# Moving on from TruGreen, Need Help



## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

So for the past two years I have been using TruGreen and I have decided to move on. I am tired of paying their prices and not being satisfied. I will make my back story as brief as possible.

Moved into my house 4 years ago, last year decided to treat myself to a new riding mower, got a John Deere Zero-Turn Z335M W/42" with the mulching blades on. I live in Flemington, NJ. And as far as I know I Have tall fescue grass. TruGreen has done aeration and over seeding the past two years and I have thrown down a bunch of seed as well.

Now that I am moving to doing it on my own, it looks like I should start with Milorganite this week? I have a Scott's drop spreader, so what setting would be best for this? Also, should I use anything else or am I good to start with the Milorganite? Last year I used truGrow in the backyard and still have a huge bottle of that as well. Should I start using that again?

My last question is why when I mow do I get lines in my grass? I must be doing something wrong with the mower. I have posted some pics of my lawn so you can see what I am working with. I have about 1.2 aces of land, but the grass is not nearly all of that. I guess I could measure, cause I am not really sure how much square footage of grass I have.

I am sorry if I rambled and was all over, just trying to get it all out there.

Thanks in advance for your help!


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

Welcome to TLF.

1.2 acres is a decent size. Try to get the grass area. It will be more economical to have a wheel sprayer for that size. One mounted on the John Deere or a pull behind.

Give this a good read since it should help answer some of your questions. https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=1595


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

Howdy. I grew up in Clinton. Nice to see some Hunterdon County representation here!

I don't see what you are referring to about lines. Tire tracks?

When did you fire TruGreen? Did they put anything down yet this year?


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

g-man said:


> Welcome to TLF.
> 
> 1.2 acres is a decent size. Try to get the grass area. It will be more economical to have a wheel sprayer for that size. One mounted on the John Deere or a pull behind.
> 
> Give this a good read since it should help answer some of your questions. https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=1595


Thanks I will start reading!



gm560 said:


> Howdy. I grew up in Clinton. Nice to see some Hunterdon County representation here!
> 
> I don't see what you are referring to about lines. Tire tracks?
> 
> When did you fire TruGreen? Did they put anything down yet this year?


Hello neighbor! Not sure where you are now!

True green was just here on June 6! If you look at the bottom two pictures you can see where there is a thin line where grasss looks a little higher? Am I crazy? It bothers me but nobody else seems to see it. I've had the mower checked out several times so it must be me?


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

Westfield. But still have family in Hunterdon.

Any idea what they put down a month ago? Most people advise against too much fert during the summer. Might consider holding off until August.

It's tough to see in pictures, but I believe you. Could it be low spots in the lawn?


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

gm560 said:


> Westfield. But still have family in Hunterdon.
> 
> Any idea what they put down a month ago? Most people advise against too much fert during the summer. Might consider holding off until August.
> 
> It's tough to see in pictures, but I believe you. Could it be low spots in the lawn?


I do, included a pic of last invoice!!!

Do you know about Milorganite? Supposed to be slow release??? I'll post a cropped version of the line too.


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

By the looks of that invoice, it appears you have (or TruGreen was treating) about 8,500 sqft.

Here is my take, based on what I see and know. Others feel free to correct me if I botched any math or descriptions.

Looks like they put down about 0.65 lbs of this stuff in June:
https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/greenbook-assets/L97106.pdf

Basically a chemical fertilizer (urea) with some included insecticide meant to keep grubs from munching on the roots of your grass.

Milorganite is a little different. It is an 'organic' fertilizer. I put quotes around organic b/c some people still don't love the source... it is made from sewage sludge from Milwaukee, WI. So basically processed poop.

I think Milo has some pro's and cons and you can decide if it makes sense for you. I will do my best to mention them here.

Pros:
-Since it is from "natural" sources, you are providing more benefits to the soil, not just giving chemicals to green up the grass.
-Contains Iron, which helps provide a quick green after application.
-It is weaker than many chemical ferts. The analysis on the chemical product that TruGreen put down is 19-0-2. That means it is 19% Nitrogren. If you put down too much Nitrogen you can burn or even kill your grass. Milo is a 6-4-0, so only 6% Nitrogen. This makes it much more user friendly. Its also easier to "spoon feed" your lawn, or give it a smaller feeding while still getting even coverage.

Cons:
-The big one.... Its expensive. Not sure how much TruGreen charges, but a bag of Urea is pretty cheap and goes a long way. To get the same level of N as the June app, you would need to put down 3 bags of Milo (36 lbs each). At my local HD, they are like $13. So you are talking ~40 per app.
-It smells a little bit. Not like what you would expect swage sludge to smell like.... but there is a distinct Milo smell. I have actually learned to like it, as I would think others have. It also goes away in a day or 2.
- It is slower than chems. Milo takes a little for the green up. It usually looks best 5 or so days after you apply.

I may have missed some stuff. Others can chime in.

FYI, there is a local version of Milo called OceanGro. @ericgautier mentioned it to me in the past, but never used it. Its tougher to find than Milo which is usually carried by HD, Lowes, Walmart, etc.

http://www.ocua.com/OceanGro/SitePages/Home.aspx


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## TN Hawkeye (May 7, 2018)

The low stripe in your lawn looks about the width of a blade. Was a washer or spacer put on the inside of the blade instead of the outside? Is it consistent or does it come and go?


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

gm560 said:


> By the looks of that invoice, it appears you have (or TruGreen was treating) about 8,500 sqft.
> 
> Here is my take, based on what I see and know. Others feel free to correct me if I botched any math or descriptions.
> 
> ...


Actually, I just checked and the receipt says that I have 8,600 square feet of grass... So if I used my Scotts Turf Builder Drop Spreader, what should I set I ton? TruGreen was about 90 an application.


TN Hawkeye said:


> The low stripe in your lawn looks about the width of a blade. Was a washer or spacer put on the inside of the blade instead of the outside? Is it consistent or does it come and go?


I have no clue about a washer or spacer as I don't know how to do that. I had two people check it out and they said the deck was level and they sharpened the blades. Both places said it was level. I can call the local guy and ask him. I am also using mulching blades...

Here are a few more pics.


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

Unfortunately I can't tell you what setting to put it on. Depends on many things, namely how fast you walk and how much you want to put down. Milorganite's bag recommendation is 36 lbs (one bag) per 2,500 sqft. This equates to ~0.86 lbs N per 1k sqft. I think a lot of people would say that is too much for mid summer. Some people throw it down a lot harder. Once you determine how much you want to put down, you usually just need to figure out the right setting you like. LCN has some videos on the topic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAKlwHHhyFE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIfmaxfJVzk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_FAnAjD7DI


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## Lawngreenmow3 (Jul 9, 2018)

May not be Your mower deck being level. You may have to level out the soil. I've had this same problem last season.


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

Lawngreenmow3 said:


> May not be Your mower deck being level. You may have to level out the soil. I've had this same problem last season.


How the heck do I fix that? My grass is rather lumpy...

When I have had a landscaper come in to cut my grass, I didn't have these issues.


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## JohnP (Oct 24, 2017)

Is it possible you're not overlapping enough? I've had Mohawks before when I didn't overlap enough. Either too thick of grass for my Ego to handle, or I just was off on my spacing.


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## tgoulart (Jun 21, 2018)

I think there may be 2 different things going on. It does look like a couple of mowhawks where there wasn't enough of an overlap. I also looks like there's some matting. What height do you mow, and do you mow when it's wet? Both could result in matting. The reason you may not see it when you have it done professionally, is because of their equipment. While you do have a pretty nice rig, you may not get the vacuum effect of pulling the grass up before it's cut. You could also try mowing at a slower speed.


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

tgoulart said:


> I think there may be 2 different things going on. It does look like a couple of mowhawks where there wasn't enough of an overlap. I also looks like there's some matting. What height do you mow, and do you mow when it's wet? Both could result in matting. The reason you may not see it when you have it done professionally, is because of their equipment. While you do have a pretty nice rig, you may not get the vacuum effect of pulling the grass up before it's cut. You could also try mowing at a slower speed.


I had my machine serviced and at one point the grass got way too long when waiting for it to come back. I cut at 4 inches and the last couple times I mowed it I've been moving much slower. I do not mow when it's wet. Maybe matting is left over from when it was really long?


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## tgoulart (Jun 21, 2018)

thomamon said:


> tgoulart said:
> 
> 
> > I think there may be 2 different things going on. It does look like a couple of mowhawks where there wasn't enough of an overlap. I also looks like there's some matting. What height do you mow, and do you mow when it's wet? Both could result in matting. The reason you may not see it when you have it done professionally, is because of their equipment. While you do have a pretty nice rig, you may not get the vacuum effect of pulling the grass up before it's cut. You could also try mowing at a slower speed.
> ...


Yes, could be. Sometimes matting just doesn't "fix itself". If you have a good blower go around and really put some air in your long spots. It it's matted, you'll be able to see it quickly. If you don't have a blower, use a lawn rake. I see you have tall fescue and I know you can mow that long. With the KBG in my mix, I really need to mow between 3" and 31/4".


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

tgoulart said:


> thomamon said:
> 
> 
> > tgoulart said:
> ...


I do have a good blower... Should I do it before I mow next time or just at any time?


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## Lawngreenmow3 (Jul 9, 2018)

Try using sand or soil to level out yard. Just a pain with soil. Needs Excessive watering then smoothing it out with a 4x4 mat and dragging it across the yard. Neighbors may think you're crazy &#128540; but it's a good kinda of crazy lol


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

Lawngreenmow3 said:


> Try using sand or soil to level out yard. Just a pain with soil. Needs Excessive watering then smoothing it out with a 4x4 mat and dragging it across the yard. Neighbors may think you're crazy 😜 but it's a good kinda of crazy lol


So basically just dump some soil where I feel it uneven? It won't kill the grass under it? Also what kind of Matt are you talking about? Will dragging it kill the grass?


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

thomamon said:


> Lawngreenmow3 said:
> 
> 
> > Try using sand or soil to level out yard. Just a pain with soil. Needs Excessive watering then smoothing it out with a 4x4 mat and dragging it across the yard. Neighbors may think you're crazy 😜 but it's a good kinda of crazy lol
> ...


He's talking about doing this:






Yes you can kill the grass if you put it down too thick.


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## jimmy (Jul 25, 2017)

I wouldn't worry about leveling at this point, if there is some adjustment to your mower, check that. I'd focus on general fertilizing practices and weed control. For those things, the Cool Season guide has you covered. If you have specific questions about specific issues, post them here and there are many TLF-ers ready to help.

I'm worried with the way this thread is going, you're going to get overwhelmed, and the basics of lawn care are straightforward and shouldn't be overwhelming.


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

jimmy said:


> I wouldn't worry about leveling at this point, if there is some adjustment to your mower, check that. I'd focus on general fertilizing practices and weed control. For those things, the Cool Season guide has you covered. If you have specific questions about specific issues, post them here and there are many TLF-ers ready to help.
> 
> I'm worried with the way this thread is going, you're going to get overwhelmed, and the basics of lawn care are straightforward and shouldn't be overwhelming.


Was definitely a bit over whelming! I've been reading tho and basically think your right, get the basics done first then move on from there! So much to learn.

I am really happy I found this place.


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## thomamon (Jul 8, 2018)

I will be cutting again tomorrow, cut last Saturday. I only cut about once a week because of my work schedule and I only get my weekends to cut it as the sun is going down.

Is it true you shouldn't cut midday? I usually water when I get home from work at 5am and have my wife shut it at 6:30 when she gets up from work.


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