# Manny's 2020 Lawn Journal



## Mondeh6 (Jul 4, 2018)

So, my lawn care journey started a few years ago see (Manny's Lawn Journal). The lessons learned from the rear of the property has helped me to make better decisions before beginning the lawn renovation to the front of the property. This 2020 journal is going to focus on the continuation of my lawn journal but will focus on the front of the house. Below is what the front of the property looked like last year. Since that time some things have changed.









Most of the branches on the tree in the picture has been trimmed, but most importantly, there were a lot of protruding roots everywhere, with an axe and mallet I shaved as much as I could and might still have a little more to go to get things to be as flush with the soil as possible. I know the tree had its right to be there so I worked around it.







I've always wanted a tree ring in front of the property, and after watching a few videos, I decided to give it a try, what started as a small circumference got away from me, as I later learned a twine was not the best material to use, just too much flexibility which resulted in inconsistencies in the diameter of the tree ring, which might be noticeable but rescued it as much as I could.















Because it is the front of the house and everything would be magnified, and due to the issues experienced with seeds washing away. I made the decision to go with sod for the front lawn. I am now at the end of the gly application, to date I've put down 3 rounds, however the onion and some poa are tough but will give it 2 more weeks before I start the power raking process, I've listen to the reasons why I should till or not, I don't want to screw around with the grading so I'll add a few more inches to level things off as the soil is very bumpy right now.







This past Sunday, April 19th (yes a late post indeed), the prep process took another step, rented a power rake and went to work. I've roto-tilled and feel like the power raking is one of the best options when on a budget especially after the chemical kill process with gly.











As the process unfolds, I decided to identify the low spots in the lawn, everytime it rains hard there are areas where water would gather and it started to bug me. I decided to use some masonry rope and use the driveway as the reference point.
goin down toward the street the flower bed area served as the reference point down to the curb. Doing that i was able to confirm areas with dip and low spots.





















And then it rained really hard on April 30th. and some areas improved some areas in my humble opinion could use a bit more soil to fill in, i just don't like seeing standing water after all the hard work I've put in, as the heavy rain passed things seem to drain decent, I am hoping the additional inch or two that comes with the sod will help when it all get compressed with a roller.















After going back and forth on the final decision between the Lat 36 and TTTF due to some shade issues I decided to cut more branches and thin out the canopy to allow more sunlight in for the grass of choice and the plants in the tree ring, glad of the decision except some bird nest and eggs were destroyed in the process.









After all the prep work was complete drove out to Culpepper, VA for the sod, got it from Woodward Turf Farm. Given the space I was working with, 3 pallets was all I needed to complete the job. Biggest lesson I learned from this trip was never to overload your trailer with sod and have the right equipment/vehicle if you plan on hauling the sod yourself. it was a learning experience for me and a costly one as I had a non fatal accident. Took me 3 days to get all the sod to the property. The first batch was laid on the day after the sod was cut, due to all the events of the day I was worn out





laying sod is no joke, i really thought that I would be able to handle it all alone which I did but having more help would have made things faster. Got early that Wednesday morning and starting laying sod.























The sod was still a bit dorment, will keep watering.









Its just about a week now and things appear to be ok, some areas that looked very dorment is starting to show some green strands the cooler temps around these parts have not helped either.



Its almost the end of the second week since install and things are looking up. Having some weed come up was hoping it wont be the case as it was fresh sod but oh well. During the second week, did a application of Milo, and 14-20-4 from lesco. The sod has started to root. However some spots I can easily lift up the edges so I'll give it another week or two before give the first hair cut.









Now in the 3rd week heading into 4th, upon checking the height of the lawn and discovered that it was 3-4 inches in most areas. I wanted to wait until officially into the 4th week but after reading on Lat 36 it was advised to cut it after 10 days, therefore I had more than enough time getting it to root.





Yesterday June 9th it received its first cut, It was so thick that I had to use my rotary mower to get it down to 2" and used my manual reel to get a close to even cut. Today June 10th, I applied some Liquid Love Natural All-Purpose Plant Food from GS Plant Foods mixed with some FEature iron supplement and some Liquid lawn from Urban Farms. Except the iron all the other 2 products have N, humid acid and Kelp in it. Decided to let it sit on the leaves over night and will water in the morning 6/11/20.



June 11th

Did second app of 14-20-4.

June 12th

Used the GM1600 for the first time, HOC was set to 1.5" as I slowly come down to 5/8". There's some stressed areas but should bounce back with watering.









June 19th 
Scalped down to 5/8, now to let it grow back and maintain @ 1"







July 1st: June has come and gone. This is where things stand. I am maintaining around 1", but prefer 7/8 or 9/16. Had an accident with the GM1600 2 weeks ago, so for now it's the scotts classic 200.







July 7th: Still waiting to get the GM1600 back up and running. Applied a cocktail of PGR (.20X2)in a 4 gal backpack sprayer. GS Liquid love Plant food (label rate), GS Plant food humic acid (48 oz), Urban Farms Liquid Lawn (label rate), FEature Iron supp (label rate), Quinclorac (label rate), Sage Hammer once packet.







July 10th: Post treatment, some discoloration, hopefully some watering will correct the issue.







Now in the month of August, got the GM1600 back online and survived the July heat wave and learned a few things, don't hold back water during a heat wave and watch out for heat stress. Had a few areas that were affected by the high temps and lack of water. The affected areas recovered within 2-3 weeks. I am maintaining a HOC of around 7/8" to 1", which is not bad but could be better, there are some really thick areas and others that have shade affecting it so it's not as thick. About of apply the second round of PGR, IRON and Plant food, once in suppression, I really want to throw a lot at it before September when things would start to wind down. Below are a few pics.


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## Mondeh6 (Jul 4, 2018)

So, this process started years ago see (Manny's Lawn Journal), and the back of the property was used to get a hang of things as I learned. Now that I have some sort of clue of what's going on, it is time to start working on the front of the property. Below is what the property looked like last year, since then a few things have changed.


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