Cynthia WarneProgram CoordinatorWSU Master Gardeners of Clallam County

What is it about lawns that makes us love them so much?

• They can make the yard look neat and tidy

• They help us keep from tracking mud into the house

• They are a good place to wrestle with the grand kids

• They are an excellent place to relax and take a nap

• They smell so good after we cut them

• Lawns feel cool and soft on our bare feet

Seed SelectionClallam County gets very little rainfall

between the months of June and October

Certain types of grasses are better suited to our dry summer environment

Choosing the right type of grass for our area will help reduce the amount of water and fertilizer needed to maintain a healthy lawn

“Good”Cool Season Grass Types

Fine Fescues:Relatively easy to get established

Play well with other grasses

Most drought tolerant of the turf grasses

Don’t tend to develop thatch

Needs less frequent mowing

“Good” Grass Types (con’t)

Turf-type Tall Fescues:Moderately wear tolerant

Coarsest cool season turf grass

Drought and water tolerant

Moderately shade tolerant

Bunch type grass-may need occasional over seeding

“Good”Cool Season Grass Types (con’t)

Turf-type perennial rye grass:Specify “turf-type” when buying perennial rye grass

Plays well with others (grasses, I mean)

Requires moderate fertility

Very wear tolerant

Not drought tolerantNeeds full sun

Establishes quickly

“Bad” Grass Types (not suited to our cool marine climate)

Kentucky bluegrass:

Not recommended for Western Washington

Weakens and dies over time

Needs full sun

Not drought tolerant

Susceptible to necrotic ring spot

“Bad” Grass Types (con’t)

Bentgrasses:

High Maintenance

Must be maintained at about ½” in height

Severe thatching problems

Susceptible to many diseases

High water and fertility needs

Not wear tolerant

Only plant Colonial type bentgrasses not creeping type

Trivia QuestionWhy do bentgrasses tend to take over pastures in

our area?

Because livestock eat them down till really short and other grasses can’t survive that type of “mowing”

Other Grasses to Avoid

Zoysia

Bermuda

Dicondra

Centipede

Carpetgrass

St. Augustine

Mondograss

Buffalograss

These are all “warm season” grasses

Plant a Mixture

If you want the “uniform” look, plant 2-3 varieties of the same species

Better yet, plant a mixture of species

Including clover can reduce fertility needs

Any type of mixture will generally be more disease and pest resistant than a monostand

Overseeding (con’t)If lawn coverage is thin, it is a good idea to overseed.

Put out turfgrass seed at about ½ the normal establishment rate after aerating the lawn to fill in the gaps and prevent weed invasion.

Newly seeded grass plants will require some moisture in the soil throughout the summer to survive

If you plan to let the lawn go totally dormant in the summer, do not overseed until fall, and

wait until the rains begin.

That will help you to

SAVE WATER!

Lawns are a piece of cake to maintain….right?

Mowing

Fertilizing

Weeds

Diseases

Watering!!(whew!)

What is Thatch?Thatch is the build-up of undecayed roots, stolons

and stems. Thatch is not the build up of grass clippings

Bentgrasses & some fescues are particularly prone to thatch build-up

A thin layer of thatch is good < ½”More than ¾” restricts movement of air, water,

nutrients, and other materialsThatch build-up is increased by mowing grass when

it is too highDo not overfertilzeFrequent, shallow watering increases thatchKeeping the pH above 5.5 helps reduce thatch

More on Thatch

How Do You Prevent Thatch?

Don’t over fertilize your lawn. Over fertilizing causes aggressive growth of roots

Shallow frequent watering keeps roots on the surface of the soil instead of growing down into the soil

Less frequent, deep, slow watering methods encourage roots to grow down into the soil to find water

Consider holding off on watering lawns at the beginning of the season to force roots to go deeper in search of water

MowingMost lawns are mowed too short and too often

Mow at between 1 to 2 inches -- shorter in spring, longer in summer

Mowing grass when it is too tall can encourage thatch build-up

Mowing grass too short wastes waterand stresses grass. Longer grass shades the soil helping to prevent evaporation from the soil

Keep the mower blade sharp!

More on Mowing

Try not to “scalp” high spots in your lawn. Scalping cuts into the roots and can create dead spots in the lawn

Don’t remove more than 30% of blade length per mowing

If the lawn has gotten too long, mow twice. Wait a couple of days between mowings then adjust the height of the mower deck down on the second pass

Recycle grass clippings into a compost pile, use them for mulch or send them to the municiple yard waste facility

Or……..

“Grasscycling”Consider “grasscycling”. Instead of collecting

grass clippings in a mower bag, leave them on the lawn

Grasscycling does not cause thatch and in fact recycles valuable nutrients like nitrogen back into the soil, thus requiring less fertilization

Be sure to use a mulching mower or mulching blade and don’t remove more than that 30% each time you mow

Clippings are quickly absorbed back into the lawn

Watering and Fertilizing

There are many factors that will determine your schedule for watering and fertilizing. One of the most important factors is soil type.

Generally speaking, sandy loose soils will need smaller amounts of water, more often and smaller doses of fertilizer more often.

Clay soils will need larger amounts of water, but less often and less fertilizer

Loamy soils will need the general applications referred to in the following slides

FertilizingNitrogen is usually the nutrient your lawn needs

most because it is water soluable and is used up quickly by grass and soil organisms

Fertilize lawns in the fall and/or spring, not the summer

You might want to have a soil test done in early spring to determine the acidity and nutrient make up of your lawn

If your soil is very acidic, (less than 5.5 pH) you may benefit from adding lime at about 100 lb. per 1,000 sq. feet before seeding--for mature lawns use no more than 35 lb. per 1,000 sq. feet

Fertilizing (con’t)

For W. Washington lawns, a 3:1:2 (27-7-14) ratio fertilizer is best -- 2-6 lbs. (4 lbs most common) N per 1000 sq. ft. of lawn is generally recommended, spread over 4 applications--spring to fall

Make the last application between mid-November and December 7

Sulfur has been found to improve lawn color, and help control some weeds and diseases

If P and K are not limiting, summer fertilizer applications can be straight N

Excessive nitrogen encourages shoot growth, not root growth

Organic Fertilizing

Top-dressing with high-nutrient compost or other natural fertilizers (e.g., feather meal, dried poultry waste, fish meal, alfalfa meal, dried blood meal, etc.) can reduce or eliminate the need to add synthetic fertilizer

Organic fertilizers tend to be a little slow to perform in spring, but provide good color and growth summer through fall

It may be possible to spread a mix of organic fertilizers with a fertilizer spreader if they are ground or screened small enough

Fertilizing (con’t)Fertilizing encourages healthy growth, however

“more is not better”

Use fertilizer sparingly and only just before watering. Don’t apply fertilizer to a dry lawn without watering it in

Over fertilizing wastes money and causes leaching of nitrogen into groundwater, streams and lakes

Leaching of nitrogen caused by over fertilizing and over watering is harmful to aquatic life

WeedsLawns that are properly maintained are capable of

crowding out most weeds

Pull weeds by hand or use a “Dandy Digger” when possible. Use herbicides sparingly and apply only to the target weed. Use the correct type of herbicide for the weed you are trying to control. Read and follow all label directions…..ITS THE LAW!

Broadcast spraying of herbicides and “Weed and Feed” type fertilizers are generally excessive in application and can cause other landscape problems

DiseasesHealthy lawns can usually fight off most diseases

Be sure to use the right type of grass variety for our area

A stressed lawn is a susceptible lawn

Poor fertility practices,over watering and compaction can all contribute to making your lawn more susceptible to disease

Proper lawn pH also helps prevent disease problems

PestsInsect pests in lawns are not generally a serious

problem in Western Washington

European Cranefly larvae infestations do occur but are rarely so problematic as to need chemical treatment. Healthy lawns can withstand 25-30 larvae per sq.ft.

European Starlings and other birds are the best control for cranefly and usually keep

them in check.

Watering

Watering Wisely

Water infrequently and deeply enough to saturate the root zone (6”-12”)

Lawns with heavy thatch, compacted or heavy soils, and slopes will not accept water rapidly. Water for short periods, rest, and water again until root zone is saturated

Compacted soils may require yearly coring aeration to adequately accept water

Using surfactants may help with water absorbtionMost lawns in Western Washington only need

about 1”of water per week. Two inches per week in areas that get more daytime heat or have sandier soils.

Watering Wisely (con’t)

If thatch is very heavy, remove it. For small lawns a thatching rake may be enough. For larger lawns, a power thatching rake can be rented. Do this in the spring as overseeding will be necessary

Control weeds that compete for water

Over-watering leads to shallow root systems, leaches nutrients, encourages some weeds and can starve roots of oxygen

Watering Wisely (con’t)

Water in the early morning to reduce evaporation and to reduce the incidences of turf diseases

Irrigate when the top 2” of soil becomes dryMost grasses can survive dry periods with minimal

water. Lawns that are not watered in summer simply go dormant until the rains begin in the fall

Perennial rye grasses need some water once a month in summer

Automatic sprinkler systems are usually set to come on too frequently, even if it is raining and usually over irrigate or irrigate often but lay down too little water to reach the root zone

What is Eco-Grass or Eco-Lawn?

“Eco-Lawn” is a mixture of grass seed and broadleaf meadow type plant seed that creates a “lawn” that needs little or no fertilizer or water during the dry season

“Eco-Lawns” are low maintenance and drought tolerant

These types of lawns do require irrigation the first year to get established. After that, maintenance is minimal

They are not intended to produce perfect green lawns.

Eco-Lawn MixesSome plants you might find in “eco” mixes:

Yarrow

English Lawn Daisy

Clovers

Chamomile

Baby Blue Eyes

Why Choose an “Eco-Lawn”?They are intended to provide an alternative for

people who don’t want to or can’t maintain a conventional lawn

They are for people who want to save money on their water bill and fertilizer bills while enjoying life more and mowing lessIf you have to have a “perfect” grass lawn, “Eco-Lawns” are not for you

Other Options

Consider allowing your lawn to go dormant in the summer

If you do choose to let your lawn go dormant in summer, don’t start watering it mid summer and then stop again. This will damage grass plants

Perennial rye grass lawns will need some moisture through the summer to keep from severely thinning out

More Options

What if you designed your landscape to be lawn free?? Or greatly reduced the area of lawn in your landscape to just a small patch??

In Western Washington, low water use

landscapes can be beautiful and

lush with the added advantage

of being low maintenance

WaterWise Garden at the Bellevue Botanical GardenPhotograph by Richard Hartlage