Centipedegrass : lawn maintenance calendar

Centipedegrass Lawn Maintenance Calendar Distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and | une30, 1914. Employmentand program opportunities are offered to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating. NC These suggested management practices will help you care for your lawn through¬ out the year. Location, terrain, soil type and condition, age of the lawn, previous lawn care, and other factors affect tuff performance, so adjust these practices to suit your lawn. March through May Mowing Mow grass to 1 inch. Do not let grass get taller than I /2 inches. NEVER bum off centipedegrass to remove excessive debris. Fertilization DO NOT apply nitrogen at this time. Yellow appearance may indicate an iron deficiency. Spray iron (ferrous) sulfate (2 ounces in water per 1 ,000 square feet) or a chelated iron source as needed. Follow label directions. Grass will green up within 24 hours. Watering Actively growing centipedegrass needs 1 inch of water each week. If rainfall is insuffi¬ cient, you will need to water. Sandy soils often require /г inch of water every third day if rainfall is insufficient. Proper watering helps prevent or reduce problems later in the summer. Weed Control When dogwoods are in full bloom, apply preemergence herbicides to control crab- grass, goosegrass, and foxtail. Apply postemergence herbicides in May if you need to control summer annual and perennial broadleaf weeds like knotweed, spurge, and lespedeza. Do not apply postemergence herbicides until 3 weeks after greenup. Centipedegrass is sensitive to certain herbicides (for example, 2,4-D), so follow label directions and use with caution. Insect Control Check for and control any white grubs. (See White Grub Control in Turf, AG-366). Thatch Removal Power rake (vertical mow) to remove thatch (the layer of undecomposed grass) in late May if it is thicker than '/2 inch. A 2- or 3- STATE UNIVERSITY A&T STATE UNIVERSITY COOPERATIVE EXTENSION Helping People Put Knowledge to Work inch blade spacing set 14-inch deep in one direction works best. A power rake with a 1-inch blade spacing may severely damage the lawn. Renovation Replant bare areas in May using seed (!4 to /2 pound per 1,000 square feet) or sprigs (3A bushel per 1,000 square feet). It’s easier to spread seed if you mix it with 2 gallons of fine sand per 1,000 square feet to be covered. Seeds germinate in 28 days, but establishment is slow. To keep seedbed continually moist, lightly water several times a day for 28 days. It takes up to 3 years to establish a new lawn. (See Carolina Lawns, AG-69.) June through August Mowing Follow March through May guidelines. Fertilization Fertilize with Z2 pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet in mid-June using a high potassium fertilizer like 5-5-15 or 8-8-24. (The third number gives potassium content.) At the coast, a second fertilization in August may help. Use a fertilizer without phosphorus (like 15-0-14, 8-0-24) if soil testing reveals that you already have moderate-to-high levels of phosphorus. Yellow appearance may indicate an iron defi¬ ciency. Follow March through May guidelines. You need to apply /2 pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet, but how much fertilizer do you need to buy? Divide 50 by the FIRST number on the fertilizer bag. For example, if you ’ve got a 5-5-15 fertilizer, you divide 50 by 5 and you get 10. That means you need to buy 10 pounds of fertilizer for every 1,000 square feet of lawn. Watering Your lawn needs 1 inch of water every week. If you don’t get enough rain, you will need to water. Sandy soils often require '/2 inch of water every third day. Weed Control Apply postemergence herbicides as needed to control summer annual and perennial broadleaf weeds like knotweed, spurge, and lespedeza. Centipedegrass is sensitive to certain College of Agriculture and Life Sciences • NC State University School of Agriculture and Allied Sciences and Environmental Sciences - NC A&T State University