“Lawn”-gevity

By on Mar 13, 2014 in Grass |

So what IS under all that snow and ice that has covered your lawn for months? Beer cans? Mole damage? Vole damage? Snow mold? Interesting alert yesterday from my friend Kevin Frank at Michigan State University. He was looking at the potential damage to the Poa annua on putting greens but is it possible some of that damage could carry over to our lawns? His point was the ice storm of December 21-22 coating everything including any exposed turf in ice followed by the polar vortex and snow event after snow event to follow. This has created a continuous layered cover of snow and ice for months. Could some death of turfgrass occur due to oxygen depletion and toxic gas accumulation from soil microbial respiration? What about the layer of leaves you never removed from the lawn because winter started so early and you never got around to it? As they say in the industry “stay tuned”...

Are you “Shear”-ious?

By on Apr 19, 2012 in Grass |

I love ornamental grasses because they come in a great variety, are easy to grow, drought tolerant and give 3 to 4 seasons of interest. By sometime in April you should have your ornamental grasses cut back. You can divide them too if you haven’t done so for a few years and if you have the energy. With some homeowners I have noticed a problem the past few years which falls under the are you “shear”-ious category when it crops up. I have had samples of turf brought to me the past few years like the one pictured here:               When we have a mild fall and winter season here in Michigan we will get turf samples where Pennisetum ornamental grasses like Hameln or Moundry will seed in the turf. This causes panic for the home owner in spring as it begins to outgrow the desirable turf. Maintain your “composture” if this...