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Entry bubble Little Tiny Grasslings

By: Sommer | October 05, 2007 | Category: Home and Family

My husband struggled all summer to grow a new lawn to replace the awful clover and weeds that were growing in our 10’x 10’ front yard. He started in June, first with some regular grass seed. Faithful twice daily watering resulted in only partial success so he moved on to a more fool proof product, you know, the seed that’s covered with newspaper and fertilizer (the stuff that’s bright blue?).grasslings I guess it’s supposed to make the germination process a little easier since the newspaper keeps in the moisture and the fertilizer helps it grow. Faithful watering of this particular seed worked beautifully and there was a lush green lawn after about 3 or 4 weeks. I was so proud of him and took faithful photos of the little “grasslings” (his pet name for the baby grass sprouts) that he proudly showed me every evening. It was almost like “happily ever after” until we got to the scorching heat of August and needless to say, he’s back to a clean slate with a lot of dead grass and dirt. He just got done seeding again now that the weather’s cooler. The grasslings are starting to grow and he still loves to show them off. But, now that the grass is growing again we’re coming up on another hard season. Winter! I’m going to do everything I can to make sure the new grasslings don’t die again so here’s our plan:

  • Fertilize: Fall fertilization is key for healthy grass over winter. Use one higher in nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) and lower in phosphorous (P).
  • Rake or clean up fall leaves to prevent damage to your grass
  • Mow one final time if the grass hasn’t already gone dormant or gotten matted down. Be sure to leave the grass at least 2” high, though.
  • In winter, try to avoid packing down snow cover on your lawn and be careful when using snow melting agents on your sidewalks and driveways. If possible, shovel or plow before adding snow melters so they don’t get pushed onto the grass and damage it.

| View Comments [5] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: fall   grass   home   lawn   sommer   winter  

Comments (5):

blue comment bubble Posted by PennsyNut on October 07, 2007 at 11:58 AM EDT

The only thing I can say is: Stop using chemicals. Go organic. The reason your lawn went "blah" is because the chemicals turned to salt and overloaded the ground. Organics feeds the ground, not the plant. You have too much junk/salt/chemicals in your soil. Try URL: www.dirtdoctor.com for some answers and better info than one can give in a blog.

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blue comment bubble Posted by Homechief on October 07, 2007 at 03:04 PM EDT

We planted What they use in parks. It is called Mustang Grass. It will take a lot of punishment and it will keep growing. I had to cut the grass at least twice a week to keep it short.

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blue comment bubble Posted by HR on October 11, 2007 at 05:19 PM EDT

Good to know it's not just me who keeps struggling with this, thanks for the good post.

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blue comment bubble Posted by Golf Pro on October 12, 2007 at 06:01 PM EDT

Did you cover the grass with straw? It makes all the difference.

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blue comment bubble Posted by gaia on October 30, 2007 at 01:14 AM EDT

also, don't plant grass in the first place...head to your local nursery and ask about planting ground cover based on indigenous species. grass is bad for soil, wastes water (something the country is running out of at an alarming rate), and in most places is an introduced species. introduced species (yes, even plants) push native plants and animals from their ecological niches and are the leading cause of extinctions (both plant an animal) worldwide. as we are currently living in the worst extinction event in the entire history of the planet (yes, even including when giant comets wiped the globe clean of dinosaurs), the planting of a grass lawn is only hastening our demise. spread the word! (also, cats left outside, no matter how well fed, will kill up to 300 birds a year or more. the bird family is among the hardest hit by extinctions around the world. spay and neuter your cats, and keep 'em indoors)

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