Are there any lawn and garden aficionados that can help this city girl keep up with the Jones'? I'm losing my grass to weeds. It seems to have stopped its summer growth, or at least slowed down in the last few weeks. I found a missing (unopened) bag of lawn food / weed killer in the garage. If I sprinkle some on now, will my poor neglected lawn suffer, or be better for it? The temp right now is mid 70's - high 60's. Would I be better off waiting till early spring?
Yes, winterizer is a must. But in the spring you must start regularly treating your lawn if you want its health to improve. Scott's 4-step program is very good. If you have a lot of crabgrass you must put crabgrass preventer down early in the spring to prevent it from germinating when it gets warm.
At your local garden center there are WINTERIZER fertilizers with a weed preventer. They are cheap but be sure to use the correct amount. You will most likely need a spreader. (maybe borrow one?) They all have settings on them that allow you to distibute just the right amount. The back of the fertilizer bag will tell you what to put the setting on. Don't wait too late, the weather gets too cold quickly for fertilzer and you don't want active growing in the winter either.
Try putting some lime down now for making your soil sweet. I also read to put down regular granulated sugar a week or so later just before a hard rain or you have to water it in. I'm assuming that it discourages ants-they would have a good time in that sugar. I use 5# per every 5,000 sq. ft. These 2 procedures are supposed to sweeten your soil & feed the good micro-organisms that feed on weed roots. This is only my second time with the sugar so I can't guarantee it works but it can't hurt. I did this in the spring & did it again this fall. Good luck!
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