# Seeding mixed results - too much water and rain?



## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

(Edit: now added photos below in the 5th post)

Hi All,

I did a big seeding project is over Labor Day weekend, and it came up fairly well. It even needed a mow at 3 weeks from seeding. It had starter fert at seed down and ringer in the 4th week. I kept the irrigation up through the first few weeks because I was seeding a few thin spots.

Then I went away for a business trip (7 days) 
Famous last words. When I came back, a few areas of the yard looked really bad. (i.e. Stress, many seedlings dying). The rain gauge said we got 3.5 inches of rain that week I was gone. And the wife said it was dark.

Do you think it was too much water? I stopped the irrigation while gone but everything was completely soggy due to the rain that week and took a long time to dry out

Luckily much of the yard seems "OK" still, only parts had it bad. Tended to be the cooler/wetter/less sunny areas.

Sam


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## SNOWBOB11 (Aug 31, 2017)

I know you said you mowed at week 3 but was the grass quite tall when you came back? Sometimes if you let newly germinated grass grow too long and then get lots of rain it can cause the grass to flop down and can lead to damage.


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

SNOWBOB11 said:


> I know you said you mowed at week 3 but was the grass quite tall when you came back? Sometimes if you let newly germinated grass grow too long and then get lots of rain it can cause the grass to flop down and can lead to damage.


No it didn't get too long. In fact, in the bad areas, it looked like it didn't grow while I was gone due to stress or whatever else was happening. Like some seedlings are upright in suspend animation while in between them other seedlings are dead and gone leaving these areas looking thin overall, and not grown too long.


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## SNOWBOB11 (Aug 31, 2017)

Hmm, could it be melting out? https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=6372&p=108960&hilit=melting+out#p108960. Can you post some pictures?


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

Photos on request

A better-looking area
This was mostly weeds before / very little grass originally, but the new grass has come in


A bad area:
Note a few seedlings are still standing, but it is thin, because many more seedlings germinated at the beginning and looked good at first but now they are that dead yellow grass on the ground. Died in the 4th and 5th week. The ones standing are not growing fast/much.



A bad area part 2:
Note that dead grass in between the seedlings as well as a few cob-web like things that are presumably fungus



Lesions 
Not all plants have lesions, this is showing the worst of what's left, but I guess these are just the ones that are left standing whereas many are dead and gone


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

Hmm, the last image looks like gray leaf spot.

https://turf.ces.ncsu.edu/diseases-in-turf/gray-leaf-spot-in-turf/


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

g-man said:


> Hmm, the last image looks like gray leaf spot.
> 
> https://turf.ces.ncsu.edu/diseases-in-turf/gray-leaf-spot-in-turf/


Yes it does. Thank you for the tip.

What should I do? anything active or just wait it out?

Can I still run 1 round of irrigation daily at sunrise (5-10 minutes per zone) or should I cut it to zero watering? (I do have seed down in patches)

(As a reminder - I have TTTF in the transition zone. Under a sweet gun tree in the front, which doesn't shade it but does root compete. Soil is good except low P)

Sam


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

See the fungicide guide in the link below and treat it. Water to keep moist, if moist then cut back on watering.


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

g-man said:


> See the fungicide guide in the link below and treat it. Water to keep moist, if moist then cut back on watering.


Thanks again.

What do I risk if I didn't treat it?

In case it helps, starting on Friday temps are supposed to cool down significantly (from then on, highs will be in the low 60s and lows in the 40s or 50s)


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

You risk turf damage that won't have time to recover with the cold snap. The cold might stop the spread, but I'm not sure. You will need to research it.


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## georgiadad (Aug 18, 2018)

Read disease cycle...… https://plantscience.psu.edu/resear...n/factsheets/managing-diseases/gray-leaf-spot

Hit it now.


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

georgiadad said:


> Read disease cycle...… https://plantscience.psu.edu/resear...n/factsheets/managing-diseases/gray-leaf-spot
> 
> Hit it now.


Ok thanks all.

I dropped Azoxystrobin (Scott's disease ex). That was the only option I could get same-day. Let's see how it takes it.


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

PS
I've been watching Tom Green on YouTube (really in-depth videos - I think he should have more subs and views)

And he's got a video about his stand getting hammered by GLS and nothing working so far
https://youtu.be/QAPTQXge25s


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## sam (Mar 10, 2018)

Thanks again.

If I've already got azoxystrobin down, is it worth putting down another round of something else if the product wouldn't get to me until after the weather gets less hot?

I get conflicting information about whether an existing infection of GLS continues to be active once the weather is not as hot.

The forecast shows, after the hurricane remnants tomorrow, from then on is highs of 57-64, lows of 43-53


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## Butleraudio (Nov 13, 2018)

Hi, new here, and I'm in zone 7b/8a. Seeded 2500' with tall turf/shade mix fescue first week October. 1/2 new and 1/2 over seed. Mostly filtered shade... and over 8" of rain since seeding...30 days. Grass is green and thick but less than 3" tall and laying over,(mentioned earlier in post)
Question is: what to expect if ol' el' nino stays true? (More rain) Small areas already turning yellow on tips...issue here?


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## Suburban Jungle Life (Mar 1, 2018)

Butleraudio said:


> Hi, new here, and I'm in zone 7b/8a. Seeded 2500' with tall turf/shade mix fescue first week October. 1/2 new and 1/2 over seed. Mostly filtered shade... and over 8" of rain since seeding...30 days. Grass is green and thick but less than 3" tall and laying over,(mentioned earlier in post)
> Question is: what to expect if ol' el' nino stays true? (More rain) Small areas already turning yellow on tips...issue here?


If it stays matted and laid over, it might die. Hit it with a leaf blower to help stand it up a little and break up the matting and then mow it at 2" or 1.75". Set your mower to discharge so it has maximum suction. With tons of rain, keep it mowed low. You only need to mow high in the summer if you don't irrigate it and it isn't raining.


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## Butleraudio (Nov 13, 2018)

Thanks SJL, my first cutting was at 3" on 11/8 and the suction pulled blades more vertical. Hopefully the relentless rain comes to an end by this weekend and after a few dry days I will recut lawn at 2". After this round of rain, I'm looking at 12+ inches since seeding. Using backpack blower also. I'm assuming shallow roots are the issue here?


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## Butleraudio (Nov 13, 2018)

Now that the rain is over for hopefully 8-10 days, I'm looking at the next lawn application of winterizer fertilizer with iron; i.e. Lesco 32-0-8 30% polyplus 2%Fe.
Since seed/starter fertilizer (18-24-12 25% CRN) was applied October 4, I'm looking at first week December for this application.... Question is: should I do this on new growth and at what rate if not 1lbN/1000? (80% of the 2500sq ft of lawn I have now is from new seed...lost most of lawn this year)


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## nclawnguy (Jun 27, 2017)

GLS is the worst disease to treat. Once it gets going it will take out areas of grass fast. What worked for me in the past is Heritage df (spray not granular) followed up in 7 days with Chlorothalonil. At best you will still lose 30-50% of the infected area, but the key is to stop the spread. You will need to reseed spots where grass looks dead, unfortunately gls effects the crowns and kills the plant.


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