After having an up and down winter with temperatures bouncing back and forth from 70 to below freezing, it appears we only have the heat to look forward to for the next 5-6 months.  If you are new to the desert climate or growing grass in the southwest we are just a few weeks away from our annual transition period from winter ryegrass back to our warm season bermudagrass or paspalum lawns.In the weeks to come I will outline the steps that will help take the transition pains away and help you establish a great summer lawn.  The misconception here is that it will take so much water and fertilizer to grow a summer lawn so why waste your time?  The reason to get out there and keep an eye on your turf now is because it actually helps cool the area around your home by up to 40 degrees in the summer, it saves energy, and it is of course it is great to look at and walk on. 

If you start to train your lawn early in the spring and establish a deep root system you will quickly find that there is no need to water any more than 3-4 days a week in the heat of summer.  That should be welcome news to the people that saw a water bill through the roof last year and were watering every day.  The same concept that applies for your trees with water also applies for your lawn.  If you watered your trees every day they would fall over because it would not have a root system and if you water your lawn every day your roots will be so short that the summer heat will wipe out your lawn.  If the roots never have to go down to get water, why would they?  Keep that in mind next time you walk out to apply supplemental irrigation to your lawn.

If you left your lawn dormant for the winter season you probably have noticed that it is starting to get a tinge of green to it and if you have put down your starter fertilizer it probably has greened up quite a bit.  It appears that the next week we will have weather in the low 90’s and then be dropping back into the high 70’s so there is not a need to change your watering schedule beyond two days per week.  If you have an overseeded lawn and the rye looks a little stressed after a couple days there is no need to worry because it will be transition time soon and the earlier the ryegrass is gone the quicker your warm season turf will start to grow.  There is no need to go out and scalp down your lawn to try and get it to transition, and don’t turn off your water, but it is time to watch those mowing heights. 

During the month of April your ryegrass will grow out of control if you go a few days without mowing it so the best thing you can do is not scalp the lawn and gradually start to lower your mowing heights.  It is a great time to put on your starter fertilizer (Soil Burst 5-15-10) to help get the warm season grass awake and growing.  By keeping your mowing heights lower than normal it will start to thin the turf canopy and allow more sunlight to get into your grass down below.  Remember that your warm season turf is not going to start growing for a few weeks from now, but it is never too early to start to eliminate some of the shade on top of it. 

If you have dormant turf and it is starting to green up nicely applying your Soil Burst 5-15-10 granular will help speed up the process and get magnesium and calcium into the plant so the roots can start to absorb other nutrients in the soil.  After this has been down for 30-45 days it is a great time to apply the Soil Burst Green and Strong 16-0-4 or the Seasonal Booster 7-7-7 to get your warm season turf healthy.  The granular will go down at a rate of 10 pounds per 1000 SF on paspalum turf and 18-20 pounds per 1000 SF on bermudagrass.  The foliar products such as the 16-0-4 and 7-7-7 are 1.5 quarts per 1000 SF.  I have a short video at the end of the blog detailing the products and it also shows you how to use them.  There is a technical write up on our web site if you are interested and in the weeks to come I will let you know what product to use when.

We now are offering the Soil Burst line of fertilizers for homeowner and landscape use.  We have often been asked to get the same products we use to grow our grass on the farm, and after years of working on the program we have a great line for you to use and make life simpler.  We are offering some good deals early on for our products and if you are interested they can be shipped to you, or delivered with your sod.  Here are some of the current specials and a short video on how to best use the products below.

Any two foliar products (Green and Strong 16-0-4, Seasonal Booster 7-7-7, or GT 4-0-6) can be purchased for $29.95 + $3.95 shipping (no shipping charge on sod orders and can be purchased for $23.95 for a limited time with sod order)

Soil Burst 5-15-10 (Starter Fertilizer) can be purchased for $19.95 + $3.95 for each 9 pound container. (No shipping charge on sod orders and can be purchased for $15.95 each for a limited time with sod order)

Premium Package (6 month supply for 1000 SF lawn)

This package includes 4 Soil Burst 5-15-10 granular fertilizer containers, 2 of the Green and Strong 16-0-4, 2 of the Seasonal Booster 7-7-7, and 2 of the GT 4-0-6.  Each granular container will cover 500 SF and each foliar container will cover between 500-1000 SF.

Fertilizer delivered with your sod purchase:        Was $134.99, now just $121.50

Fertilizer shipped to your door (no sod purchase)             Was $169.50, now just $152.55

Picked up from our Scottsdale Farm or Casa Grande Office:         Was $144.99, now just $130.50

Economy Package (3 month supply for 1000 SF lawn)

This package includes 2 Soil Burst 5-15-10 granular fertilizer containers, 1 of the Green and Strong 16-0-4, 1 of the Seasonal Booster 7-7-7, and 1 of the GT 4-0-6.  Each granular container will cover 500 SF and each of the foliar containers will cover 500-1000 SF.

Fertilizer delivered with your sod purchase:    Was $67.50 now just $64.12

Fertilizer shipped to your door (no sod purchase):            Was $84.53 now just $80.51

Picked up from our Scottsdale Farm or Casa Grande Office:         Was $72.50 now just $68.87

These are all introductory costs for the fertilizers and I know that will work great for your lawn since this is all we use at our farm.   

I am not telling everyone that they have to use these products, and by no means are they the only fertilizers on the market, but what I am telling you is make sure when you buy a product you are getting the proper nutrition for your lawn.  I caution you against going and just picking any fertilizer off the shelf without first making sure it has a benefit for your lawn.  Time and time again I see products that are labeled for Midwest use on the shelves in Arizona because we grow ryegrass in the winter.  Many stores don’t switch out their products when the season changes and you are often buying the same thing for bermudagrass that you used on your ryegrass. I am one of those rare people that are excited by turfgrass and products that make life easier always helps.

Here is a short video on the Soil Burst products and how and when to use them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2kcJM79wPs 

My next blog will be about the beginning of the transition period and I will shoot a short video on repairing dog damage to your yard while the season is young.  Keep sending me in your questions and I will get back to you that day with an answer.  If you are interested in our fertilizer products please call our office at 800-832-TURF or e-mail info@westernsod.com.

Jay