# Raymond's Lawn Journal



## raymond

Hey! Kicking off my 2019 lawn journal with a spring clean up.

I live in Atlanta and have a Zeon Zoysia yard, around 9k square feet total, in the front and side of the house. I also have around 1k Bermuda grass in the back yard (this hasn't been made a priority and I hope to replace with Zeon in the future).

In years past I've maintained at 2.5-3 inches. I don't currently have a in ground sprinkler system, which has been it difficult in years past during any summer droughts, but I am installing a sprinkler system myself this spring.

Today i started scalping with my Rotary. Took it down to around .75 inches. With how thick the Zoysia is taking it down is a process...! The color is a lot cleaner for the grass that has been long established vs sod that I layed last year which looks discolored.

More to come as I finish the scalping. And more to come as I look to big a new mower this spring.


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## hefegrass

greening up yet?


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## raymond

Lawn continuing to green up so I'm feeling the pressure to finish scalping. It's the first time ive ever scalped and it's been a crazy amount of work. Continuing to fight the good fight. Once scalping is done I'll be turning attention to my sprinkler install


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## TonyC

How's the comparison of the green-up in that first picture? I think the openness of the sod area should lead to a better result.


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## raymond

@hefegrass and @TonyC - green up is slow. As of today id say it was around ~20% green.

I've just bought a new mower (Honda HRX) so I'm thinking once I finalize my scalp the little green up that existed will bounce back quick.



Pollen is absolutely in full swing as you can tell on the mower deck.

Given our rising temps I'll be paying more attention to manually watering up the sprinkler is installed.

Spring scalping is like nothing I've ever felt with in the yard. I'm already at 35 bags of prior season grass - friggin' brutal!!!


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## raymond

I was in London last week and took this picture of the lawn and garden around the royal palace and thought y'all might enjoy.



Back in town this week. Snagged this picture over on Georgia Techs campus in Downtown Atlanta.


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## raymond

The whole yard has a nice light green haze. I'm sure if I had it with fert everything would take off


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## raymond

I had a chance to do some spot leveling today in a few areas. I may have gone a little heavy, but hopefully didn't smother the grass too bad that it won't pop up. Also, as you can see in the background, the grass is greening up nice. Project pics:


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## raymond

Enjoying spring and appreciating the flowing plants in Dunwoody, Ga. The Cheek-Spruill House is looking really beautiful.


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## BakerGreenLawnMaker

raymond said:


> I was in London last week and took this picture of the lawn and garden around the royal palace and thought y'all might enjoy.
> 
> 
> 
> Back in town this week. Snagged this picture over on Georgia Techs campus in Downtown Atlanta.


That's awesome man!


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## raymond

Spent the afternoon trimming a few bushes in the front. Some of these guys got quite a haircut! You can see some don't look too good and are pretty twiggy... they didn't look good before the trim and I'm hoping they'll bounce back with some fert.



Used my new Ryobi hedger, worked fine once I got the batteries charged.


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## raymond

The spot leveling is filling in nicely. Too bad some areas I spot leveled on an incline are washing away a bit, I'll need to keep an eye on those.


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## raymond

Fresh green growth around the patio.

*Staghorn Fern*​

*English Ivy*​

*Chrysanthemums*​

Here's a look at our garden. Slow start from seeds since the indoor early plantings did not survive the transplants. I think our new garden boxes turned out nice though.


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## TN Hawkeye

raymond said:


> Fresh green growth around the patio.
> 
> *Staghorn Fern*​
> 
> *English Ivy*​
> 
> *Chrysanthemums*​
> 
> Here's a look at our garden. Slow start from seeds since the indoor early plantings did not survive the transplants. I think our new garden boxes turned out nice though.


I'm a complete idiot. I saw the picture of your garden boxes and thought "I wonder why he didn't flip them over and use the 4x4s as legs?"


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## raymond

@TN Hawkeye - ha, fair enough thought. Since we cut an 8 foot timber in fourths we had enough wood to where it hung on top and under the box (like a footing or anchor since it's on a slight slope). I didn't want to put it all underneath since I thought I might considering drilling into the post to put dowels for a lightweight fence if needed in the future (eg. Squirrel prevention).


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## raymond

So it begins...! Sprinkler project 2019.

Today we dug up the home supply line and just so happen to dig up where a coupling has already been put on the pipe. Maybe a previous break?

Tomorrow we plan to replace the coupling with a tee and branch off to where it will feed into the backflow preventer.


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## raymond

Day 2 of the sprinkler project.

Trenches where the tap off the supply would go into an on/off valve then into the backflow preventer.



Next we removed an existing coupling. It was a lucky coincidence find on day one. We expect there had been a prior break in the pipe. Given the pitch from where the supply connected on the street with the main and into the basement I'm not surprised there had been a break.



Getting the tee on the pipe was a huge pain and was the hardest part of the day given the pitch of the hill and trying to pipes to line up straight so that the threads screw correctly. In the end we got it with zero leaks.





Finally, we ended the day testing the GPM with the 5 gallon test. We estimated 9 GPM compared to 5 GPM testes previously at the spigot. 45 PSI, tested at spigot only. Good stuff!


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## raymond

Day 3 and 'Phase 1' come to a close. I need a weekend from my weekend. Phase 2 will come in the next few weeks where I'll install drip for our garden. Phase 3 will need to wait until later in the summer when I have more time where the zones will be trenched.

We started the day by finishing trenching.





We then measured, cutt, and glued together the rest of the pipe. All went well except for a drip valve which kept leaking even under pressure, which we ended up cutting out. I wish I had put in a coupling around the backflow preventer but I suppose I'll roll the dice for a freeze crack in the future. We did get everything at or under 1 food deep.







And the final product, all the soil and grass back.



Finished up the day by changing out the oil on the HRX.


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## ctrav

Putting in work! :thumbup:


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## TonyC

I hate digging trenches.

@raymond, Lookin' Good!


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## raymond

Thanks, @TonyC.

As you know, digging in Georgia barely includes shovels, but mostly axes. Definitely tough work.

I'm happy with where we got. I think it'll look nice to tuck the irrigation boxes on the side yard and out of the grass.


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## raymond

Greening up, thinnest by the street. Need more hot weather...! Mowing at 2 inches.


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## raymond

I did some weeknight lawn work after dropping by Ewing this afternoon.

Picked up some goodies to install a drip system for our veggie garden.



Put down some soil amendment which I also picked up from Ewing. What do you think of my homemade edge guard?





Checked up on the front shrugs i shaped recently and they are starting to fill back in nicely.



Finally, I cleaned up my storage closet and installed a door lock and hanging hooks for the edger and weed wacker.


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## tcorbitt20

It's looking good!


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## raymond

We brought a crew out to make quick work on a big pile of limbs with a chipper and box truck.


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## ctrav

raymond said:


> We brought a crew out to make quick work on a big pile of limbs with a chipper and box truck.


That was easy


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## raymond

@ctrav certainly beats breaking it all up in lawn bags or hauling it to the dump myself... biggest pain about having a smaller plot in a neighborhood is having nowhere to dump this kinda stuff...!


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## raymond

Few updated pictures from the yard...!

We've planted flowers at the mailbox for the first time, the added color is nice.



The honey suckle in the side yard is in full bloom. Looks fine for now but I'd still like to pull it out and replace it.



The magnolia in the front of the house is in the midst of its spring shedding and is in the process of blooming. You might see a few while balls among the dark green leaves but the sun washed out the photo.



The garden in the back is progressing nicely. Since we started from seed some plants are not as far along as it'd like (specifically the tomatoes and peppers) and we may have to cheat and buy a plant from HD of these guys don't hurry up...!





Finally, we planted a row of 12 dahlias in the back and all but 2 of the tubers we planted have peeked through. I'm very excited to have these flowers in the yard given the good luck that @wardconnor has had.


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## ctrav

raymond said:


> @ctrav certainly beats breaking it all up in lawn bags or hauling it to the dump myself... biggest pain about having a smaller plot in a neighborhood is having nowhere to dump this kinda stuff...!


I know what you mean buddy!


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## raymond

Starting "Phase 2" of the irrigation project today, focusing of putting in the drip system.

A lot of different trips to the grocery store getting everything we needed for this project.



I swear half the time I spend on these projects is finding the tools I need.



We had already set the box so it was just a matter of installing the valve and laying the drip pipe.







We got most of it done - hydrangeas have small fountain dripper and dahlias have small 1 gph drippers. We didn't finish the garden before it started raining so we'll do that another day.

We have 18 dahlias total planted (added another 10 tubbers today) - I'm excited to see how they turn out, especially now that they have a fighting chance with the drip system!


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## TonyC

Looks good!


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## raymond

TonyC said:


> Looks good!


Thanks, @TonyC! I cant tell you how satisfying and rewarding it is to be able move water a couple hundred feet and turn water on/off with your phone, haha... Especially when 20+ labor hours and 10+ research hours have gone into it.

Any chance you have delt with bermuda infestations in your zeon?? i'm having some problems in my front yard (springs must have carried over from my back yard and have taken root) and i'm considering how i might kill it... all options seem expensive and questionable.


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## TonyC

Sorry there are some options, but I believe it's a slow process. You might be painting the Bermuda with glyphosate soon.


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## raymond

TonyC said:


> Sorry there are some options, but I believe it's a slow process. You might be painting the Bermuda with glyphosate soon.


I think you are right... or maybe even just cut out and drop a new piece of SOD where i see it...


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## raymond

Lawn is just about all greened up. I'm happy with it!


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## raymond

Garden is looking good. Egg plant and a few other plants are flowering.







Egg plant and a few other plants are flowering.



Our 2nd rhubarb plant is finally coming up (look at the growth comparison - yes both were planted at the same time) - I think some recent fert helped to wake it.



Some veggies - peppers and tomatoes are struggling.





Some other flowers and plants are coming alone.







The hydrangeas are growing fantastically and starting to flower.


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## jabopy

:thumbup: Great to see the spring bringing everything into growth. Your work is definitely showing divided. I love keeping up with your projects.


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## raymond

Thanks @jabopy for the kind words.

I got a charity mow in last night - it had only been 2 days since I mowed - I was surprised by how much clipping there were... it must be growing fast given the recent fert and rains.



Also, I've been mowing at an angle this year and I've really come to like how it looks since I've been rotating the angle each week and it almost looks like a diamond. Also neat how it points to the front door when driving by.


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## jayhawk

Oh how'd she'd stripe with a cal trimmer etc....is what I see in that pic. 
We could use some rain, save some $


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## raymond

jayhawk said:


> Oh how'd she'd stripe with a cal trimmer etc....is what I see in that pic.
> We could use some rain, save some $


Oh, heck yeah.. cal trimmer would do nice. i seriously considered purchasing one from Peachtree Mower Company, but went with the HRX for the vaccum power given the large magnolia.

Never say never..! It would look sweet though closer to an inch... i'm at 2 inches now :nod:


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## wardconnor

You will love the dahlias. They are so freaking awesome when they bloom


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## raymond

Minor update on the lawn - it's struggling with the summer heat here in Atlanta - I'm definitely kicking myself now for not finishing my sprinkler project this spring!



I've had a chance to travel recently and have appreciated different gardens while on the road.


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## raymond

Got dahlias? These mamas are HUGE! Almost 5 foot tall. I wasn't imaging them to get this big.


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## raymond

Neglected edging getting attention.


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## reidgarner

raymond said:


> Back in town this week. Snagged this picture over on Georgia Techs campus in Downtown Atlanta.


Is Tech still mostly Emerald Zoysia on campus? I was there from 03-07 and I remember they always kept it looking good considering all of the foot traffic.


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## raymond

@reidgarner, it could be! I don't think it's zeon (at least not in this picture). I believe the campus has a mix of Bermuda, TTTF, and zoysia... beautiful none-the-less with tons of hours of landscaping work to keep it maintained.

In other news.. the handle on my edger broke, so I replaced it with an aftermarket handle from amazon for $10.





Also, I was inspired by Garden answer on YouTube to do some fall planters. I think they turned out. Ice.


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## reidgarner

@raymond very nice!


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## raymond

Dahlias finally blooming - looking good!





Trimming back bushes aggressively.


Planted 8 white wedding hydrangeas - plan is to have a nice thick hedge with beautiful white flowers - though we'll need to plant more hydrangeas to make the hedge.







Didn't take too long and totally worth putting the new hydrangeas on a drip line



Killing off Bermuda in my zoysia. It's been a process! 


Picked up a blue atlas cedar - need to do some grading before planting but excited for the blue color.





Endless summer hydrangeas are in their 3rd season and looking good


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## TonyC

Love the Hydrangeas. I have at least 10 cuttings coming from my Dad's plant. I know right where they are getting planted. I might need some cuttings from your white hydrangeas, I don't have any of those.

I think I would've hand pained the Bermuda instead of what looks like sprayed. The rest looks good.


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## raymond

TonyC said:


> I think I would've hand pained the Bermuda instead of what looks like sprayed. The rest looks good.


Totally agree, and hand-painting individual leaves should be my plan going forward. The Bermuda had gotten a bit out of control so i went heavy spraying what i could see with the plan on digging it out and starting back fresh with a more manageable situation (since we all know it will never be fully eradicated!!!!). :bd:


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## raymond

Don't you hate when you hire out stump grinding and they miss massive roots? Total buzz kill when you are trying to grade. Back breaking work to get out by hand





Also came across a snake friend when grading - don't think it was poisonous.





We are about to plant 10 At-Last roses (proven winners online order) and had a bloom surprise us already even though they are still in there containers







Finally, I put down a light weight fert, that's in a way a Malorganite clown. Luckily doesn't smell of strong of success


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## raymond

I started digging out the turf where I smoked the Bermuda with gly. Next time I will be using a gly brush approach.





Not sure how deep I'll dig it out before I replace with fresh soil... a foot seems like a lot of work... is it worth it and needed since I've gone this far?


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## Benwag

Lawn and landscaping look great, I'm going to have to get some dahlias soon.


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## raymond

@Benwag - dahlias definitely are worth it. I love my hydrangeas but there is nothing like a beautiful dahlia bloom, and they keep coming! Connor turned me onto them after showing them off in all his YouTube videos


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## raymond

Small weekend project - I kept getting mud/dirt in my outdoor AC units, so I leveled the ground around the units and put a bunch of crushed granite. We picked up the gravel from Georgia Landscape Supply (928 South Marietta Pkwy SE, Marietta, GA 30060) - super easy to pick up - we definitely overbought and I only ended up using 1/3 of the ton I bought. This was still cheaper than buying gravel by the bag. I'm happy with how it turned out



I also found this little guy hanging around the yard and thought I'd take a picture - he more or less is my spirit animal since I've been so slow to get projects done this year!


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## raymond

Recut / expanded the mailbox flower bed. Before and after...!

Fall 2019 planting



Summer 2020 (today) planting



Ignore the grass dead spots... need to dig up and replace the sod where I was killing off Bermuda in my zoysia :lol:


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## raymond

Hi all - happy 2021..!

It's been a minute since I posted on my lawn journal. Work work and house work have been keeping me busy... sound familiar?

To my surprise, our petunias (proven winner supertunia bubble gum) by the mailbox survived the winter and have been blooming with a vengeance.



Our at-last roses are now in there second season and are coming in beautifully with there first flush of blooms.



I finally got a eley hose reel. Too cheap to buy the hose 



Lastly, I'll end on a note of insanity - I've been buying bags of sand to do spot leveling. Unfortunately, the big box store sand has a lot of rocks. I've found drying it and screening out the rocks makes it super easy to sprinkle into the turf. No, I don't currently have a reel mower, but trying to protect the yard for when (not if) I get one.


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## raymond

My irrigation journey continues...! I set up an irrigation line 2 years ago (line off main supply, irrigation master valve, backflow preventer, rachio, etc) but I only set it up for drip at the time for my garden and flower beds. This weekend I'm taking up setting up sprinklers for the front lawn. I bought everything I needed for the system at Ewing and rented a trencher from THD.

Today I trencher... tomorrow I'll lay pipe and glue.

I first scalped where I was planning to trench... I was hoping this would make cleaning up of the dirt easier.



Getting the machine off the rental truck was... sketchy... to say the least.



Trenching wasn't too bad. Machine is heavy AF. Hit a few rocks but overall not bad.



Checking out the different colors soils in the lawn.


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## Ben S

Just read your whole journal. I love all the examples of incremental progress. It looks amazing.


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## raymond

Sprinkler project is more or less complete. Still have a few loose ends like installing boxes over valves, installing heads in side yard, tunneling under driveway to side yard, and mounting control panel in external inclosure... oh boy - it never ends!! It's been a fun project though.

The lawn is recovering nicely since the trenching. Yesterday I put down fertilizer, fungicide (having dollar spot issues), and insecticide (mostly for grubs) on the lawn. Felt good to water them in immediately with sprinklers 🙌



Hydrangeas came in beautifully this spring. Still have tons of color



Talk soon!


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## raymond

Got new toy - needs some work but will be good (I hope!) - 2008 Toro Greensmaster 1000



Random colorful orange-purple pansy growing in the side garden bed



Crepe Myrtle starting to slump over under its own weight - starting to bloom



Dahlias are finally starting to bloom - I don't like the yellow once as much as it grows too large… I think it's the dinner plate variety.





Slow and steady the lawn is filling in from the sprinkler project. I'm starting to see the zoysia creeping across the dirt lanes. I've also since installed the valve boxes - still need to finish the side yard


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## AFBiker2011

raymond said:


> Got new toy - needs some work but will be good (I hope!) - 2008 Toro Greensmaster 1000


Congratulations!


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## raymond

Thanks @AFBiker2011 - needs some work…! I still need to replace the bedknife, backlap, and adjust/replace v-belts. Already did basic maintenance like oil, grease, spark plug, etc. I have read the entire Toro thread in Equipment and Tools forum… fun times. :lol:


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## raymond

Lovely - I spy on my little eye….some common Bermuda that has survived my burn out (gly) from last year. I will be painting it with gly again since it's it's very noticeable and easily manageable in this small quantity.



@TonyC - I think you've maybe mentioned or recommended painting weeds in Zeon. Have you used gel or regular roundup type glyphosate when painting?


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## AFBiker2011

What HOC are you going to start at, using the new machine?


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## raymond

@AFBiker2011 - Im hoping around 5/8 - getting a reel mower so late in the season is tough… my Zeon is at about 2.5-3 right now… way too tall! I'd love to bring it down now but Zeon is so slow to recover it may take the rest of the growing season and will look pitiful in the meantime. So depending on how soon I fix the mower then I decide if I'll bring it down this year or wait for spring


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## AFBiker2011

Very exciting! Be sure to keep us updated on the GM 1000 status throughout the growing season this year!

Btw. I have also had a recurring problem with random common Bermuda popping up in my emerald zoysia. I just so happen to use the glyph gel. It works pretty well, much better than just plucking the random Bermuda runners I find trying to tack down across the turf. And the best part is, you only need to rub the gel on the specific strands of grass you want to kill and it doesn't affect anything else in the immediate vicinity. The gel cartridge reminds me of a deodorant stick, if not sightly larger. I'll send you a pm with the Amazon link.


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## raymond

Thanks @AFBiker2011! If I have any more Bermuda grass pop up I definitely will pick some up. Got the link :thumbup:

Results after a week of painting on pure round up with a sponge brush…


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## raymond

Well… well… well… that's 3 wells.

Well… getting the toro working has been an experience.

This week I placed the v-belts, bedknife, and backlapped. Backlapping worked surprisingly well.

The v-belts needed to be replaced because the belts were slipping and the reel getting bogged down easy when mowing. Pic cutting grass after replacing the v-belt:



I'm proud to say that she now cuts grass and after backlapping she cuts paper. Picture of backlapping setup:


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## raymond

It took…. 30 lawn bags of grass clippings, 10 bottles of water, and 6 hours of mowing to bring it from 3->1 inch


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## rjw0283

raymond said:


> It took…. 30 lawn bags of grass clippings, 10 bottles of water, and 6 hours of mowing to bring it from 3->1 inch


Nice! It'll be worth it.! Nice mower!


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## raymond

We'll, buying this GM1000 has been… an experience to say the least. I finally mowed the yard with it for the first time this morning.

Earlier this week I cleaned out the gas tank with vinegar l, and just reinstalled it with an in-line fuel filter.





I was planning on painting the tank before reinstallation but decided that would take too much time, and I was already annoyed with issues with flash rust where I just decided to slap the tank back on the motor and paint later. You can see in the photo above that I was able to remove the old faded stickers and will paint in the winter.

I also had to reorder v-belt since the original replacement I installed I put in incorrectly and they got burned up… oops. Running fine now


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## AFBiker2011

I saw that you brought it down to 1 in a couple weeks ago. What HOC are you maintaining at?


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## raymond

AFBiker2011 said:


> What HOC are you maintaining at?


I ended up bringing it down more to .5ish and set the mower today for .75 and will try to maintain for the rest of the season


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## raymond

I've been mowing every 2-3 days. Starting to show stripes, but Zeon is slow to recover..



Large yellow spider hanging out in the garden, set up in a stone crop.


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## raymond

Greening you still - I doubt it'll make a full recovery this season. We'll see! Been mowing every 2-3 days. Some sections appear more stunted than others


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## raymond

Best the lawn has looked all year..!



The lawn still has a ways to go, you can see some thin spots that haven't recovered from the July scalp, but it's all good.


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## jayhawk

Congrats. now you can 'cruise'


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## raymond

I've been liking the double wide stripes. Tonight I was able to get a faint checkerboard pattern.



Also, I finally tunneled the sprinkler line to the side yard… was easier than I thought. Where I cut out the turf will need spot leveling. You can tell I'm not yet maintaining the side lawn reel low :lol:


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## raymond

I usually don't post in the winter but am proud of my almost "leafless" yard. I do notice some weird patterns in my zeon, especially near the mailbox - I hope this isnt fungus.

Happy holiday cheer to my fellow grass rats and hope everyone has a happy new year


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## raymond

Starting off the 2022 lawn season this week!

Took her down to .5 on the main stage. Starting to take down the sidewalk strip and side yard strip. You can see the lawn is greener on the left side of the where it was .5 versus the .75 from the prior season.





Some rogue flowers in the unkept back woods.


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## wilsonline

This Zeon looks amazing, I wish it was available here in South Florida. The greens mower did a huge difference on the lawn. Following.


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## raymond

Thanks @wilsonline! The Toro GM1000 has taken the lawn to the next level (literally and figuratively). I'm actually considering getting rid of it and buying a Tru-cut…. The drum on the GM1000 struggles on my hill and I wonder if the TC rear wheels would make for an easier mow.


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## jayhawk

Trucut, won't hesitate (Trimmer can too) and easier to operate in your yard no doubt. I'm sure you're aware of all the +/-


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## raymond

Sold the GM1000 on Facebook marketplace. I'm very relieved to to have gotten rose of it. I pretty much only broken even on the mower, since I sold it in perfect working condition.



If / when I buy a new reel I'll likely purchase a California trimmer, but with changes in personal life I will likely take the season off from cutting with a reel.

Last is coming along fine otherwise - I spread some fert recently and it looks terrible! Maybe I applied too heavy? You can see the uneven distribution.


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## raymond

Folks - we finally did it.. #yardOfTheMonth


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## puzzles

Congrats! Coincidentally we also received Yard of the Month, though probably more so for my wife's phenomenal job with the flowerbeds than my management of the lawn... &#128522;


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## Humbert810

raymond said:


> Last is coming along fine otherwise - I spread some fert recently and it looks terrible! Maybe I applied too heavy? You can see the uneven distribution.


Sorry I haven't read through your whole journal yet. Are you using a Scott's spreader by chance?

If so, give this post of mine a read.

Fertilization Stripes?

This article also applies to all Scott's spreaders that I'm aware of

Scott's Spreader Stripes


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## raymond

@Humbert810 - I've heard of this issue! I haven't applied fertilizer since this picture but definitely need to look into your links, thank you!!


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