Garden shop retailers stocked with grass seed and fertilizer are ready for the annual onslaught of homeowners desiring to improve their lawn this fall. Unusual hot weather, diseases and general weed problems make many lawns, including my own lawn, look terrible. Below are questions posed over the past week about lawns that may be of interest to those trying to renovate their lawns.
    Question: When is the best time to over-seed fescue lawns? Answer: September is the best time to initially seed or over-seed weak lawns. With temperatures as warm as they are now, seed should germinate rapidly. Try to have seed down by the end of October.
     Question: What are the seeding rates for fescue seed? Answer: Over-seeding thin areas use about 3-4 pounds per 1000 square feet. A new lawn or bare areas should receive about 7-8 pounds per 1000 square feet.
    Question: Can I over-seed with annual ryegrass to have a green lawn over the winter? Answer: Only warm season grasses such as Bermuda grass is over-seeded with annual ryegrass. Ryegrass weakens cool season fescue and bluegrass turf grasses.
    Question: Is there time left to kill weeds with Roundup? Answer: Yes, there is time, but don’t wait too much longer to kill out weeds. When temperatures decline later this month, so does the effectiveness of the herbicide.

    Question: How soon after I plant my lawn can I use broadleaf weed killers? Answer: The lawn needs to be well established before applying broad-leafed herbicides. Mow your lawn at least 3 times before an application. Post emergence herbicides can be applied almost any time of year.
    Question: How soon after my fescue germinates can I mow the grass? Answer: Fescue should be cut when the newly emerging grass reaches about 4 inches. Raise the mower as high as it will go and mow. Make sure the blade is very sharp.
    Question: Should I use straw mulch on newly seeded lawns? Answer: Yes. Bare ground needs clean, wheat straw to hold moisture allowing grass seed to germinate. Use about one bale per 1000 square feet.
    Question: Why do you always recommend a blend of turf type fescues? Answer: A blend of turf type fescues and blue grass survive brown patch much better than a mono culture or single cultivars.

Darrell Blackwelder is an agricultural agent in charge of horticulture with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County. For archived garden columns or other information, visit the Rowan County Master Gardener web site at www.rowanmastergardener.com , e-mail Darrell_Blackwelder@ncsu.edu