Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - My backyard is dying!!!!!! HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yournamehere · 06-12-2009, 08:21 PM

It might be your location and your choice of grass. Tall fescue is a cool season grass, and grows best when the high daily temperature is between 60-75 degrees. Did the problem start when the temperature started hitting 80?

North Carolina is in the pesky Transitional Zone, which means that your summers are too hot for cool season grasses; yet your cool springs and falls (and, winters, of course) will shorten the growing season of warm season grasses, and they'll go dormant except for summer. Since, IIRC, Winston-Salem is at a fairly low elevation, you might be better off with a warm season grass like Bermuda, Zoysia, or St. Augustine. It really depends on which part of the year you want your lawn to look its best.

If you want the best of both worlds, re-plant with bermuda, and overseed it with ryegrass every fall (It's time to overseed after two consecutive weeks of the low temperature at night being below 60). That way you'll have green grass year-round. St. Augustine doesn't turn brown when it's dormant (Bermuda does), but IMO, it doesn't make for as nice a lawn. But then again; you don't have to overseed St. Augustine - it just stops growing when it gets too cool, but stays green (and doesn't need mowing

) . There is also a fescue called "Turf type fescue" that does better in warm climates than tall fescue.

If you decide to stick with what you've got and just keep watering it regularly, my bet is that it will start looking better again in the fall when the temperatures go down. Tall fescue needs 0.75-1.00 inch of water per week during drought conditions (like a hot summer). Since you have clay soil, you should water frequently for short periods of time - like 0.25 inches every other day. If your soil is so clayey that it starts to run off or pool without soaking in; then give it 0.12 inches every day. Don't irrigate on days that it rains, though. And, as has been said before, water early in the morning (not at night though - then you run the risk of growing fungus).

Since you're not using a proper irrigation system, calculate your precipitation rate this way: Get a few short glasses from your kitchen cupboard (the more the better); place a horizontal line on them exactly an inch from the bottom of the inside, and place them randomly around your lawn, within reach of your sprinkler. Turn on the sprinkler and time exactly how long it takes to fill most of the glasses to the line. Prepare to get very wet while checking. That will give you the time it takes to deliver an inch of water to your yard. That's how long you should water per week. If I were you, considering your soil, I'd water it 1/7 of that time every day.

You really should install an irrigation system - it will save you hours of work every month and pay for itself in saved water bills within a few years. Many more lawns (and plants) die from over-watering than from under-watering.

If you end up starting over, use a warm season grass.

EDITED LATER: Oops - I see you are using the turf type fescue. It still could be too hot for it, though. Have you asked your neighbors what type of grass they're using?

06-12-2009, 08:21 PM	#15 (permalink)
yournamehere Invisible Location: tentative, at best	It might be your location and your choice of grass. Tall fescue is a cool season grass, and grows best when the high daily temperature is between 60-75 degrees. Did the problem start when the temperature started hitting 80? North Carolina is in the pesky Transitional Zone, which means that your summers are too hot for cool season grasses; yet your cool springs and falls (and, winters, of course) will shorten the growing season of warm season grasses, and they'll go dormant except for summer. Since, IIRC, Winston-Salem is at a fairly low elevation, you might be better off with a warm season grass like Bermuda, Zoysia, or St. Augustine. It really depends on which part of the year you want your lawn to look its best. If you want the best of both worlds, re-plant with bermuda, and overseed it with ryegrass every fall (It's time to overseed after two consecutive weeks of the low temperature at night being below 60). That way you'll have green grass year-round. St. Augustine doesn't turn brown when it's dormant (Bermuda does), but IMO, it doesn't make for as nice a lawn. But then again; you don't have to overseed St. Augustine - it just stops growing when it gets too cool, but stays green (and doesn't need mowing ) . There is also a fescue called "Turf type fescue" that does better in warm climates than tall fescue. If you decide to stick with what you've got and just keep watering it regularly, my bet is that it will start looking better again in the fall when the temperatures go down. Tall fescue needs 0.75-1.00 inch of water per week during drought conditions (like a hot summer). Since you have clay soil, you should water frequently for short periods of time - like 0.25 inches every other day. If your soil is so clayey that it starts to run off or pool without soaking in; then give it 0.12 inches every day. Don't irrigate on days that it rains, though. And, as has been said before, water early in the morning (not at night though - then you run the risk of growing fungus). Since you're not using a proper irrigation system, calculate your precipitation rate this way: Get a few short glasses from your kitchen cupboard (the more the better); place a horizontal line on them exactly an inch from the bottom of the inside, and place them randomly around your lawn, within reach of your sprinkler. Turn on the sprinkler and time exactly how long it takes to fill most of the glasses to the line. Prepare to get very wet while checking. That will give you the time it takes to deliver an inch of water to your yard. That's how long you should water per week. If I were you, considering your soil, I'd water it 1/7 of that time every day. You really should install an irrigation system - it will save you hours of work every month and pay for itself in saved water bills within a few years. Many more lawns (and plants) die from over-watering than from under-watering. If you end up starting over, use a warm season grass. EDITED LATER: Oops - I see you are using the turf type fescue. It still could be too hot for it, though. Have you asked your neighbors what type of grass they're using? __________________ If you want to avoid 95% of internet spelling errors: "If your ridiculous pants are too loose, you're definitely going to lose them. Tell your two loser friends over there that they're going to lose theirs, too." It won't hurt your fashion sense, either. Last edited by yournamehere; 06-15-2009 at 01:19 PM..