Zoysia Lawn Care

Q: I have a large zoysia lawn. I’m looking for the best type of pre-emerge to put down now. Is 5-10-15 the way to go?

A: I am totally against fertilizing zoysia, bermuda, centipede or St. Augustine lawns when they are not green. You waste money and you may harm the grass if it is fed too early. Early March is a good time to apply a pre-emergent but it is usually not necessary on zoysiagrass lawns. A vigorous zoysia lawn is quite able to choke out weeds. If you have bare spots, use a straight pre-emergent like Dimension, Halts, or Crab-Ex. Do not fertilize until your zoysia is 90% green.

First week

Apply a pre-emergent to prevent weeds from sprouting. Do not apply to fescue if you intend to plant seed this spring.

Finish pruning peach and plum trees now. Begin disease and pest control sprays. Details at        http://www.walterreeves.com/uploads/Newsletter/peach.html

Second week

Fertilize fescue lawns, following directions on the bag. Repeat in late April.

River birch, red maple and muscadines are notorious for bleeding profusely if pruned in early spring. Though distressing, the leaking sap does not harm the plants and the bleeding will stop in a week.

Third week

Boxwood roots are very sensitive to too-wet or too-dry soil. Make sure gutter downspouts do not empty nearby. Note that bronze foliage now is usually a normal product of winter cold.

Preparing a new bed for flowers or vegetables? For every ten square foot area thoroughly mix in a two cubic foot bag of soil conditioner and two forty pound bags of gritty underlayment sand.

Fourth week

It may be warm outdoors now but it is still to early to plant tomatoes or summer annuals. Wait until the soil temperature is above sixty degrees at www.georgiaweather.net

Fertilize roses. The more leaves a rose has, the more blooms it will produce.