Message Board - Pests, Weeds and Diseases: Correcting too much iron
13 Apr 2011 by Tom O'Connell
I have inherited some lawns which have been treated by a "lawn treatment company" over the years. It looks to me to be over acidic conditions caused by over application of fe. Dry as a bone profile and clumps of woodrush everywhere. Any ideas of how to go about solving this??
13 Apr 2011 by Tom O'Connell
another pic
13 Apr 2011 by Tom O'Connell
Another lawn with woodrush
13 Apr 2011 by Michael Rogers
Tom, What is pH and CEC? If the pH is really low you can determine a liming strategy with these two parameters.
No urea or sulphate of ammonia use nitrates ( Ca(NO3)2 or KNO3 if N is needed
Michael
13 Apr 2011 by davtar01
Tom, dont over complicate things.....
I dont think its any more than excess thatch caused by over feeding (a GT legacy)
Field woodrush can be a sign of heavy thatch and wet conditions
Get your scarifier out, drop some seed, a moss treatment, if neccesary, a high phosphate feed when the seed has germinated....and a prayer for some rain.....
Changing PH's at this point is a waste of effort....i assure you........If it is excess iron, its probably gone out by now, but its the problem its caused that needs correcting first...
13 Apr 2011 by Tom O'Connell
I must say my instinct tells me that a moss control would be the last thing these lawns require, unless it was to be something like good old mossicide ( i cant remember the active ingredient). Sure there is a bit of moss here and there, but it is the last of my worries. The conditions are far from wet, and heavy thatch is also a sign of acidic conditions due to the reduction of soil microbes. Am going to test the ph soon, as for CEC im hoping to scab a free test from one of my fert supplyers, though i dont really trust there results! Im thinking calcium of some form, hollow coring, maybe wetting agents?
13 Apr 2011 by davtar01
Seriously, dont over complicate it!
So, if this was over applying iron...would there/should there be any moss? If it was over applied there shouldnt be any?
I doubt that a correct application of iron to control moss after you have scarifed, will do any harm...
The lawn pictures show a lot of dead thatch....why do you conclude that it is over applying iron??
Heavy thatch a sign of acidity....thats a new one......must raise all my ph levels off the scale and get rid of all of mine....
This lawn needs plnty of aeration, scarfication...a moss kill...if this massive overdosage of iron has left any moss???
Yes, of course wetter etc will help....but lots of sensible practical work needs to be done...
In my opinion......
13 Apr 2011 by andrew white
Can you really hint at the company that looked after the lawn? There is more than one company out there! Do you know what the products used by the company are and the rates they are used at???
Do you know what products are services were offered to the customer, did they choose not to received them?/could not invest the money needed?
This lawn is not receiving too much Iron, it is bone dry after two extremely dry summers and awful winters.
The lawn simply requires scarification to remove the dead grass caused by drought, aeration to remove the compaction of dry soil shrinkage and general traffic, over seeding (speedy germination in the aeration holes) and a weed and feed followed by regular moisture. Hey presto a new lawn.
Oh as rain fall is again very low, use of a wetting agent and a little watering regularly.
14 Apr 2011 by Grassman2011
Regular mowing might help judging by the last picture.
14 Apr 2011 by Ken Barber
All the advice given has merit. Roger with a soil test to determin Fe levels and CEC and avoiding urea or sulphate of ammonia and to use nitrates. A soil test which gives the base saturation will also give accurate availability of nutrients to the plant. More importantly it will determin whether the level of Fe is excessive!
Woodrush is an indicator of low pH. It can be controlled within limits but there are worse weeds in my book.
Reducing thatch, aerating regulary, applying a wetting agent program and overseeding should see your lawn turn around quickly.
KB
The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under who’s shade you do not expect to sit.
14 Apr 2011 by Tom O'Connell
Yes, both these lawns have had an issue of frequency of cutting. Because of this my predeceser had been using vitax turf tonic for years on these lawns to prevent flushes of growth through using a low "N" product.
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