Zoysia thinning

dottmar – posted 08 June 2004 19:09

I live in SE TN and have Meyer Zoysia that now covers 75% of my front yard. Beginning last season, I decided to become more serious about helping it along to full coverage. I acquired a reel mower, manually dethatched the yard with a rake (makes my shoulders burn just thinking about it), started a fertilizer program recommended by a GC superintendent, and then sat back and watched my yard progress nicely. Early this spring, I had soil testing done to determine any deficiencies, which there were none, and then started into a fertilizer program recommended by the county extension agent. The grass looks very green until I mow, and then it looks dead. Looking up close, the leaf shoots are all growing very vertically and there is space in between them. There is not much thatch, but there is still about 3/8″ of dead “sheath” around the base of the leaf shoots. I did not scalp the lawn at the beginning of the season per the instruction of the GC superintendent, but I have never scalped it in the past either and this is the first time the lawn has done this. Suggestions anyone?