Lawn Striping

I am by no mean a hater, but I'm also not a big fanatic of baseball. I also did not really pay much attention to grass until a few years ago. Because of these two reasons I did not really know about lawn striping until driving through the Ohio-Kentucky area a few years back and noticing that the grass had striping patterns in it. While driving around I noticed it quite often and wondered why I did not see it very much in Florida. I more recently learned that it is because most warm season grasses are more rigid and do not bend as well. In addition to this, it is more common to use rotary mowers in the south which do not create patterns unless a roller is attached. So how do the professionals create that striped pattern? Patterns in the grass are created by bending the grass blades in alternating swaths. Grass that its bent towards you appears darker while grass that is bent away from you appears lighter due to the reflection of the sun. Bending the grass is accomplished by a roller which bends the grass downward while mowing. Here are some keys to creating a nice striping pattern.

• Have the right type of grass - Most cool season grasses stripe very well because they bend very well. Warm season grasses are more rigid and do not bend very well. Bermuda, and zoysia grass are two warm season grasses that stripe fairly well but not as well as cool season grasses.
• Have the right mower or attachment - Reel mowers already have rollers attached to them as part of their function and additional rollers can be added if desired but rotary mowers will need some type of roller attachment which are on the market.
• Height of the grass - The grass must be fairly tall to stripe. The higher the cut is, the more the grass will bend. 
• Icing on top - A final touch to make the pattern really pop out is to water it right after creating the pattern. This will make the reflection of light even more noticeable.

 There are many guides as to how to actually get out there and make these patterns work. I have found this guide to be very helpful in learning how to create striping patterns in the lawn.

 

"Winterize" your Gas Powered Equipment

What may be even more important than winterizing your turf is winterizing your small gas powered lawn equipment. Your equipment goes dormant just as soon as the grass does and it will be laying around receiving no use for the duration of winter which can be anywhere from a couple to several months out of the year depending on the climate of your region. With the introduction of ethanol blended gasoline it is even more important to properly store your equipment if you want it to start up again in the spring. Here are some things you should do before putting your equipment to rest for the winter.

• Use E-free gas to begin with - Gasoline that is mixed with 10% ethanol has became the standard at pumps over the past 10 years. They are even starting to produce a 15% ethanol gas blend. Gasoline that is blended with ethanol is especially harmful to small gasoline engines. It can pull water into the fuel and corrode parts of the carburetor and create gummy varnish deposits. Ethanol gas blends are most harmful when they sit in the engine for longer than 30 days.You can find your local gas station with E-free gas here, or by googling it.
• Clean your equipment - Although not the most crucial element to winter storage, it is a good idea to clean grass debris and other gunk that has built up on the exterior and inside of plastic housing components. 
• Change the oil (for 4 cycle engines only) - Old oil can contain acids, water, metal particles and other grime. It is better for this to not be sitting in the engine over winter where it can cause corrosion. 
•  Disconnect battery cables - If  you have a riding mower, or any type of equipment that uses a battery, it is best to disconnect the cables from the battery to eliminate energy loss from the battery.
• Properly manage the remaining gasoline - This is easily the most important aspect of properly storing gas powered equipment. When it comes to dealing with the gas at the end of the season there are two different approaches. One is to drain the gas, and then start the equipment and let it idle until all gas is burned off, the second is to add a fuel stabilizer and let it run through the fuel system and let the remaining gas stay in the tank. My suggestion: pick one of these methods and stick to it! The alternative, letting gas sit in the engine for several months, is much worse than either of these. Some people swear by burning off the gas while some people say that it is better to use a fuel stabilizer. This goes back to the first point about the ethanol gasoline. 
• Storage in a dry location - Keeping water off and out of your equipment will keep it happy and healthy for a much longer period of time. 

There you have it. For the lazy homeowner (like myself sometimes) who doesn't want to do all of this and just thinks this is what the people who are way to serious about there equipment do, I would tell you that you may be able to skimp on a few of these tasks, but if you skimp on the gasoline care, you will likely be making a trip to the mechanic in the spring. Following all of these guidelines will help keep your equipment in good condition and give it a longer life.

Preparing Your Lawn for the Winter (Winterizing)

With the seasons changing and the weather getting cooler a lot of garden centers have been selling a "winterizer" fertilizer that is supposed to prepare the lawn for the low temperatures of winter. Until I worked at a garden center I had never even heard of this special fertilizer and chances are, unless you are an avid gardener you may not have either. Every fertilizer has a unique three number analysis correlated with the letters N (nitrogen), P (phosphoric acid), and K (potash). Other micro-nutrients may be included as well but N,P, and K are considered to be the primary macro-nutrients needed by the plant in larger quantities and they will always be displayed in the fertilizer analysis on the bag. Each nutrient serves the plant in a different way so the analysis may vary depending on plant species, available nutrients in the soil, and time of year.

A winterizing fertilizer should be looked at from two perspectives. That of cool season grasses and warm season grasses. Winterizing means a totally different things for the two. For southern warm season grasses it means trying to encourage root growth with potassium without stimulating new fleshy growth with nitrogen. For cool season grasses it means applying a higher rate of nitrogen in the early fall when the grasses are thriving. Therefore the fertilizer analysis for both will be quite different and caution should be taken to make sure you are buying the right kind for the right climate and type of grass.

A winterizer for cool season grasses might have an analysis similar to this (26-3-12) and could be applied in early to mid October. A warm season grass winterizer should look something like this (5-0-20) and should be applied no later than the end of September but preferably earlier in the month.

In southern lawns if you are following a regimented fertilization schedule throughout the year it may not be necessary to use a winterizer. It might actually just cause nutrients to be leached out of the soil and into the ground water. Because of this, some people think that using a winterizer is just a marketing gimmick and is not really necessary. I would tend to agree. At least if you are fertilizing some during the year. If you have not fertilized at all during the year than I do think that applying a winterizer could be helpful if applied in early September, but wait much longer and it could be a waste or even harmful if it has too much nitrogen.

Helpful Rousources:
Fall/Winter care for cool season grasses
Fall/Winter care for warm season grasses

Declaring War on Weeds

Walking around outside I can see many lawns that are quite nice and yet are tarnished by weeds. Sporadically located straggly weeds can ruin the beauty of an otherwise nice looking lawn. Or maybe there is a whole patch of weeds where turf is desired. Either way, weeds are not desirable and will out-compete your grass if not kept in check. Weeds can also be viewed as indicators of other underlying issues with soil or environmental conditions that need attention. The simplest definition of a weed is "a plant out of place". By this definition, a typically desirable plant like St. Augustine grass could be considered a weed if it is located in the middle of a predominately Zoysiagrass lawn. Weeds are typically very tough plants that can grow well in adverse conditions such as drought, very little soil (cracks in the concrete), poor soil quality, extreme heat, etc. This is what makes weeds so darn pesky. There are several ways to prevent and combat weeds. The best way to manage weeds is to prevent them before they can even sprout by maintaining a thick and healthy lawn. When weeds do pop up there are several options depending on the type of weed your are dealing with and the time of year.

Know Your Enemy

Weeds come in many types, shapes, and sizes. They are either warm season or cool season and can be broken down into three groups: the broadleaves, the grasses, and the sedges. Within these broad groupings, weeds can be either  annual - growing for one season and dying, biannual - growing for two seasons and dying, or perennial, growing for three seasons or more,. These groupings will help determine what methods of control and what herbicides should be used. 

A Healthy Plentiful Army is Crucial

Your army is your lawn and the more healthy and full it is, the less weeds you will have. Therefore weed control begins with the selection of a turfgrass species that is suitable to its growing environment and proper turf management practices. Proper fertilization, pest management, watering, soil drainage, and mowing will be key in keeping your army of turfgrass ready for battle. A full and healthy lawn shades the soil preventing light from reaching weed seed and causing them to germinate. In addition, thicker grass does not allow much space for weed competition. 

Weapons of War

Although not very appealing, in smaller areas, hand weeding can be a very effective method of controlling weeds. When hand weeding, it is necessary to remove root and other underground portions of the plant otherwise it may grow back. For certain annual weeds, simply mowing them off before they go to seed can be an effective form of maintenance. This type of control will not be effective in most scenarios. In relatively small areas where you are trying to remove entire patches of weeds, smothering with a tarp can be an effective option. When necessary, herbicides can be quite effective if used properly. Herbicides are categorized as either post-emergent or pre-emergent.  Pre-emergent herbicides are used to kill weeds while they are germinating before they can arise from the soil. Therefore they must be applied before the weed can even be seen. This means applying them in early spring for summer annuals, and late summer/early fall for winter annuals. Post-emergence herbicides are applied after the weeds have emerged from the soil. They can be taken up by the weed through the leaves or the roots. Herbicides are also considered either selective or non-selective, meaning that it may kill everything it comes in contact with (non-selective) or it may only kill certain species (selective). The most well known herbicide on the market is probably Round-Up which is a non-selective herbicide that kills everything it comes in contact with. This type of herbicide therefore is not very suitable where there is turf intermingled with weeds. Selective herbicides are needed to eradicate weeds from within the lawn and different types of weeds require different herbicides. Whenever using an herbicide or pesticide always read and follow the label, damage to turf as well as bodily injury can occur if they are handled incorrectly. There is a plethora of resources available online on this topic, I highly recommend looking into them. Here is a useful resource geared towards weed control in southern lawns.  

A Dummies Guide to Mowing

It's easy right? Just fill 'er up with gas and cut that grass! Mowing does not exactly seem like a science, and except for your dad telling you to overlap your mowing rows so as not to leave any stragglers behind, not much instruction is passed on from one generation to the next when it comes to mowing. Here are a few tips that our dads may or may not have left out of our lawn mowing initiation.

Selecting a Mower Type
The two primary types of mower on the market are rotary mowers and reel mowers. The rotary mower certainly wins out in the residential market whereas gasoline powered reel mowers are more widely used in professional settings like athletic fields and golf courses. Besides the method of cutting, the primary difference between the two mower types is the quality of cut, with the higher quality going to reel mowers. Even though reel mowers provide a higher quality of cut they require more maintenance and are harder to adjust which is why they are typically left to the professionals. If there is a mixture of weeds in the grass, the reel mower may have some trouble cutting them if they get too tall. For typical home use, I would recommend purchasing a rotary mower.                              

Mowing Height
Why does mowing height even matter? When we mow, it is like cutting off a plants head or arm or leg, or however else you want to look at it. The bottom line is that we are removing a part of the plant that was originally useful to it and we are essentially injuring it. The portion of the grass blade that is removed is a loss in photosynthetic potential as well as stored carbohydrates for the plant. This reduction in photosynthetic potential and carbohydrates consequently affects the root growth below ground. Taller grass equals a larger root system. Shorter grass equals a smaller shallower root system. This becomes very important when it comes to water availability in the soil, especially during drought conditions. The deeper the roots can go, the more water they will have available to them. the grass also serves to shade the soil, this shading affect reduces weed seed germination. Therefore if grass is cut too short it could encourage weed growth because of reduced shading. And as can be seen in the table below, some grasses simply have a preferred height of cut based on field research. 

Table 1. Recommended Mowing Heights for Lawn Grasses
Turfgrass	Cutting Height in Inches	Mowing Frequency
Cool-season
Kentucky bluegrass	Winter: 1.5 to 2.5	High
	Summer: 2.5 to 3
Fine fescue	Winter: 1.5 to 2.5	High
	Summer: 2.5 to 3
Tall fescue	Winter: 2 to 3	High
	Summer: 3 to 3.5
Ryegrass	Winter: 1 to 2.5	Medium
Warm-season
Common bermudagrass	1 to 2	Medium High
Hybrid bermudagrass	0.5 to 1.5	Very High
Carpetgrass	1.5 to 2	Low
Centipedegrass	1.5 to 2	Low
St. Augustinegrass	2.5 to 4	Medium to High
Zoysiagrass	1 to 2	Low to Medium

Source: Clemson Cooperative Extension: Mowing Lawns
Mowing Frequency

A general rule when it comes to mowing frequency is to only remove 1/3 of the leaf blade when mowing. For example if the grass is 3" tall you should only mow it to 2" tall, removing 1" of the grass blade. You can also calculate this in reverse order. If you have St. Augustine grass and you want to maintain it at 4" tall you should cut it when it reaches 6" tall in order to remove only 1/3 of the leaf blade. Following this rule will minimize stress on the grass. In reality are you going to go out with a tape measure to the grass? No. But this is a useful principle that can be determined pretty accurately with the eyeball test.

Mulching Vs. Bagging
It is easy to think that because the lawnmower comes with a mulch bag that it is proper procedure to collect the leaf clippings while mowing. This however is incorrect. By mulching (allowing the grass clippings to return to the soil) the nutrients from the leaf clippings are recycled back into the soil and taken up again by the grass. The only scenario that I would advise collecting leaf clippings is if the 1/3 rule mentioned above has not been followed and you are getting a significant buildup of clippings on top of the grass. This buildup can kill the grass underneath it if significant enough. Either bag the clippings while mowing or come back afterwards and use a rake or blower to spread them out.
Blade Maintenance
The lawnmower blade should be sharpened every spring and possibly more often depending on how much use it gets. A sharp blade produces a cleaner cut of grass that will not fray and turn brown at the tips.

Final Odds and Ends to Consider

It is best to cut grass when it is dry. This will reduce the amount of clumping of grass clippings and clogging of the mower. Try to avoid scalping the grass which often happens on uneven ground. Scalping is when the mower blade gouges into the grass, cutting one section very short or even into the soil. Final instructions: have fun! Mowing is a blast!

Grass Roots Initiative

How much do you like grass? Well, if you like it a lot, entering into the "Grass Roots" exhibit, opening October 16th at the U.S. Arboretum in Washington DC, could be likened to entering a wonderland of grass. If grass brings up bad memories of countless hours spent mowing your five acre lawn with a push mower when you were nine years old than you may want to avoid this attraction when you make a visit to the U.S. Arboretum. One thing I can guarantee however, is that whether you really like grass or hate its' guts, this new exhibit will prove to be extremely educational and interesting to all.

The Grass Roots exhibit hosted at the arboretum is part of a larger scale project called the "Grass Roots Initiative" which is a collaborative effort by U.S. Arboretum (run by the USDA Agricultural Research Service) and the National Turfgrass Federation (NTF). The purpose of this initiative is to increase the awareness of the importance of turfgrass to the environment and our society, demonstrate new technologies that improve maintenance practices, address and update national turfgrass research priorities, and have an impact on policymaking by bringing policymakers together on the topic of turfgrass. For the average homeowner, the Grass Roots exhibit is sure to be a very comprehensive and interactive experience with turfgrass. It should be very practical, to the point where information learned at the exhibit can be taken back home and used in the home lawn.

The 10 exhibits that will be on display at the U.S Arboretum include:

•  A golf display featuring a USGA green, a tee, and a fairway
•  A sports field featuring a comparison of natural grass and artificial surface
•  A lawn display featuring seven species of warm-season turf and six species of cool-season turf
•  A Kentucky blue-grass mowing “demonstration” area and information about proper mowing techniques
•  A “History of the Lawn” walk
•  A rain garden with grasses demonstrating grasses’ ability to absorb water and filter nutrients
•  A display featuring USDA research on poverty oat grass (Danthonia spicata)
•  A fertilizer display
•  An irrigation element showing common components of irrigation systems and an interactive   irrigation pressure demonstration
• And agricultural grass crop displays which will include a display of how perennial ryegrass is grown for seed production

 In addition to the physical exhibits, the initiative will potentially include a symposium on turfgrass sustainability and resource efficiency, numerous workshops, public policy forums, and demonstrations as well as updating scientifically vetted content on its website.

If I have a chance to visit this exhibit during its duration I will not pass it up. I'm sure that discussions and debates will be stimulated as to whether you agree or disagree with the information provided by this initiative which I believe is healthy. As a student studying turfgrass culture it is important to be aware of the current events happening in the industry such as the Grass Roots Initiative. To those who are homeowners seeking to manage their lawns with excellence, it is also good to know about these opportunities for fun and interactive education!


Sources:
The Grass Root Initiative: A Science-Based Focus on Turgrass
Grass Roots Main Webpage
Grass Roots Initiative Launched at the National Arboretum

History of Turf on Florida Field: a Lesson about Synthetic and Natural Turf

I was never much of a fan of history lessons in elementary school but my feelings towards the subject have since changed, especially when it pertains to the horticulture industry. And the history of turfgrass on Florida Field (also known as 'the Swamp' and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium) is no exception. Although the stadium has three different names, the field has always been called Florida field which is how I will refer to it here. The field has gone through several phases of development since its beginning in 1930.

A Brief History of the Turf at Florida Field

1930

Construction of Florida Field.

An unknown variety of natural turf was used.

1971

Installation of "Doug's Rug", nicknamed after the coach

who pushed for the new synthetic turf.

1980

"Doug's Rug" removed and replaced

with new synthetic turf.

1990

Steve Spurrier has synthetic turf removed and replaced

with Bermudagrass. For at least a portion of this time

the variety Tifway 419 Burmudagrass was used.

2012

Florida Field gets complete make-over.

New soil substrate  as well as a different turf variety called

Celebration Burmudagrass

Why so many changes to the field over time? Turfgrass has always been the standard for playing fields until another option became available with the introduction of synthetic turf in the mid 1960's. Doug Dickey was the head coach of the football team at the time of the initial transition from natural turf to synthetic turf. In reference to the new turf, Dickey said, "it's important to the total athletic image here." It has also been said that the purpose for the turf was to "keep up with the Jones'". Statements like these make it clear that the shift to synthetic turf was not motivated based on a desire or scientific backing for a better or safer playing surface. When Steve Spurrier became head coach in 1990 he had the synthetic turf removed and replaced it with bermudagrass stating that natural turf was safer for the players. In an article written about the 2012 renovation of Florida Field, Chip Howard said, "every seven to 10 years you need to completely renovate a grass field." It was time to replace and regrade the soil in the stadium and put new turf in. The univeristy had used Celebration Burmudagrass on several of the other playing fields for several years and had been very pleased with its performance. Celebration Bermudagrass has an excellent wear tolerance and recovery time as well as good drought tolerance.

Celebration Bermudagrass on Florida Field

  Discussion

It is at this point that I would like to discuss the pros and cons to Synthetic turf and natural turf. It is my opinion that just as in a court of law where the accused is assumed innocent until proven guilty, natural turfgrass should be assumed superior until proven otherwise. This removes the pressure from natural turfgrass and puts synthetic turf in the hot seat as it should be. New things are always the ones that have to go through extensive testing, and I can tell you with confidence that synthetic turf is newer than natural turf. To begin the discussion, here are the issues at hand: safety, cost, durability, and environmental factors. Natural grass has been the status quo for...all of time. Therefore synthetic turf must purportedly have some superior qualities to turf. The tagline for the synthetic turf industry is "less maintenance and better for the environment". Although you do not have to mow synthetic turf there is still a significant amount of maintenance involved. More Green? No. They are able to market this because synthetic turf does not require fertilizer or insecticides. What Synthetic turf does need is fungicides and bactericides. It also does not have the multitude of environmental benefits such as providing oxygen, temperature cooling, and water catchment and percolation. There are numerous safety hazards associated with synthetic turf such as increased ACL injuries, grass burn (from high temperatures and friction), MRSA, and potentially cancer. This, along with player preference are probably the two most important factors when debating this issue. An overwhelming number of professional athletes prefer to play on natural grass over synthetic due to safety reasons and a change in the feel of the game. Some even refuse to play on synthetic. All of this is not to say that there is not potential for synthetic turf in certain applications but much more research and development should be done first. I believe the sports turf team at UF made a good decision in returning to natural turf.

Sources

Florida Field Undergoes a Facelift as New Playing Surface is Installed

$200,000 Plastic Pasture Touchy Subject at Florida

Gator Astroturf Goes on Sale

Natural Grass and Artificial Turf: Seperating Myths and Facts