Fighting the drought in my yard
I was off Tuesday, and my wife, Cheryl, and I spent much of a hot, humid day toiling in our side yard, raking patches of grass left dead by this summer’s drought, spreading more topsoil, then grass seed, then straw, then water.
When heavy rains followed, I hoped the seed didn’t all drain into little pools.
This summer’s drought devastated our lawn. I hesitated to sprinkle and run up a big water bill. How, Cheryl asked me, is buying topsoil and grass seed—now close to $100 worth—saving money? She has a good point.
I’d started the project a week earlier, but even that effort was delayed after I read a story in the Aug. 24 Gazette. Doug Soldat, UW Extension turf grass specialist, suggested waiting until Sept. 1 to see if some of those dead spots might regenerate on their own. They didn’t, and when I started raking Aug. 29, it seemed obvious why—the mats of dead grass were too thick and likely smothering any grass stems that might want to grow from below. I was surprised at the amount of dead stuff I gathered.
We didn’t go to the extreme a homeowner down the street took. It looks as though that homeowner used a rototiller on the entire lawn to start from scratch. I’m hoping we don’t have to resort to that. Each day, I’ll be inspecting the patches of straw with hopes of seeing new seedlings popping up. They need to grow before the falling leaves smother the new crop.
It has been a long, hot, dry summer. I wished we’d watered more. Cheryl was right—again.
Greg Peck can be reached at (608) 755-8278 or gpeck@gazettextra.com. Or follow him on Twitter or Facebook
Sep 10, 2012 at 11:24 p.m.
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Drought? We had a drought this year?
My in ground sprinkler system came on at the most efficient times, as always.
I fertilized and mowed as regular as in years past.
Walked barefoot and picnicked with the grand kids on lush green grass all summer long.
Life is good.
Sep 10, 2012 at 10:43 p.m.
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Gee whiz folks, it's only grass.
It's not your livingroom carpet.
It's dead 6 months of the year anyways, just let it be and it will come back.
Mine did (East side of Jvl). I did not water one drop and have to do no re-seeding.
The rain lately did good and more is on the way.
Sep 10, 2012 at 7:23 a.m.
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All summer long, I mowed and mulched at a higher setting. I watered only occasionally and over 90% of my lawn is still green and healthy. I will add seed over my entire lawn with a spreader this week to help fill in those bare spots. I learned a long time ago to adjust the height of my mower according to weather conditions. Taller grass chokes out weeds and retains moisture. Sure, you may have to mow more often but it seems to work for me. Good luck, Greg.
Sep 7, 2012 at 4:45 p.m.
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I turned mine into mostly gardens. About 10 minutes to mow our 4 patches that are left. Took out 2 pathces this year. Used to be 6 patches and 15 minutes. ;)
was plesently surprised by my water bill trying to keep flowers alive. I did use a rain barrel when it had water in it.
Sep 7, 2012 at 2:36 p.m.
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Good grief -- Wisconsin is not yet in need of xeriscaping, something that is appropriate where the rainfall is similar to what we have had this year EVERY year. Even with climate change, that's not likely to be the case.
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At the same time there really is no need to water your lawn as much as many people do -- it actually makes it less healthy. It's quite possible to grow a healthy, vibrant lawn in Wisconsin under normal weather conditions and water it only during the heat of the summer. The major environmental concern we have here isn't water nearly as much as it is runoff from fertilizer, which contaminates surface and groundwater. If you fertilize more responsibly, water less liberally, and mow higher less often using a sharp mulching blade, you'll do 80% of what you need for a great lawn and spend less time and money doing it.
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Wisconsin's own superb horticulture expert Melinda Myers has plenty of good advice for those contemplating changing how they do things.
http://www.melindamyers.com/item/drought...
http://www.melindamyers.com/category/law...
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Best thing anybody reading this can do right now is go out and buy her book, the Wisconsin Lawn Guide. It's available online and at a few places locally.
http://www.melindamyers.com/Gardening-Bo...
Sep 7, 2012 at 8:23 a.m.
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Get use to it Greg, all the Cheryl's of the world are always right !
Sep 6, 2012 at 8:02 p.m.
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I had the bad spots thatched, put down grass seed and have been watering almost every day. I did try to water during the hot spells, but it did not do any good where the sun beat down on it all day long. I think it "cooked" the lawn. Hopefully we will have some cooler weather now and the new grass will get a good start before winter.
Sep 6, 2012 at 5:47 p.m.
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I think you should go down to the store and pick up a lawn vacuum to get those leaves.
Sep 6, 2012 at 5:33 p.m.
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my moneys on Doug Soldat for lawn info, but swansong has the better idea...conservation of resources is no joke, and I'm not sure why we are not all conserving water at every opportunity...xeriscaping is a great idea and should be the focus of the re-planting effort
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/garden...
Sep 6, 2012 at 3:11 p.m.
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People scoffed when I said I was watering. That's why. Lawns don't go dormant forever. After a few weeks they die. Sorry. Now listen to Cheryl more. She's much wiser than you give her credit for!!
Sep 6, 2012 at 3:07 p.m.
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Nothing like walking barefoot through nice new grass. We live in a climate much different than yours and we spend far more than you for water and usually spend a few hundred each year on our lawn and we cannot grow the nice grass you have in Wisconsin. Sooner than you think you will be in an old folks home and will look out over a parking lot.
Sep 6, 2012 at 2:11 p.m.
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How sad that you continue trying to maintain a wasteful (and water wasting) grass lawn. This was a wonderful opportunity for you to rethink your approach and change to more environmentally-friendly landscaping that doesn't need supplemental water (or lots of chemicals).
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