We've ticked over the halfway point of winter and the countdown to spring is on. It's time to start devising a plan and preparing for the growing seasons ahead.
As tempting as it may be to get cracking on lawn renovations on the 1st of September, we need to ensure the conditions are right for a speedy recovery. You should start seeing growth resume in your lawn when the average soil temp gets above 15°C (you can use a cheap meat thermometer to take a reading in the morning and afternoon and get an average) or if you combine the min and max ambient temps to get a number above 36°C consistently.
The start of Spring is an ideal time to audit our reticulation systems, check everything is working as intended and that the coverage is on point. You can get free catch cups from Nutrien Water stores around Perth, or save up some empty tuna tins or something of similar size (as long as it has a flat bottom and straight sides or an even shape, it will do). Scatter them around and put the retic on. Time how long it takes to get 10mm depth in there and adjust your retic timer to suit this. 10mm twice a week is the minimum you should be looking at giving your lawn throughout the growing season in Perth. In the middle of summer, you can bump this up a little further but these deep watering sessions twice a week will encourage the turf roots to grow deeper, which makes the plant much more drought tolerant.
To really kick start the growth, we would recommend 2Spec Accelerate. This is high in upfront Nitrogen for fast growth and an increase in appearance. It will get your grass growing quickly and is ideal for coming out of dormancy or at time of renovation for quick repair. This will last 4-6 weeks and then switch to a maintenance fertilizer such as 2Spec Elevate or Origin for low/fine cut turf. Combine these with monthly applications of Kelpro for root and shoot development, UMX for nutrient availability and improving soil condition and Hydrolink Advance or Retain for reducing soil hydrophobicity and increase moisture retention. You can also buy a number of these products combined in our bundles.
September is also when we need to reapply our pest prevention products such as Acelepryn and Spartan or Onset. Acelepryn will give you around 6 months protection from curl grubs and army worm while Spartan and Onset are a highly effective pre-emergent herbicides which can stop weeds appearing for 4-6 months. These preventative approaches are good insurance to keep your lawn healthy and free from pests as well as reducing the need for post emergent herbicides. This is especially handy with many warm season, grassy weeds which are difficult to selectively remove such as African Lovegrass, Rat's Tail Fescue, Summergrass etc.
If you require any further advice, feel free to send an email or message through the website, we are always happy to help.