Outdoor Halloween Decorations That Won’t Damage Your Turfgrass

Halloween is right around the corner, which means, it’s time to start getting out the end of year decorations. However, if you just overseeded your lawn for the fall, you’re probably wondering how you can decorate without damaging your newly seeded lawn. Before you get out the graveyard scene and inflatable pumpkins, consider how you can protect your newly overseeded turf from damage by taking a more strategic approach to decorating this year.There are a variety of options for Halloween lawn decorations that will preserve the health of your turfgrass. Read the rest of this entry »

Batter up!

With baseball season going in post season, you may be wondering, how do they keep the grass so green? Despite heavy foot traffic, unruly weather conditions and off-season use, baseball fields are notoriously known for their prestigious presentation. The main cause for the luscious green appearance of the field obviously comes from proper field maintenance, but the bigger, more important factor starts with the type of sod used on the field itself. There are four types of sod for baseball fields that are commonly found throughout MLB stadiums. See which varieties made the list for most popular turgrasses in the major leagues. Read the rest of this entry »

A couple weeks ago I put out a post on overseeding and now that we’re through September it’s time to get the process started. Click here for the previous post on overseeding for full instructions. In today’s blog I wanted to pass along some of the most frequently asked questions during this time of the year.

When is the best time to start overseeding?
Ideally overseeding should be done when nighttime temperatures are consistently in the 60’s. Typically this will be the month of October. Obviously there will be some spikes and lower than normal temperatures during this period but anytime during October is good.

How low do I need to scalp the grass prior to seeding?
The height of the grass isn’t as important as opening the turf canopy. The shorter you mow the grass, the tighter the turf canopy will be which will result in the need to verticut more aggressively. I recommend not going lower than ½”. There is no need to take the lawn to the dirt or you will cause long term problems to the grass plant. Read the rest of this entry »

With the recent heavy rains and slightly cooler temperatures no doubt people are thinking about overseeding their California and Arizona lawns. While the calendar says September 18th and you will surely see people overseeding, I suggest you wait a few weeks. Follow my California and Arizona sod tips for a beautiful lawn. Overseeding does not need to be a one day process. You can begin the process a little early. Then, when temperatures are in the 60’s at night, you will just need to give your lawn one last haircut, drop the seed and begin watering.

Preparing to Overseed

Prepping for overseed is often a large ordeal. By starting the process gradually you can eliminate the headaches associated with trying to do it all in one afternoon. I want to reiterate something I have been saying for the past few years. The height of the grass is not associated with a quality overseed. In other words scalping the grass down to the dirt does not guarantee good results. Opening up the turf canopy does.

The shorter you mow your lawn the tighter the leaf blades become. This makes it harder to get the ryegrass seed into the plant. If the seed is lying on the surface it will be slow to germinate and much of the seed will be lost. The seed needs a base to grow out of. Getting inside the grass plant allows for perfect moisture, heat, and a solid growing medium. By looking at my last statement you can now understand why I say without a good warm season grass base (used on popular California and Arizona lawns) you will most likely have a poor ryegrass season. The seed will establish much faster inside a healthy grass stand than it will on bare dirt.

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The Best Turfgrass for your Golf Course

When it comes to cultivating a luscious green golf course year-round, there’s no easy solution. It takes a groundskeeper and a dedicated commitment to maintenance to achieve a healthy course that can endure the yearlong golf season. For best results, most golf courses tend to use a mix of turfgrasses. Read below for our favorite types of sod for golf clubs. Read the rest of this entry »

Summer is wrapping up, the kids are heading back to school, and I’m sure you’re ready to come out of hibernation. While the summer heat is far from over in Arizona and California, it’s starting to become tolerable outside. With the slightly cooler mornings it’s time to get back outside and get your lawn ready for fall. Most people start thinking about overseeding their California and Arizona sod in September, but ideally you wouldn’t start the process until October when nighttime temperatures get into the 60’s. Between now and then there are some important steps you need to do to get your lawn ready and to save some headaches down the road.

Between May and September you probably noticed your lawn has grown at twice the rate it does during the winter months. Warm season grasses love the warm, wet weather. Most people thought the hot weather would keep the grass from growing well, but remember warm season grasses optimal growing temperatures are between 90-105 degrees. During this season any of your weaker areas should have filled in with the warm season grasses runners. These spots can be slow to fill in during the dry, hot days but as soon as the humidity kicks in the grass really takes off. If you still have large open spots I would suggest picking up a few rolls of sod and patching them prior to overseed. You don’t want to seed directly into the soil.

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Heat Stress or Drought Stress?

There are two general environmental stresses that can affect lawns during the summer: heat stress and drought stress. Depending on conditions, your turfgrass could have one, the other or both at the same time. Understanding the difference between the two, what they look like and how to respond to them accordingly will help you prevent the potential long-term damage that they cause. We will mainly focus on dealing with a drought stressed lawn, however our turf experts want to provide you with an understanding of both. Read the rest of this entry »

Save time and Money with Proper Summer Watering

Did you know: more lawns are killed each summer from over-watering than under-watering? Unlike people, your turfgrass doesn’t need 8 glasses of water a day. Even if it’s upwards of one hundred degrees outside. How often your lawn needs water depends on various factors such as soil type, amount of sunlight, grass type and regional climate. However, on average, most lawns need an inch to an inch and a half of water per week to stay lush and green. Before you set your lawn’s summer watering scheduling, read through these tips provided by our California and Arizona sod experts. Read the rest of this entry »

Which California Sod is Best?

Unfortunately, every grass expert will have a different answer to such a loaded question. With so many different varieties of warm season turfgrasses available, choosing the one that’s the best fit for your lawn may be easier said than done. The best way to decide which California Sod variety is the right choice for lawn is through a bit of research.

When reading through the large varieties of warm-season grasses, consider how much time you want to invest in maintaining your lawn and what type of durability it’ll need to have. Once you know the answer to those two main questions, choosing the right California Sod type will become a lot easier. To help you with the process, we’ve included some information about some of the most popular California Sod varieties available. Read the rest of this entry »

Revolutionary Turf Removal

Gone are the days where golf and sports field renovations are a long drawn out process that requires a large team in order to execute the process properly. With new revolutionary turf removal equipment, you’ll no longer need to worry about manually uprooting and removing turf, finding a way to recycle it and then waiting for the soil to recover. Read the rest of this entry »