will tend to reappear in the same areas. Turn off the irrigation. Correct any thatch, compaction or drainage issues. Apply Cleary’s, Prophesy, Dual Action Fungicide, Serenade (organic) or Disarm. Add Neptune Harvest’s Crab Shell (organic) product to the area to add beneficial organisms to the soil to combat the bad organisms. We have also seen for ourselves and heard from customers that the use of Cotton Burr Compost really helps with this disease.
Yes, you can still winterize your turf – it is not too late. Look for a product with a 00 for the first number (nitrogen). A 00-00-25 with sulfate of potash and minors would be great. If you do not need the potash, consider SeaHume a wonderful combination of seaweed and humic acid. The seaweed has over 60 minor nutrients, amino acids, and bio stimulants. The humic acid is also full of bio stimulants that help make nutrients that are in the soil available to the plant, help with soil structure, grow roots, and feed the microorganisms in the soil. Both these products can be used together and will help your yard this winter and next spring.
If you have not lowered your mower height to help reduce winter kill, now is the time.The lower cutting height will remove the leaf blades that trap the cold air near the crown of the plant. Most of the winter kill occurs on Centipede grass that has a lot thatch and is tall (over 1.5 inches).
Now is the time to collect soil to get on a program for 2011. If it has been 30 days since you applied a fertilizer, why wait? Beat the spring rush of soil tests at the lab (and my desk if you use Possum’s). If you have any amending to do (lime, etc.), you do it over the winter and be ready for spring. Having a soil test and program is like having a landscape design; it gives you a roadmap to follow, so you are applying the right products at the right time for your soil.
Yes, you still have time to plant bulbs. A little 04-04-04 Bolster, Bio-Tone Starter Plus, M-Roots, and / or SeaHume should get them off to a good start.
Always read, understand and follow product label. The product label is a Federal Law.
