Garden Column for the Salisbury Post
Darrell Blackwelder
February 9, 2006

      The unseasonably warm weather we’ve experienced earlier has many cool season annual weeds growing like its spring. Many are inquiring wanting to get a head start on their lawns and concerned about these weeds. A frequent question is "I have a lot of annual bluegrass and chickweed in my yard taking over my fescue. What can I do to control it and have a good stand of grass?" My reply is almost always the same; "Determine why your grass is not growing first, and then work toward controlling your weeds." Vigorously growing lawns have few weeds.
   Perfect lawns are difficult, I would say almost impossible, to achieve in our region. Cool season fescue and fescue/bluegrass blends are the predominant grass grown in the piedmont comprising 95% of Rowan County lawns. Weed free turf is especially challenging since these grass types are not well adapted to weather conditions of our area. Rowan County is in a transitional temperature zone that is generally too warm for cool season grasses and too cold for warm season grasses. Maximum growth for turf, especially for fescue in hot weather is indeed a challenge.      Unfortunately, there are no "cookbook" recommendations for promoting a beautiful lawn. There are over 22 different soil types in Rowan County alone not to mention weed pressure, temperature and last but not least, inconsistency in lawn maintenance programs.
    However, there are a number of steps one can take to help even the odds and grow a vigorous, healthy lawn.
**The first step is to have you soil tested and follow the recommendations. Guessing as to lime and fertilization is just that, a guess. Sample kits are available from Cooperative Extension. It is currently a free service provided by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. Improper fertilization and liming wastes time, money and threatens our environment, especially streams and groundwater. It is probably the number one reason why lawns fail.
**Plant or over-seed during optimum growing season for maximum root growth. Cool season grasses germinate and become established during the fall. Roots continue to grow and expand deeply into the soil during cold weather, even at temperatures below 40 degrees. Cool season grasses go semi-dormant and stop growing at temperatures above 85 degrees. Realizing not all can plant at the proper time is indeed a serious problem, but the fact does remain that cool season grasses germinate best in the fall. Odds are of those that plant in the heat of late spring and summer may have to repeat the process again or at least a portion that upcoming fall.
    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