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We are currently applying our Early Summer Step 3 Weed-Control/Fertilization Treatment. This treatment consists of a granular 31-0-9, with 40% slow-release nitrogen. The fertilizer needs to be watered into the soil with about ½” of moisture if no rainfall occurs within 4 days. We also treat any existing broadleaf weeds with Trimec broadleaf herbicide and Dismiss herbicide for Nutgrass. As we get into late June and July, grassy weeds and Nutgrass come into play, so MSMA grassy weed herbicide and Dismiss nutgrass herbicide are applied also. If existing weeds were treated, irrigation needs to be delayed at least 2-3 hours in order for the products to be fully absorbed by the weeds.
Aeration on Warm-Season Turf
Early summer is a great time to aerate warm-season turf. Our new Super Soil Treatment is also being applied in June and July. See the page on Optional Services for more information, or schedule this service on our website.
Primo Turf Grass Regulator
We’ll begin Primo applications in June for warm-season turf. If you are tired of mowing your lawn too often, Primo is a turfgrass growth regulator that does a great job of slowing down the growth of the grass by about 50% over a 5-6 week period. Call our office for more information, or schedule this service on our website.
Lookout for Turf Diseases
Be on the lookout for Brown Patch disease in fescue lawns during mid-summer. Irregular brown patches with sometimes wilted turf can be a sign that disease is present. Adjust your watering so that your turf is irrigated only in the mornings, about 2 times per week on average. DO NOT water in the evenings, allowing the turf to stay damp all night. This will increase your chance for getting turf disease. See our web page on turf disease for more information.
Tree & Shrub
Azaleas need to be fertilized sometime from mid-May to late June. Our Azalea fertilization service not only provides proper feeding of your Azaleas, but we also add a booster treatment of granular Merit insecticide to cut back on Lacebug problems. Call our office for more information.
Nutsedge Taking Over Tulsa Lawns!
If your lawn or garden’s beauty is marred by a bright yellow-green grass-like weed, chances are you’re in a battle with nutsedge. Also commonly called yellow nutgrass or water grass, this vigorous plant produces wide triangular stalks in threes from a center point at ground level. Other similar sedges are purple nutsedge and green kylinga, which are very difficult to control. Being a sedge, it thrives in damp soil conditions, which we obviously have had with the excessive rain for the past several months.
Nutsedge is a perennial weed that is hard to get rid of because it reproduces itself from tubers or nutlets beneath the soil. These tubers can survive even the coldest winter. Each nutgrass plant can produce thousands of nutlets, which can then sprout more weeds as each season progresses if left un-checked. It’s often seen in patches, with one plant leading to hundreds more in the same area.
Conventional pre-emergent herbicides do not work on nutgrass, so it just needs to be sprayed as it comes up. It grows more rapidly in low, wet soil, and we have sure had our share of wet soil this spring in Tulsa. It is easy to pull up, but when doing so, you’ll leave the nutlets in the ground, which will lead to even more plants sprouting up soon.
There is a new product we are using named Dismiss, which does a better job of controlling nutgrass and other sedges after they come up. We are one of the few companies that uses this product (it’s very expensive) to control Nutgrass and other summer weeds. We are using this product in conjunction with Echelon, another new product, during Step 3 of our 7-Step Showcase Care Program. If you want to upgrade your service level to Showcase care, now is the time to do it, as we can apply this special weed-treatment during May, June, and early July. Click here to upgrade to our BEST Showcase Care Program.
Nutgrass is one of the most difficult weeds we battle during the summer months. I’ve been in the lawncare business for 25 years in the Tulsa area, and it seems to be getting worse every year. It’s mainly an environmental factor—record rains leading to wet, saturated soil. As the soil dries out, hopefully, on into the summer and early fall, nutgrass growth should slow down.
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