Fungus, winterizer, Pre-M

bwmaier – posted 03 September 2004 04:52

I’ve got hybrid bermuda and live NW of Atlanta near Dallas, GA. I cut the grass last night (bagging the clippings) and noticed several spots where I’ve got some fungus. Since the first frost doesn’t usually arrive until sometime near Thanksgiving, I still have over two months of life left in the grass. Should I treat the fungus? Or, will the weather begin to cool enough that its not worth worrying about this late in the year? Also, when should I apply the winterizer and the fall application of Pre-M? Thanks.

Brian

ted – posted 05 September 2004 19:58

i would go ahead and treat for the fungus, depending upon which fungus it is, and what you’re planning on using. you’ve got some warm weather left,- go ahead and use a phosphorous and potassium fertilizer- no nitrogen to speak of- do the pre-em thing in the spring.

Buck – posted 07 September 2004 09:53

I’m assuming you have confirmed that your problem is fungus and not Mole Crickets. Those critters are particularly troublesome this year.

As to the Pre-M, I’ll hit mine, in North Carolina, about the first week of October and then again the first of March. If you wait until spring wild onions, poa anna, and some other winter weeds will give you a problem. I find that 2 applications is a far better program. MHO

bwmaier – posted 07 September 2004 11:01

Thanks Buck and Ted:

I think the disease is either brown patch or dollar spot. I’m trying to diagnose it. The spots are real small, circular patches. I’m not real good with colors, but it looks like a gray/silver/brown appearance. I applied some Scotts Fungacide earlier this summer. I’ll know next summer to apply some as a preventive measure and not to wait this long. Does this sound like a correct diagnosis of dollar spot? I didn’t notice the problem until after I put two 33# bags of 16-4-8 on my 7800 sq. foot yard. Sounds like I will have to put another couple of bags of the Scotts Fungacide down again soon.

Hurricane Frances is dumping a lot of rain on the yard right now, so this won’t help the fungus problem!

Appreciate the advice on the Pre-M. I used Lesco 0-0-7 Pre-M last fall and this spring and was very pleased with the results. I just couldn’t remember how late last fall I had applied my Pre-M or winterizer. I know I put the Pre-M down in late January/early February this spring.

Look forward to more advice on the diagnosis of the fungus. Thanks again!

ted – posted 07 September 2004 18:33

brown patch has “cigarette burns” on the leaves. fungus is diagnosed by the shape of the spots on the blades of grass. you can do a split ap of pre-ems- pre-ems don’t last very long however, and there’s alot of pre-ems better than lesco. also the pre-em in store bought lesco pre-em stains really badly. i think you got too much nitrogen on the lawn with your fertilizing, and obviously the tropical storm moisture isn’t helping…soil test your lawn for next year, and try cutting back on watering, and nitorgen going into the rainy season- whenever that is in atlanta.

bwmaier – posted 08 September 2004 04:39

What would be a good brand of Pre-M to use that will do an effective job but is economical ($$$)?

The rainy season here in GA is pretty much anybody’s guess. Some years its good, some years its not.

If a soil analysis calls for 8# of 16-4-8 per 1k square feet, is that the same thing as saying to apply 62.4# over my 7800 square foot lawn? In other words almost two 33# bags of fertilizer?

Thanks.

ted – posted 08 September 2004 21:00

yeah, it’s the timing of the nitrogen i’m having a problem with, not the ratio of n-p-k. did you say you had a soil test done? i didn’t read that. pre-ems are expensive- the best one is dimension. pre and post emergent,non staining.

cohiba – posted 09 September 2004 18:54

guys,

As far as pre-m’s go: I use Dimension Liqiud and Ronstar Granular. Love the Ronstar on slopes and hard to spray areas. Works great. Stay away from Barricade-works great but stays too looooong. The Pendimathalin stains too much. And Siduron(tupersan) works very little. The only down fall I find with Dimension is the lack of Goosegrass control.

Just my 2 cents…………..

ted – posted 09 September 2004 21:16

barricade stains, too.

dmr – posted 10 September 2004 14:28

Hey all,

Don’t mean to hijack a thread here, but I have a question along these same lines.

I just recently bought a home outside of Raleigh, NC, and the lawn is sahara bermuda. I don’t have much experience at lawn care, so I’ve been trying to do a lot of reading and get caught up. The lawn has pretty much been on its own since late June because the previous owners moved out a little early and we moved in a little late. My understanding is that it probably could have used some attention and fertilizer in June and July. Since none of that happened, I’m wondering how I ought to handle going into fall. From what I’ve read, it sounds like I should expect the grass to go dormant after the first cold snap, which isn’t that far off up here. Is there anything I ought to be thinking about doing before then?

The previous owner left a bag of Scotts Winterizer (24-3-12) in the garage, but from what I’m reading here, that seems nitrogen-heavy for a lawn that’s probably going to be out cold by early next month. I’d like to avoid raining down death and destruction on our first lawn within the first two months of caring for it, so any general recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated.

ted – posted 10 September 2004 21:25

yeah it’s got too much nitrogen for this time of year. you need to soil test now, and see exactly what your lawn needs, then perform a potassium heavy application. ( like 5-10-31 or something). you could always overseed with ryegrass if you’re looking for winter green-need to get going on both items soon. lay off the nitrogen, that would have been done more in may- june, etc.

Buck – posted 12 September 2004 10:00

Ted’s info about fertilizer is right on; at least that is what I do in Chapel Hill – 25 miles west of you. In general Scott’s recommendations should not be followed for warm season grasses, i.e. bermuda. If you had tall fescue now would be the time to step up the N, hence their Winterizer is high. Also, pay attention to the real topic of this thread, pre-M. I’ll put this down later this week – as your bermuda goes to sleep for the winter it is not going to beat back weeds as it does in the summer. You will also want to apply again in the spring – I will go back with it in early December and then again in early March. I’ve had it trying to control weeds from the top. Never give them a chance to get started is a better idea. Finally, you made no mention of mowing height. I’ve moved up from 11/16 ths that I use all summer to 15/16ths and will stay with that for the rest of the season. Of course this has been a very unusual season – not that hot and a whole lot of rain; more on the way I guess as Ivan works his way in our direction.

A lot of people over-seed with rye for the winter. I used to but no longer. A lot easier to clear leaves from short bermuda than rye that is much longer and I find my bermuda gets a jump of a couple of weeks in the spring compared with neighbors who have over-seeded. And, while the rye is OK, just can’t get charged up mowing it in the winter. The satisfaction you get from passing over bermuda and then looking back just isn’t there.

dmr – posted 12 September 2004 16:47

Thanks much for the advice — I went out this weekend and tried to find 5-10-31 without any luck. I may just not be looking in the right places, but it seems like everything on the shelves is along the same lines as the Scotts Winterizer. I did finally get ahold of a 50lb bag of 5-10-10 and a potassium supplement (0-0-60) that should work out to 5-10-30 in the right proportions. I also came across a document called Bermudagrass Athletic Field Maintenance Calendar (AG-429) that indicates no more than 1/2 lb of nitrogen per 1000 sqft past September, so I think I’ll shoot for 10lbs/1000sqft of this combination early this coming week before Ivan makes its entrance. Based on Ted’s suggestion, I’ll also try to get a soil test done. From the looks of it, NCDA will do them and is just up the road off I-40.

I did take the previous posts here to heart, and this weekend I found a bag of Lesco pre-M that I’ll try to put down next weekend. I was a little disappointed with the weed situation in the yard over the last month, and I’m hoping with this, next year will be a little better. I know bermuda is supposed to be nice and dense and choke out the weeds, but this yard isn’t particularly dense at all, and maybe that’s why I haven’t been all that impressed yet.

As for mowing height, I wasn’t really aware until last week when I started hitting the books that bermuda was supposed to be cut so short. The previous owner kept it at about 2″ and so that’s what I had been aiming for. Now I’m mowing it at 1.5″, although it stays brown for 2-3 days after I mow before greening up again. From what I’m reading, working it down for a while should help with the density situation. I didn’t realize that a reel mower would be better for this grass before I bought the rotary mower I’m using now. Live and learn, I guess, and maybe next spring I’ll look into a reel mower (I’m assuming that’s how you’re able to control the height of the cut within 1/16th of an inch).

ted – posted 12 September 2004 19:54

you’re too early for pre-em- it’s an older type of preemergent. use in the spring. it’s primarily for crabgrass, not winter weeds.