Lawn Tech: How does one fire up a new lawn?

[Buster Highmen]

good to hear. top dressing in the fall is super important. it helps the root system grow deep during the fall and winter. also, if the fertilizer worked this quick it was a fast release. easy come easy go. water washes away nitrogen and some are washed away easier than others. you could go get some alfalfa pellets (seedless) and spread them on the lawn. they take awhile to break down but they'll last longer and provide a more consistent supply of n.

Cool; great tip; my inlaws, who pasture horses, have a ton of alfafa pellets

We put 2 bags of time release nitrofert on the 7000+ sqft and then it rained a bunch, so I was thinking we'll need more.

We're just going into the dry season here in the PNW, so my plan is to nurse the lawn through summers estivation before laying on the top dressing and fert in the fall. I'm finding more rocks than I remember, so the bounce is pretty erratic.

Is an inch of top dressing too much?

[PNWbrit]

Don't forget the fancy stripes.

No joke.

Cylinder mower is essential for a good grass tennis court maybe even need to pay extra for one with 9 blades to get cut consistent. Probably a heavy roller too.

[shirk]

Gin and Tonics on the Buster tennis court. Are the crisp whites absolutely mandatory, or will modern attire be permitted?

What about these crazy non wooden racquet's? I presume they'll also be verboten.

[Buster Highmen]

Got the roller queued.
I'll use with the current mower to see if it's workable: seeking a balance for fun rather than competing with The All En Gland Club.

[Buster Highmen]

Gin and Tonics on the Buster tennis court. Are the crisp whites absolutely mandatory, or will modern attire be permitted?

What about these crazy non wooden racquet's? I presume they'll also be verboten.

M. Brit has deftly clobbered me with the fact than the G&T is improper quaffage and a Pimm's Cup is plus de rigeur. I much prefer the clean gin to the licorice of the Pimms though.

No whites required, although I _am_ known for my crispiness.

And as long as you don't make fun of my old Dunlop racquet, your new fangled sin thetique racquets may be allowed.

[PNWbrit]

competing with The All En Gland Club.

that would be... ballsy?

[Buster Highmen]

Thy Roid is to Aster as the Savoy is to Pineal.

[lynchdogger]

Gin and Tonics on the Buster tennis court. Are the crisp whites absolutely mandatory, or will modern attire be permitted?

What about these crazy non wooden racquet's? I presume they'll also be verboten.

I prefer to start with Bloody Mary's and steak sandwiches for lunch. Plan on the wife and I flying in for mixed doubles. We'll be staying at the ritz on the Underhills.

Well done! Don't forget to feed the beast every 6-8 weeks right up to dormancy. End the year with two winterizer applications 4 weeks apart. The nitrogen is quick release but not taken up by the foliar / grass blade part of the plant (because it is dormant / not actively growing) but goes directly to the root system. The roots continue to grow thru out the winter as long as soil temps are above 45 degrees.
Grass will take off next year and so on.
I would limit use this year if possible.
If needed top-dress, aerate and over seed in late summer /early fall. If seeding remember to change watering schedule for new seed. Otherwise deep watering is better. Don't forget to aerate at least once a year in fall more often for heavy use at least spring and fall.
Pics!



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[Buster Highmen]

Bloody Marys? Are your whites insured for that?

The last round of slow release nitro fertilizer (fuse detonate boom boom NSA) did a great job and I've got another bag ready for August.

Still have some small bare spots where it looks like the heavy machinery used to prep pounded the soil into a rock. Going around and busting that up incrementally each watering cycle (watering about every 2 days unless it goes above 80F).

Will follow up on the 6-8 week regimen until November or so. I'm going to wait on the top dressing until late October, hopefully before our rains start.

The metal rollers are pricey (like $1k for a 24" wide one) so I've ordered a poly roller that's 24" wide and weighs 250# when full with water.

Currently getting out there and batting the fuzzballs around with my 12 year old son a few times a week. Lots of crappy bounces, but at least the grass in the old badminton area in our teensy backyard is getting a break. Plus my son loves it. So sweet to walk out the door and play rather than driving somewhere.

So far there's been a fair amount of elbow grease applied and I'm fortunate in having made friends with a neighbor whose got all the massive toys (huDge dumptruck, 40 ton, 20 and 10 excavators) so the total cost in clearing, prepping, installing drainage, seeding, fertilizing etc is around 3k.

What I don't get is why more people don't do this. We live in an old funkhole surrounded by million dollar mini estates with enormous lawns, horsie paddocks and other sn00teteria. Most of our property is trees with about an acre in lawn and gardens in the middle surrounded by woods where I plant cedar, doug firs and sitka spruce. But we're the people with the cheesy house and a tennis court.

[Scotsman50]

We need pictures, please.

[Buster Highmen]

Pictures? Eegads man, that takes way too much organization.

And here I thought that my deft stroking of the keyboard could paint the appropriate Watteau or Fragonard of the court surrounded by our dewy draping Sitkas and broadleaf maples, deer and rabbits munching down on the labors of our gaHdening.

I'll see what I can dew.

[Scotsman50]

You word paint well but I wantz to see it as well.....think it's great and different and cool.

[Buster Highmen]

Here's the "before" aerial photo compleeet with the million dollar neighbor to the North whose verdancies are carefully tended by legions of Spanish Speaking technicians.


The court has been installed to the viewers left of our 2000 ft^2 house. You can't see all the trees I've planted either.

[m05583]

When you're planning for new lawn then first thing you need to check out the quality of the soil it will be really helpful in sod installation. You should get to know the latest possible solutions if your land is not good for natural growth of sod.

[Core Shot]

Some here are going for clover. I like the idea. Nitrogen fixing. Rarely mow. Green.
My wife? Not into it.

[SumJongGuy]

When you're planning for new lawn then first thing you need to check out the quality of the soil it will be really helpful in sod installation. You should get to know the latest possible solutions if your land is not good for natural growth of sod.

Service Bot