By Darrell Blackwelder

For the Salisbury Post

Lawns are beginning to look very good now with warmer weather and the recent rains. Cool season fescue and bluegrass blends require quite a bit of maintenance incorporating both fertilizer and pesticides for insect and weed control in the annual program.

Many people seek the perfect manicured lawn, but there are many homeowners who are abandoning this goal, giving way to organic or limited pesticide use for lawn care. Some have adopted the concept of “if it’s green, it’s a lawn.”

Those who do not use weed control products will have weeds, but lawns will have fewer weeds and look better with a few basic lawn care concepts. Below are a few tips that may reduce disease, insect and weed problems with the reduced use of chemicals.

• Make sure your soil fertility is correct. Have soil tested every two years to ensure maximum growth. Guessing on fertility is a major problem. Correct fertility at the right stage of growth will reduce brown patch.

• Raise mower height. Research has proven that the closer lawns are mowed, the higher incidence of weeds such as dandelion and annual bluegrass. Tall grass shades weed seeds, reducing sunlight needed for germination. Those who mow closely to reduce growth generally have mostly weeds.

• Mow often and leave the grass clippings. Grass clippings add organic matter to the soil, supplying nutrients. Turf specialists reveal that leaving grass clippings can reduce fertilization needs 25 percent.

• Keep the lawnmower blade sharp. Dull mower blades make turf grass jagged and unsightly. Jagged turf also is a prime candidate for the spread of foliar fungus diseases.

• Mow late in the afternoon when the grass is dry. Mowing grass laden with dew or wet from a rain has a higher incidence of brown patch and other foliar diseases.

• Irrigate lawns in the early morning. Deep but infrequent watering encourages roots to penetrate deeper into the soil. Watering in the evening encourages pathogenic fungus disease such as brown patch.

There are various types of organic fertilizers on the market. If you plan to use manures, be sure they are well composted. Non-composted manure is a haven for many weeds and will increase weed populations. Alfalfa meal, cotton seed meal, blood meal are all sources of nitrogen (the primary element needed for green plant growth). Bone meal supplies phosphorus necessary for root expansion. Rock phosphate is a mined material also supplying the major nutrient for maximum growth.

Darrell Blackwelder is the retired county Extension director with horticulture responsibilities with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County.