Felder's Lawn Lifeline

Your lawn is dying, tiny little bits at a time, and it's up to you to keep it going. That may be a bit shocking, but it's the truth. What most folks see as one big carpet is actually thousands of interconnected plants, each living just a few weeks before replacing itself with new runners, leaves, and roots.

The key to keeping a lawn going isn't so much maintaining what is out there but encouraging strong new replacement growth.Otherwise, it simply peters out and gets replaced by other less desirable plants called weeds. I realize that most folks have lawns that are too large to baby or are not all that interested in having a really nice lawn; green and flat is good enough and can last for many years. Don't get me wrong, just mowing works fine, as a casual look around older parts of town and school and church yardsgoes.

If you and your neighbor are okay with fluctuations in quality,you are good to go. But that's as good as it gets; the simple "mow what grows" approach only temporarily keeps the lawn and the inevitable weeds looking neat at a distance. And a weak lawn is slower to recover from insect damage or diseases.

If you want a bit more out of its looks or are tired of mowing tall crab and dallis grass, and your kids and dogs can't tolerate spring stickers in their feet, you need to help your lawn replace itself quickly and steadily with dense growth and deep roots. So, what does your lawn actually need right now, to replace itself by fall?Keep in mind that after nearly half a century as a dedicated nonprofit lawn consultant - on top of MSU Turf Management classes and workshops, and at the Scotts Lawn Institute - I've developed some pretty basic bottom lines about what works and what doesn't. I know I sound like a broken record on this, but like it or not, and whether or not you do it yourself or hire it out, weeds and summer drought toleranceare hugely dependent on one thing more than any other: how the grass is cut.

It's all about solar radiation hitting leaves. Not enough energy, from too much shade or being cut too low, weakens the plants, shutting down roots and new shoots. Over time, the lawn thins out and plants we call weeds quickly colonize and often grow better than the weak lawn.

The lawn can recover, of course, but not if mistreated over and over, especially in hot, dry conditions. Compensating with fertilizer and water can help only so much before causing their own problems. Fertilizing lightly stimulates strong leafy growth, and the nutrients are recycled, sometimes for years, as cut leaves decompose.

And while watering more than once a week causes new roots to remain shallow, watering deeply every couple or three weeks helps root grow deep, quickly. And that's it in a nutshell. The fact is, the lawn you have right now is not the same one you started out with in the spring or will end up with in the fall.

If you want more than just dull flat green, or are tired of weeds, do what is best from the grass's perspective by encouraging dense new growth with deep roots that can tolerate heat and drought, and shade out weed seeds. Mow high with a sharp blade (maybe sharpen the blade now and then), fertilize every couple or three years; water deeply every now and then. Ignore these basics or live with the results.