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healthy lawns If you do have and want to keep your lawn, then it is important to keep it as healthy and vigorous as possible so that it can tolerate most levels of crane fly larvae feeding. Here are some of the key ways to keep your lawn in high vigor. Grow lawns only in sunny locations. Significant shade weakens the turf. Remove the build up of thatch. Thatch is old grass stems that build up on the surface of the soil, under that green blades you see. Thatch restricts the movement of water and nutrients into the soil and the roots of the grass. Removal of thatch is done mechanically with equipment that is usually rented or hired out. Another way to boost the strength of the root system besides removing thatch is the process of aerification. Aerification is also usually done mechanically with rented equipment. This process cuts and brings to the surface soil and root cores that then reintroduces oxygen into the soil, which results in stimulating root development. Aerification also improves the movement of water and nutrients into the soil. Mow your lawn regularly. The correct mowing height is a function of the type of grass species in your lawn. Bentgrass predominates in most older lawns here in Whatcom County. Newer lawns often are comprised of mostly perennial ryegrass and creeping red fescue. Bentgrass produces much more thatch than ryegrass and fescue, although all will benefit from dethatching. Bentgrass should be mowed much lower, to about ¾ of an inch, while the newer lawns containing rye and fescue should be mowed to 1 to 11/4 inches in height. During the summer this means mowing every week or so, as you never want to remove more than 1/3 of the total grass blade length. Waiting longer between mowing and removing more of the grass blade weakens the grass. When you mow, leave the grass clippings on the lawn, as they provide a safe source of recycled nutrients and thereby reduce the need to additional fertilizer. If the grass is wet when you mow, you may need to knock the clumps apart so not to smother the living grass below. I find that the back of a lawn rake works well. Lawns do need some fertilization, although not as much as is sometimes applied. Mulching your cut grass clippings directly on the turf also reduces this need as well. Research indicates that grass benefits from more nitrogen and potassium than phosphorus, which is good, because phosphorus is a direct and major threat to surface water, such as Lake Whatcom. So look for fertilizer that has the three numbers in this ratio 3-1-2 or 6-1-4 or close to it. The first number is nitrogen, the second, and the one to minimize in the Lake Whatcom watershed is phosphorus, and the last number is potassium. If you want a green lawn in the late summer, then irrigation is important. Having said that, your lawn will not die, but rather go dormant, with a brown color, in the summer without irrigation with no harm to its overall health. The root system of a healthy lawn is at least a foot deep in the soil. Watering should de done infrequently but sufficiently long enough duration so to wet the entire root zone. This means applying about one to 11/2 inches of water every four to six days and nothing in-between. These infrequent but deep waterings build a deep and strong root system. You can easily tell how much water you are applying by placing an empty tin can or two out on your lawn to measure the collected spray. Make note of how much time it takes to collect an inch of water in the can. So, all of these management actions highlighted above help make a strong and healthy lawn that can easily tolerate the attack of crane fly on most lawns. This approach should be the first line of defense and will greatly reduce the need to take any other action, including the use of insecticides, on your lawn. If you suspect that your lawn is under an unusual level of attack by crane fly, then its time to employ some more IPM tactics. continued.....
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In this article...
Introduction Smart
Management  Grow
healthy lawnsThe
cycle of life Monitoring
and decision- making |
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See also: "ECF
& CCF" - by Sharon Collman
"Managing ECF in Whatcom Co." - by Todd Murray and Scarlet
Tang"ECF-
Management History & the loss of Dursban" - Antonelli
and Stahnke |
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