# FistertonDeluxe's Lawn Journal



## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I will start with showing what I did this year as i didn't have enough time to get to the backyard. Plus who doesn't love before and after photos?

This was taken on May 4th. I got lazy and didn't remove all the dead grass.


This one was taken September 30th. Not too shabby for 5 months. (For those that asked why I don't mow that strip between driveways, I will be next year. I also looked today, and while thin, the bermuda has spread to the driveway in most of that area!!)


Now onto the backyard. I get full sun coverage from 10 am all the way until dark. It gets very hot in the back there and destroys all cool season grasses come July. I bought the house new and the backyard was terrible. The soil is not ideal and has tons of what I call "shale". It breaks apart easy by hand but is not ideal. Thankfully it is limited to one area of my yard that was not built up and my shed covers a good portion of it. On to the pictures.

Here is a shot of drain line I buried that my downspouts go into and that is carried to a swale that runs across back of the yard. The drain line follows the path of a swale my builder attempted to make when grading the yard that no longer serves it's purpose due to ground settling and work he did to fix my neighbors backyard that flooded. The area to the right of the shovel has some bermuda from left over seed that I tossed down to see what happened. Surprisingly it took and with some moisture manager it mad it through the summer. I was cutting it low until I started working on the back yard and have some rocks in play.


Here is the reverse shot of the previous photo with some grass and a dead Lena Scotch Broom. I cut the tap root when transplanting, oops. I added some topsoil to help smooth transitions since the swale is no longer in play and have some rye and fescue to prevent erosion over winter.


Here is one direction of my back. I am putting in a tiered vegetable garden on the hill behind the shed with a compost area. I will have a small wall that runs the entire length of the backyard at the bottom of the hill for aesthetics. The swale starts behind the shed and is that area between the shed and the mulch. This portion does not have much of a valley and flooded all the time until the builder fixed the neighbors yard. I want to think he just planned on using that one swale that I am removing for both houses. 


Here is the other direction. I took out a $100 ******* pool that lasted 3 seasons and have some seed coming up now where that was located. You will also notice everyone's favorite backyard accessory. I unfortunately cannot get rid of it as my kids play on it all the time. I plan on digging out an area near where my fence section is being removed and the yellow inflatable is and locating the trampoline there. This will make it somewhat safer as it is lower to the ground and I wont have to move it. Another ******* pool may come back next year and will go somewhere in the area the trampoline is at now.


This is a close up of the swale at its greatest height. I am currently trying to think of a way to transition to that area. I more than likely will have a segment of a retaining wall and maybe put some rocks in there to make a dried creek bed look. I wanted that for the whole area and keep both swales until I started pricing retaining walls and quickly approached acreage + triplex territory in terms of cost. 


Now onto the good part! I will be seeding with Princess 77. I am trying to work on the edging to make mowing as easy as possible. I need to re-do the one area to increase the radius of the corners. I thankfully left enough edging to accomplish that. I will be using my McLane but want to make it so a greens mower can be easily maneuvered. I also need to bring in more soil to raise some areas. I plan to do that in early march to give it time to settle and so it isn't so cold.

I am looking for tips, ideas, and suggestions. So if you were to tackle this what would you do?


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

lol - ******* pool - is that a galvanized tank for animals or those lovely 'above ground' jobs?

I think you got the idea - rounded corners is atheistically pleasing. drainage strategy -check


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> lol - ******* pool - is that a galvanized tank for animals or those lovely 'above ground' jobs?


Yep, just one of those blue Intex ones. surprised it lasted 3 years and never took it down, just winterized it.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

So I guess it's time for a picture update. I have made some progress but not as much as I wanted. Still on track for seeding in early May. The wife wanted another ******* pool so I have to keep her happy. I switch from princess 77 to Yukon for my seed since things can get cold here.


I added a new peninsula bed at the beginning of my main swale and transplanted the shrubs from the front yard. Plus finished the trampoline area.


I took down and burned the playhouse. It was beyond a reasonable repair and makes my life easier.

Here are some other pics to go along.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

You could always tell her that a membership to the Y is much easier for you to maintain. I tried doing that for years, and the Y is literally 3 blocks away from our house.


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## Iriasj2009 (Feb 15, 2017)

Nice! #Following


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Update pic. Too tired to go into detail. More to come.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Update pic. Too tired to go into detail. More to come.


Been there, done that


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Found a helper


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I apologize to everyone this renovation and journal is like a meatloaf karaoke. When it hits it's going to hit hard.


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## FRD135i (Oct 15, 2017)

Dang, was looking forward to another P77 reno. Good luck with the Youkon


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Time for a mini update. I added some topsoil to raise the ground around the patio so it sits more even with the concrete. I also added dirt to soften up a swale that I bypassed to the mower will be able to transition over it more easily.

I looked at the weather and this week are are finally hitting the 80's and the lows are now in the mid 50's at night. I also have been monitoring the soil temps and thanks to my backyard being south facing the mid day soil temps have been well over 65. Last night it was near 80 in several spots.

I dropped seed Saturday based on current soil temps and the up coming week. I also setup my makeshift irrigation. Hopefully next year I will get a system installed but this works very well for the seeding. So not counting Saturday, this will be day4 since seeding.

All of the main edging is complete. I have to replace one section near the shed that was that rubber stuff. It is just really flimsy and doesn't hold a straight line and is just plain terrible.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Day 9 after seeding and I have germination. Also have a good bit of crabgrass that came in.


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## Kballen11 (Mar 26, 2018)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Update pic. Too tired to go into detail. More to come.


Could you post a link to this drag mat?


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

@Kballen11 here you go. Yard Tuff YTF-53HPDM Drag Mat 5' x 3' https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014SY8AMS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_VIl8Ab430FE0P


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Congrats on your babies


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

:thumbup:


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Day 11. There is some tilering


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Looks like it's progressing nicely :thumbup: I just went back and checked my timeline and had tillering at day 10 and stolon development at day 19 and that's when it really took off. Keep taking lots of pictures it's amazing how fast the yard will change!


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

J_nick said:


> Looks like it's progressing nicely :thumbup: I just went back and checked my timeline and had tillering at day 10 and stolon development at day 19 and that's when it really took off. Keep taking lots of pictures it's amazing how fast the yard will change!


I scoured over your reno thread and copied the pictures of main events like this and added them to my calendar to compare when I reach that same point. I also have a day 45 pic reminder for @Redtenchu so i dont forget that.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here are some more from this morning. 





This middle pic with all the nice green is all crab grass. It's the most impressive bit of crab grass germination I have ever witnessed.


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## lagerman72 (Feb 14, 2017)

That is going to look really good, nice job and hats off for all the work!


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Day 12 observational

I was poking around and bored so I decided to go pluck some crab grass from the back yard. I noticed the obvious crab grass and some finer bladed growth. The crab grass has the hair on the underside of the leaf and the smaller does not. The smaller one also has a very similar first leaf like my other Bermuda coming in. I also have several other spots of just the smaller one across the yard and thegrassfactor thought it was Bermuda the other day. Anyway here is a pic of the two. The possible Bermuda is on the left.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Looks like Bermuda to me


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Day 14 Update:
Lots of progress during this second week. Tons of germination and ton of tilering. I applied an application of RGS on Wednesday of this week.

This first picture shows the crab grass issue I am facing. There appears to be a good bit of really mature Bermuda in there. My previous post shows what I found. I mowed this area yesterday at 5/8.



Here are some other shots of the yard. If everything stays on track I will be doing the first full mow on day 17/18.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I was trying to line things up with @J_nick but there is a chance for rain tomorrow. Mowed at 5/8 on the McLane. The crab grass is intense in the second picture.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

I wouldn't sweat the crabgrass too much it's fairly easy to kill once your grass is old enough to handle some herbicides


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Ok so day 22. Just finished mowing the back. Tons of progress coming along. Can't wait until I can apply the MSMA to take care of the crab grass and now some goose grass. So far I am pleased with the results. 
Day 18







Day 22


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## Ral1121 (Mar 19, 2018)

Looking good!

Quick question though. Did you use your McLane and get those stripes or do you have a greens mower. My McLane will not stripe every with the roller installed.


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## Tellycoleman (May 10, 2017)

That is awesome 
Man I wish my lawn grew in that good. 
Awesome awesome awesome
You have very little weed pressure too!!!!
I wouldn't even apply post emergent until it grows out a little. Yukon is sensitive.

What's your nitrogen schedule?
I used 1 pound N every 2 weeks and it spreed last year like CRAZY!!
Throw er Down
Have you cut back on watering?
I wouldn't


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

@Ral1121 I used my McLane with the roller. I did one cut strait and a second cut at the diagonal. What works best for me in getting the stripes is to use the grass catcher and the self propel. The Lawn Care Nut did a second review of that Ego mower and was complaining about the cut quality and how he has to use and active cut. I used those principles last year and again this year. I apply a little pressure upward on the handle as mowing. If I don't have the drive engaddd I apply a little more. It also takes me a few cuts in the same pattern to start getting the stripes popping.

@Tellycoleman my weed pressure is minimal near the shed but I have tons of crab grass in one area. If pulled a bunch up and go through it there is Bermuda so I haven't been pulling any unless is a lone straggler.

My fertilizer schedule is bi-weekly applications of Ammonium Sulfate @ .5 lb and weekly applications of ENC liquid fertilizer at 1/16 lb of N. I also hit it with 9oz per 1000 of RGS. I cut back on water from 4-5 times a day to 3. Going to keep it there for another 2 weeks. I also think I will do my first application of MSMA in 2 weeks. I have started seeing some goose grass.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

The progress is looking good :thumbup:


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Holy cow that's filling in quickly. You guys getting any rain, or are you having to irrigate? It's coming down in buckets here.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

@Colonel K0rn I finally got some rain this past week. Mainly getting spotty afternoon showers. I did get about 3/4 of and inch in about and hour the other night after I mowed. That saved me from setting up the temp sprinklers again but they will go up again this afternoon.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Day 26 and I applied some of Ware's double cut domination. If you look closely you can see the line where the crab grass is bad.


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## Bunnysarefat (May 4, 2017)

Nice


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here is a shot of the winter kill recovery going on now in the front yard. I plan on plugging some more this afternoon.


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## Thor865 (Mar 26, 2018)

It'll be looking good soon. Backyard is looking great &#128077;


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Here is a shot of the winter kill recovery going on now in the front yard. I plan on plugging some more this afternoon.


Man, I feel your pain about the winter kill blues. We've got that in common. I just wish my yard was sloped a bit so I didn't have water on it still from 2 days ago. I'm resolved to get it taken care of permanently once it dries out.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

@Colonel K0rn was your areas of winter kill in the areas where you get the standing water?


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Here is a shot of the winter kill recovery going on now in the front yard. I plan on plugging some more this afternoon.


Love the stolon creep...so cool.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

So over the course of the week and mainly today I have plugged right at 200. I used about 6 total bags of sand to bring the ground up to the same level as the concrete.


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## Redtenchu (Jan 28, 2017)

Awesome, great job so far!


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here are some top down pics of the yard so far. For the most part everything is coming along nicely. I do have tons of crab and goose grass. Just patiently wait on day 35 to hit it with MSMA. Also a bonus pic of one of the plugs. Great root development where the grass greener up in the front


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## SGrabs33 (Feb 13, 2017)

@Fistertondeluxe What are you using to do the plugging? The plugs look a little bigger than the standard proplugger.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> @Colonel K0rn was your areas of winter kill in the areas where you get the standing water?


No, it was pretty much 60% of the whole front yard, what I had renovated last year. I seeded too late, and had a lot of poa that outcompeted a majority of the seedlings that survived. What I have now is what survived. I'm pushing it pretty hard with the N, and we've got plenty of rain in the forecast. I should be able to get complete coverage by the end of the season. It's growing pretty vigorously.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

@SGrabs33 I'm using the yard butler 3X3 plugger. Works well and I am a fan of the square plugs.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Thanks for the rain @Colonel K0rn


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

It's raining here now, but thankfully, the forecast for accumulation has been dialed down to just under an inch. Although I have caught 0.10 in my new gauge since yesterday morning.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Got in mow this morning as I looks like the weather is going to cooperate so tonight I will be applying my first round of MSMA. I'm a tad nervous about how the Yukon will react. I hit the yard with AMS 3 days ago and plan on hitting it with the ENC tomorrow.

The front is filling in nicely and should only be a few more weeks hopefully.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Hey hey! Flamingos have arrived, and so have the stripes! Looking great!


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I applied the MSMA on Sunday evening and already getting a response on the crab grass and the goose grass. I went with an application rate of 20cc per 1000 per @Tellycoleman That seems to be a sweet spot and the impact to the Yukon is minimal. I have a few spots that are yellow but that's probably the dog, which is bad for the grass but good for my inside carpets. Here are some pics of what's going down. The growth on the crab grass has slowed and is more in line with the Bermuda now.









Today I have the yard a mow and applied some Tournament Ready with Humic Acid and then followed up with an low rate application of ENC.

The front yard is slowing getting filled in. The plug harvest areas are almost filled in. The new plugs have excellent stolon growth. The ammonium sulfate has provided great results so far. Here are two pics. The first is from May 2nd and the second is from today. Just over a month.




Next up is the side yard. This area had just a bit of Bermuda last year and most it also died. This was my test area to see how long it would take the Bermuda to take it over. Right now I'm deciding if I am going to plug it from the front yard or maybe get some more Yukon seed. The seed option is reliant on how many bare areas there are when the crab grass finally goes away and if I need to reseed some areas. This is a fairly small area since I plan on making a stepping stone walkway to the back and have some small shrubs and flowers along the side of the house. Oh and plenty of mulch. The tire tracks are from my neighbors lawn company that continues to use my yard as access to his because it's more convenient. Working on a solution for that.


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## Tellycoleman (May 10, 2017)

The yukon is looking awesome!!!!
After day 4 (from my experience) post application of MSMA the grass will get as yellow as its going to get if it gets yellow at all. 2nd application is usually needed for goose grass after 15 days.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

It has been 7 days since the first MSMA application and the goose grass is really yellow now and the crab grass is substantially weakened. I am seeing signs on Yukon coming through the thicker crab grass areas so that is a good sign. Hit the hard with some of Ninja Blend fert today. It's a mix of fast release and some slow release. It's a 24-0-8.


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## Thor865 (Mar 26, 2018)

Must be nice to have grass to mow &#128514;


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Those weeds don't look happy :thumbup:


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## Sbcgenii (May 13, 2018)

:thumbup: That is a big improvement for 1 month.


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## Sbcgenii (May 13, 2018)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> So over the course of the week and mainly today I have plugged right at 200. I used about 6 total bags of sand to bring the ground up to the same level as the concrete.


Awesome work right there.


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## Sbcgenii (May 13, 2018)

Sbcgenii said:


> Fistertondeluxe said:
> 
> 
> > So over the course of the week and mainly today I have plugged right at 200. I used about 6 total bags of sand to bring the ground up to the same level as the concrete.
> ...


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I sprayed T Nex this morning and added some more sand along the walkway and driveway that washed out a couple weeks back. I'm done plugging in the front. Going to order some more seed today for my side yard and the back in case I need some more.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Started the afternoon thinking it was going to rain so I dropped a half rate of fert in the backyard. The rain never came so after dinner I applied my second round of MSMA and then did a perimeter spray of the house and pool with some some Talstar P.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

You're slaying it my man!


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Thanks @Colonel K0rn

Here are a few shots from this morning. The few helps see what Yukon is filling in. Everything seems to be going smooth as of right now and the lessened weed pressure is helping things recover.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Holy cow, I saw a flamingo in Sam's Club that was slightly larger than the one you have in the pool. I asked @Redtenchu @Ware and @wardconnor if that would make me next-next level, but you've raised the bar!


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## wardconnor (Mar 25, 2017)

Holy crap Mike. You have done a ton of work. Your hard work is paying off. Your yard is looking great. The back yard a d those stripes are looking fantastic. Not sure why I missed this.

Flamingos? Nice addition


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Currently at Day 61. My second round of MSMA was 8 days ago and I think I will need a third round. I may due a spot treatment of quinclorac on some areas of crabgrass that seem more resistant to the MSMA. The only good thing is the weed pressure was so intense that there is very little Bermuda that can be affected.

This is a good overall photo of the current conditions. It is filling in fairly well so I may not need to add more seed.


Plus the now required golf ball shot


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here is a one month side by side of the front yards recovery. This afternoon will she will be getting another round of fertilizer.


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## Thor865 (Mar 26, 2018)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Here is a one month side by side of the front yards recovery. This afternoon will she will be getting another round of fertilizer.


Man that's went crazy since I was there the other day. Looks great


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## Jacob_S (May 22, 2018)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> Here is a one month side by side of the front yards recovery. This afternoon will she will be getting another round of fertilizer.


Haha I just liked this pic on the gram this morning that filled in quick.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

I applied a MSMA and dismiss combo yesterday. The temps were right around 90 when I applied. Didn't know how fast this would work but came home today to some scorched goose grass. Crabgrass isn't phase yet. I may do a light quinclorac app if I don't notice anything by next Friday


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

About time for another update. The back has recovered from the dismiss and MSMA cocktail and more goose and crab grass are gone. I am also coming out of my PGR control so I have an app of that to do this week before vacation.

My front plug area is now 100% filled in and looking good. A big change from one month ago.



The side project is currently 5 weeks into seeding and looking good. Except where I didn't put seed since I wasn't sure how my edging was going to go. This area will get a PGR app this week.



Now onto the back. There are still many areas to fill in due to the weed pressure but I feel it should get there by the end of the season. Also started pulling up weeds from the flower beds to get them cleaned up.











Up next is a mid season scalp. Debating on doing it this week prior to vacation or when I get back. I'm leaning more for when I get back since I will be able to stay on top of it.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Came home from vacation and was ready for the tall Bermuda. I put my working pants on and got to work. Scalped down to 7/16 and 20 bags of clippings later and a foliar AMS app and a urea app I am done.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Scalp recovery is coming along nicely for day 5 after scalp.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

No pics right now. I have to get some taken this weekend. Just want to provide an update. The scalp recovery took just over 2 weeks for get to about 95%. I followed that up one week ago with a herbicide app of MSMA, Dismiss and Celcius. This put a hurt on the weeds and the grass.

Now for the big experiment. I will be going full #lawnrebel at the behest of @wardconnor and I will be doing a full overseed of PRG. Front and back. I know you are not supposed to overseed in the first year, but what is the fun in that.


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

I want my $2.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here are some pics from last night mow. Front is looking good. The back is almost recovered from the last herbicide app and it gets another tomorrow. Hope this will be the end of the goosegrass.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Here is a little walkthrough if the backyard from yesterday. https://youtu.be/fKEJfhtKGTw


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## Zoysiaguy (Apr 26, 2018)

Fistertondeluxe said:


> @SGrabs33 I'm using the yard butler 3X3 plugger. Works well and I am a fan of the square plugs.


I prefer the 3x3 yard butler aswell


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Not a whole lot to report in at the moment. Did snap a pic of the PRG coming in at full force this morning.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Things have slowed down quite a bit in the past week. Still holding on though and hoping the rye makes a comeback after the Toro massacre.


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## Reel Low Dad (Jun 1, 2017)

Reel Low Dad said:


> Started the afternoon thinking it was going to rain so I dropped a half rate of fert in the backyard. The rain never came so after dinner I applied my second round of herbicide and then did a perimeter spray of the house and pool with some some Talstar P.


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