Question
Hi, I live in the Southern part of Kansas and I am interested in switching to organic lawn care.  I have had it with my lawn service company.  When we moved in 7 years ago we had wonderful thick grass as time has gone on the grass doesn't look as healthy.  That is also the same time we hired the lawn service.  My question is we have cool season grass in the shady areas that we are mowing 3 inches and the warm season in the sunny areas that we mowed about 2 to 2 1/2 inches tall so there would not be a lot of difference in the grass heights.  The lawn service told me to take the warm season grass down to 1/2 to 1 inch all summer for better growth.  This has let the weeds move in the warm season grass over the winter.  The weeds start before the grass greens up.  I have read about the corn gluten and I am going to try that but we want to over seed and get all cool season grass.  We also  have grandchildren and a 30 pound beagle mix that hangs out with us outside.  But she lives indoors.  What height should we mow the warm season grass?  The lawn service told me I would never have a decent lawn if I didn't get the kids and dog off of it!!!!  What good is a lawn if you can't romp and play with the kids and the pet?  Do you suggest a grass that holds up better than another?  Our dog doesn't make paths she is just hanging out with us.  Also we noticed when we planted a new tree this spring that when we put some bagged topsoil around it that I had left from the flowerbeds that the warm season grass went nuts and greened up all around the tree.  That told us that something is not right in the lawn service world of chemicals.
Thanks for your help, Rita

Answer
Hi Rita;
Well, I can see why you are fed up with the lawn care service.
Frankly, I have never seen one of these companies that know beans about growing  and maintaining a lawn.
In this case, their information is just backward.
In early spring, when we start mowing, we cut it short, so the roots will be stimulated to grow and spread, but as soon as it starts to heat up, and gets up to about 80, we set the mower blades at 3 inches. That is the highest setting we have.
The taller blades shade the ground some from the heat, and help keep down heat damage.
Cutting it short during the hot months, will literally cook the grass.
Organics is the only way to go, as far as I am concerned.
I struggled so hard to grow a decent lawn, worked so hard and spent so much, and got mediocre results.
Since I have gone to organics, all the problems have gone away.
I answered a question for a girl yesterday, and pretty much laid out my own program I follow.
the thing about organics is, the soil keeps improving all the time, rather than wearing out.
Organics is merely letting nature work the way God designed it.
He programed in the predators to take care of the soil. WE are the ones who goofed. Seems we always think we can improve on God's creations. Conceited of us, huh? LOL
I will just copy my answer to her for you here, and then if you have other questions, you can write me back, and we will get to the nitty gritty of your particular situation.
The same organic methods work the same, all over the world.
Charlotte
-------

Published Answer
 
Subject:  clay lawn
Question:  I have a clay 1 yr old lawn (seeded) in maryland with 4.4PH that is doing poorly.  I want to put corn gluten now, limestone in march/april, july + november (to bring PH up), fertilize in may, september + november and overseed in September.    Do you think this plan will work, is too much, not enough or do you have other suggestions? + Do you have any recommendations on organic fertilizers (inexpensive?).  Thanks in advance.
 
Answer:  Hi Lynn;
I have other suggestions.
You will constantly improve your soil if you go on a totally organic program, and don't use any chemicals at all.
I have beenm on such a program for the last 9 to 10 years, after breaking my back and ruining my body trying to maintain a decent lawn, with only mediocre results.
the organics has freed me from about 90% of the physical work, about that much of the expense, and the results are a think, beautiful yard with no weeds or harmful insects.
Man!!! Wish I had known all this 50 years ago !
The corn clutem meal is an organic product.
If you use organics, and then use chemicals, you will cancel out the organics.
Chemical fertilizers kill all the beneficial microbes, nematodes and other beneficial insects and critters that work around the clock improving your soil.
Beneficial microbes enrich the soil. Chemicls do NOT.
If you put a little too muchj chemical products on the lawn, it will burn your grass, and do a lot of other damage.
If you put too much organics on it, all you do is waste a little time and money.
Sugar does absolutely nothing but nourish the beneficial micrebes. THEY do the work.
Weeds will not grow in rich soil. If they cme up, they will start to die out right away.
The first time I use sugar was in the spring. I had not put any chemicals on the yard since the fall feeding, so they were all worn out of the soil.
I had a lawn about 50% full of dandelions, crabgrass, johnson grass, clover, dollar weed and some other shallow rooted weeds like chickweed etc.
a couple of weeks after I put down the sugar and watered it in, I had about half as many weeds. Nobody had pulled a weed or anything. My husband had just mowed.
I went nuts, like a school of sharks in a feeding frenzy, and ran out and bought more sugar, put it down and waterewd it in.
A couple more mowings, and there were so few weeds. In a few more werks they were all gone.
The next spring about half as many weeds as before came up, but in a few weeks they were gone.
All I had done was the sugar in the spring, and I did that again in the fall.
I used baking soda disolved in water for black spot on my roses and powdery mildew n my crepe mytrtles. That works much better then the chemical fungicides I had used before.
I started getting a nice herd of lizards, toads and grass snakes in my yard.
I had a BIG grub problem every year. I haven't had that since, nor do I have those nasty tent catapillars dropping on my head from the trees.
I see lizards running in the trees and along the fence. I never see the grass snakjes, which is fine with me. I seldon see a toad, but they are all there.
Sugar; I use 4 or 5 pounds per 1000 sq.ft. I just broadcast it by hand, and water it in well. If you spill a blob in one spot, no problem. No burning or other damage.

Watering; I always water to a depth of at least 6 inches. Deep watering like that encourages a deep root growth. That protects from heat, cold and drought damage, and prevents thatch. I water with soaker hoses, and run them till the water is close to the edge and is about to start running off the yard. then I turn it off and wait an hour or so for it to soak in, and turn it on again. I keep doing that until it is wet down to a depth of 6 inches at least. Even here in our Texas heat, I water only once a week, unless it stays well above 100 for a week or more, which it sometimes does. then I look at the grass, and if my St. Augustine is folded up, lengthwise, I know it needs water. It folds the blades up to reduce the area exposed to evaporation. Burmuda, when it gets thirsty, bends it's little blades a little, like it is bowing.
My earthworms and cock roaches etc tunnel through the soil, and that keeps it aerated. Their castings add nourishment. Cockroaches are beneficial. They normally live in the soil and feed on other harmful insects. We put down pesticides, and kill their food supply, so they come in our houses to get food and hide from the pesticides.
I use fresh rosemary to keep them out of my house.

Baking soda disolved in water, about 2 TABLESPOONS per gallon of water, sprayed on top and underneath all the leaves, prevent molds and fungus on plants. You can also use it for fungus in the soil, or you can apply agricultural corn meal and water that in. About 10 pounds per 1000 sq.ft.

Corn gluten meal is an organic fertilizer and weed killer.
It won't interfere with the sugar.
None of the organics calcel each other out.
Alfalfa meal is another good food to add. Just sprinkle it on in about the same thickness the sugar goes on, and water. It is full of nutrients. So is lava sand. Yopu can add it to the top of the soil, dig it into the soil, or add it when you are adding soil, or putting soil in a comntainer for a plant.
Alfalfa meal, as well as generally nourishing the soil, helps promote larger and more blooms in blooming plants and house plants.
You can also make a tea of it for foliar feeding or for watering house plants.
Put 1 cup alfalfa meal in 5 gallons of water and let steep overnight. Still and use to water plants, or strain it and put it in a garden sprayer for foliar feeding.  Be sure, if you strain it, to dump the dregs on the soil somewhere, it is still full of nutrients.
You probably won't need more fertilizert than that. I didn't use anything but sugar for about 8 or 9 years, and last spring, I leartned about the alfalfa meal and lava sand, so I use them.
If you have more questions, write to me.
I am very happy to share what I have learned, and am learning.
Charlotte