07 Oct Late Summer Update
After going around to all the properties to give fall lawn care estimates and do another spray there are a few things to note. First, grub damage on most properties has been minimal. We applied our grub applications after the heavy rains in June, timing it so the grub control would last throughout the season and not get washed out. Thus far, very few lawns are reporting grub damage.
However, with Japanese Beetles making their way into the Metro area it is important you contact us immediately if you think grub damage may be occurring. The crabgrass thrived during the two weeks in July when the temperature was above 90. Spraying crabgrass, with either Q4 or Quinclorac, at those temperatures kills the turf along with the crabgrass. You might have noticed that even walking on the lawn a few times at those temperatures caused the lawn to die out a little.
Most of the crabgrass should have died on my last spray making it possible to seed where necessary. If any property that wants seed still has crabgrass on the next application we will do another spray of the crabgrass and come back and seed about a week later. We will let you know what is happening on your property when we come by for the next application. A good amount of lawns have either a minor or a major fungus problem, which is common in Omaha for this season.
An aeration and overseed should be good if your fungus is small and patchy. However, we will have to remove the soil and add fresh soil to any areas where the fungus grew too large and damaging. Replacing the soil ensures two things: the same fungus should not reappear there, and the seed should be able to grow properly. Overall the lawns looked like they had been through a rough summer last time I went around and sprayed, but that is to be expected with the summer we had. The most important thing now is taking care of the lawn in the fall and making sure your lawn is thick, healthy, and weed/disease free for next season.