Never Spring Seed in Virginia

If you have ever walked into any nursery or big-box hardware store in March or April, then you can't help but notice the shelves brimming with turf quality seed. Seed vendors will inundate you with grandiose pictures of beautiful lawns and green grass.

NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH!

Contrary to what these seed vendors tell you in March, Spring seeding is not a good idea. Now I know there are a few exceptions. If you have a lot of shade, irrigation, and a desire to spend a lot of money on watering, then yes, you can get it to look fairly decent this year.

However, this is not the norm.

What Goes Wrong With Spring Seeding?

There are two major factors that doom Spring seeding. The first is WEEDS. Early Spring is a time when weeds rule. You can either control weeds with a pre emergent or post emergent. The bad news is that both types of herbicides are extremely detrimental to new grass. So you have to make a choice. Either grow grass or fight weeds in Spring. Failure to fight weeds in Spring will cause the ugliest June, July, and August lawn you could imagine.

The second factor is heat. Now if you live in one of the New England States, you may be able to get away with Spring seeding, but certainly not in Virginia. If you plant in March, the new seed will only have about 2 months of growing time before it becomes really hot. At that point, you would be fortunate to have 1/2 of an inch of root system. Imagine what a 90 degree week does to that!

So what you end up with in Summer is a lawn with dead grass you planted and overrun with unabated weeds. Not a pretty site.

So save that money, invest in weed control. Seed in September and October when the weeds season is winding down. Get the steps in the right order and save yourself a bunch of cash!

Use the Winter to Get a Head Start on Weed Control!

Keep Weeds Out of Your Mulch Beds.

Using PREEN or any other similar product to keep weeds out of your mulch beds is a great idea to reduce your landscaping effort each year. Most people limit this practice to early Spring, or only when they are freshening up the mulch. Although this is a great idea, you may be missing a great opportunity to keep even more of this nuisance at bay.

Spring Pre Emergent Control

Just like in lawns, Spring Pre Emergent Control is great for keeping grassy weeds out of the controlled area. Most of these Pre Emergent Controls work by creating a vapor barrier that kills seeds trying to germinate before they can get established. The problem with Spring Pre Emergent is that it doesn't work so well for Broadleaf Weeds such as Henbit and Chickweed.

Winter Time is a Great Time for Pre Emergent Control

A lot of weeds (including Henbit and Chickweed) lay dormant in the ground just waiting for that 60 to 70 degree spell. Like a sprinter at a track meet, as soon as any hot spell hits, it starts to germinate and get the process rolling. It doesn't matter if it is November, December or January. That is why these are some of the first weeds we see everywhere in early April. By putting a Pre Emergent down in December or January, you can rest assured that as soon as we are getting any warm spell at all,  you are killing those weeds before they have a chance to reproduce.

Not a Perfect Solution

If you like planting seeds for flowers, you will have to consult the label to make sure the product you are using does not kill the type of flowers you are trying to grow. If it does, then I guess you have a choice to make. I strongly recommend you read and follow the directions on any and all weed control products. If you do not, you may not be happy with the outcome.

Starting with brown spots, Liriope may develop brown, withered foliage during winter in some areas.  Also the fungal disease anthracnose may leave the plant tattered. Whether cold or disease is the problem, a well-timed trim is the solution.

Tip

If you looking to contain these plants, I have some bad news. Pruning will not control meandering Liriope. Only digging up and discarding them or spraying them with root-killing glyphosate or diquat herbicide does. Herbicide use requires repeat treatments and shielding nearby plants from the drifting spray.

Timing the Trim

The best time to trim Liriope's damaged old foliage is anytime before its healthy new foliage emerges in spring. Otherwise, you'll shave the top of the fresh growth as well as the old growth. Fall trimming of anthracnose-blemished plants -- in warm-winter climates, at least -- keeps them looking good until spring.

Cutting back cold-damaged foliage can wait until anytime between January and April, depending on when the threat of subzero temperatures subsides in your area.

Choosing Your Method

Trim a large Liriope planting with a weed eater; for edgings or border-accent plants, hedge trimmers are easier to manage. Hedge trimmers are also better for cutting lilyturf with sprouting leaves because the tool can cut just above the new growth.

Making the Cuts

Try to cut the plant at 3 inches.

Tip

The most important factor is to trim the blades high enough to protect each lilyturf's crown, which is the part just above the soil line and from where new leaves emerge. Setting the blades to cut 3 to 4 inches high should keep the crowns safe.

Use the hedge trimmers like a giant pair of scissors. Kneeling, hold the trimmer grips firmly, and slide the blades into the foliage 3 to 4 inches above the crowns. As you cut, keep the blades horizontal and parallel to the ground. Otherwise, the trimmed plants will look uneven and spiky.

Warning

After trimming anthracnose-infected Liriope, rake up as much of the old foliage as possible, and dispose of it in sealed plastic bags. The removed foliage harbors spores that can reinfect the plants during wet weather.

Spotting Bermudagrass

 

Brown Patches in November/December

I get calls all the time from customer worried about their lawns. They typically go something like this: "My lawn is turning yellow! What's killing it?" 

The common concern is a fungus is taking over. The reality is quite different. Almost always, the culprit is the patches of Bermudagrass in the lawn start to turn brown. 

No Cure for This

Although some might think this a result of some lack of effort from their lawn care provider to have prevented this catastrophe, this could not be further from the truth. When it gets cold,  warm season grasses (Bermudagrass included) go dormant and turn brown. There is good and bad in almost everything in life. the good thing about Bermudagrass is that it is tough, thick, resilient, and drought resistant. The bad side is that it looks TERRIBLE in cold weather.

You Have Options

When it comes to Bermudagrass you do have a couple of options. The first option is to kill it in the Summer time. If you use the right cocktail of Bermudagrass Killer (I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT ROUND UP OR ORNAMEC - WORTHLESS!), then you can kill it off in July and August. After this is accomplished, you can reseed these areas in September and October.

If you have a lot of it or do not have in ground irrigation, I don't suggest this as an option. The reason is the chemical needed to control it is very expensive and you will not be able to keep it out permanently without being able to irrigate the weaker grasses in the heat of summer.

A second, lower cost, option is to just embrace the Bermudagrass in the Summer and cover it up in the Winter. This can be accomplished by simply aerating and overseeding these areas with Perennial Rye in September/October. The Rye will keep it green over winter and quickly die off in June. About the time the Bermudagrass is in full stride. This way you never have to spend money on watering the lawn.