# Zoysia question...



## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

I sodded my front yard with Meyers Zoysia in May. I probably over watered it too much in the spring and early summer.

I have used a rotary mower to cut it until last week. The blades of grass look horrible. The were probably ripped by the rotary mower due to being set too low. Also, I think that I may have mistakenly set my sprinklers to a very short exposure time.

So, does the Zoysia look like it is super dry from lack of water or do I have a fungus problem from overwatering in the spring? Also, I spread milorganite on it last week by watering before and after its application.

This was a photo from early August.


These are from Today:


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## high leverage (Jun 11, 2017)

Sharpen your rotary mower blade and bag clippings on Zoysia.


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

High Leverage,

Thanks...The rotary mower has been retired. I just started using my reel mower last week. I always bagged with the rotary, but was under the impression that I should not with a reel? All the dead grass on top is the result of raking my yard with a plastic leaf rake after I mowed with the reel. It helps in finding the Bermuda growing in the zoysia sod seams.


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## Spammage (Apr 30, 2017)

When mine starts to get really thick, I will still catch the clippings in an effort to help prevent fungus issues in the early Fall.

As your rotary showed you, zoysia is a very tough grass blade. You will find that you will require more frequent backlapping than the bermuda growers here to maintain a quality cut. It is still hard to beat though when you look at the overall benefits of the grass.

Mine taken last Sunday at 3/4".


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

Spammage,

How often do you backlap your reel? How big is your yard for reference?

I scoured the internet for as much info on how to backlap a Trucut for weeks. I adjusted the bottom bolt on the Tru-cut for slight contact (never had to use the spanner wrench). Then, I backlapped one application of Pinhigh 120 grit. After mowing yesterday. There is no slight contact. Do I need to do three applications of the pinhigh and still have slight contact afterwards or is it more important for the 1" piece of paper to cut and contact will take care of itself as long as the paper is being cut correctly?

Lastly (for now  ), my grass is pretty tall. What HOC would you suggest now that I am using a reel mower (with roller) at this time of year. I will take it down in incremental cuts until I hit your suggestion.

Thanks so much!!!


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## Spammage (Apr 30, 2017)

I have 10,000sf, but only cut 6,000 with the reel. The other 4,000 doesn't have irrigation, so cutting it short would only cause more summer drought issues.

I usually check for cut quality after each cut, and typically have to backlap about every three weeks. I had the unit ground in May and that stayed sharp for about 2 months. Maintaining the face of the bedknife seems to help as much as backlapping. The TruCut units are a pain to set reel-to-bedknife contact on primarily due to the eccentric bearings used to tighten the reel, but you'll figure it out with some cussing.

As far as height, I don't think I would be to aggressive this late in the year. It looks like it is at about 2", but if you are higher than that, then I think you could safely get there without fear of damaging the grass. Zoysia really doesn't scalp like bermuda unless you get crazy. I wouldn't try bringing it down slowly either. Pick a height and go, but collect the clippings if taking more than the recommended 1/3 off. Next Spring you can scalp low and then decide the height you want to maintain it.


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

I don't see any obvious fungus. Drought stress ...then dormant like is the route it'll go. Are you able to see initial signs of drought stress when it occurs?

Anytime you want to dramatically change the hoc, id take it down gradually (in growing season) and frequency of cut should increase. At this point, I'd suggest keeping it strong n healthy going into the winter implying no significant hoc changes to risk it.

Did you adjust the reel/bedknife after backlapping? I saved a great process overview and will attach soon, it's on my NAS.

Neighbors cut their zoysia by blo n go crews...which is ok but I don't know of another warm season grass that highlights the blade damage better.


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

Something I forgot to mention...

My south neighbor started using MoleMax and Sweeny's mole/gopher repellent which drove them into my yard. I applied a 10 lb. bag as directed to move them to my northern neighbor. :lol:

Seriously...it took a month, but it really did drive them to the northern neighbor's yard. At the time of my application, I told the northern neighbor to do it as well, but he ignored me. He applied some last week.

Any chance the 10 lb bag of repellent (castor oil is the active ingredient) could have affected my Zoysia??? At this point, I am looking at all my past history for last month.

Regarding adjusting the reel/bedknife after backlapping, I did not due to it still making slight contact after the backlapping. I understand the general idea of backlapping, but have a lot of the finer details to figure out by experience.

Also, Spammage has been extremely gracious in answering a lot of my questions in private messages. Going forward using a CONSERVATIVE approach to keep the grass alive and fungus and patch from cultivating, this is my fall plan.

1. Immediately, spread my Scott's Fungus Control due to not having a sprayer and better chemicals.

2. Collect all the grass clippings.

3. Water only once every five days starting at 10AM.

4. Not using any more fertilizer after using milorganite last week.

5. Regarding minimizing traffic, mow every three days at noon with sharp blades. (I will turn the sprinklers on for a 1 minute cycle before mowing to keep the reel blades from getting dull.)

Sorry for all the noob questions. This is the first time that I have had any experience with zoysia.


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## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

TulsaFan said:


> Something I forgot to mention...
> 
> My south neighbor started using MoleMax and Sweeny's mole/gopher repellent which drove them into my yard. I applied a 10 lb. bag as directed to move them to my northern neighbor. :lol:
> 
> ...


Hey I'm glad you started this thread as it sounds like we are going to be learning how to care for Zoysia at the same time. It seems the large majority of the warm season threads are about Bermuda and I'm pretty sure what you would do for Bermuda doesn't necessarily apply to Zoysia, and vice versa.

I had Zoysia sod laid early last September and after a battle with armadillos it rooted in nicely. I've been cutting it too high though (2.5") and wish to have it resemble Spammage's lawn as opposed to the thick matted mess that mine is. I'm waiting on a new TC C27 to arrive and planned on lowering the HOC to 1", I'm not sure whether I should do that now or wait till spring. I really hate how high it is right now though. Not sure if I need to do anything with fungus or not. I put out milorganite just a week ago and wasn't planning on another dose until spring.

Any advice from Zoysia experts are greatly appreciated!


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> Did you adjust the reel/bedknife after backlapping? I saved a great process overview and will attach soon, it's on my NAS.
> 
> Neighbors cut their zoysia by blo n go crews...which is ok but I don't know of another warm season grass that highlights the blade damage better.


as promised - directed at golf course crews with a greens mower

http://grounds-mag.com/mag/grounds_maintenance_back_lap_reels/

i re-read...and a great reminder - while washing/rinsing keep it running in backlap direction. (you want all the *[email protected] out before you spin normally)

those of us with non-greens mowers don't look forward to backlapping or messing with reel to bedknife.


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## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> jayhawk said:
> 
> 
> > Did you adjust the reel/bedknife after backlapping? I saved a great process overview and will attach soon, it's on my NAS.
> ...


I'm not mechanically inclined and I have a TC C27 ordered. I'm dreading the whole backlapping process :?


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

nice yard - looks like zeon or emerald? we (zoysia) are out there - some of us reno'd to zoysia and will never go back. it has it's similarities in management and it's differences when compared to bermuda.


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## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> nice yard - looks like zeon or emerald? we (zoysia) are out there - some of us reno'd to zoysia and will never go back. it has it's similarities in management and it's differences when compared to bermuda.


Unfortunately I was too stupid to get a specific type of Zoysia last year, I just asked for Zoysia so I have no idea what type it is  The people who sold it to me said it was a new variety, I'm going to call them and find out what the heck it is :lol:


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## TulsaFan (May 1, 2017)

gatormac2112 said:


> I'm not mechanically inclined and I have a TC C27 ordered. I'm dreading the whole backlapping process :?


FWIW...I bought a used Tru-cut with no manual or spanner wrench. I moved the motor for better chain alignment. Had to ask the wife how how to remove the grease gun hose from the zerk. :? I backlapped it the first time and it wasn't making contact when I was finished. A week later, I spent three hours trying to adjust the spanner wrench for "light" contact. After backlapping three times with Pinhigh 120 grit, it seems to have worked pretty damn well. Of course, after three hours I do not remember what actually made it work!

You will be fine. There are a lot of helpful people on this forum!


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## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

TulsaFan said:


> gatormac2112 said:
> 
> 
> > I'm not mechanically inclined and I have a TC C27 ordered. I'm dreading the whole backlapping process :?
> ...


I'm not sure if I should feel better after reading that, but in some weird way it does 😆


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## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> nice yard - looks like zeon or emerald? we (zoysia) are out there - some of us reno'd to zoysia and will never go back. it has it's similarities in management and it's differences when compared to bermuda.


Update, called the Sod Farm and they said it was Zorro Zoysia. I'm actually pretty pumped about that as the recommended HOC is down to 1/4".


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