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Hi Amy! We live on Lake Travis in Texas and have a terrible time with the burrs in our grass. They are so painful! Do you have any ideas how we can get our yard to be burr free? Where do they even come from? Thanks! Burrs are generally a product of poor soil health, the first thing you need to do is get rid of the burrs in the grass. The best way to remove them is to get an old wool or woven blanket and drag it across the grass, the blanket should grab all of the burrs it comes in contact with. Next you will want to spread out a pre-emergent like corn gluten meal, this will prevent any future seeds from germinating. The next step is to build the health of your soil, the way to do that is core aeration followed by a half inch application of compost and a good organic fertilizer. | We moved into our new home in August, and have new carpet grass. The dirt in our yard is black gumbo with clay. When I water the lawn ...it takes awhile for it to soak in. Should I use the manure compost or the premium compost to spread on our lawn, and will this really loosen the soil? Thanks! Dolores Dolores,
Since you have a clay soil it would not hurt to apply compost twice a year for the next couple of years. Over time the compost will help to loosen the soil, you can also spray the soil with Medina Soil Activator to help break up the soil. Don't forget your spring fertilizer application when you compost. | I LIVE IN SOUTH TEXAS DOWN BY MCALLEN HAVE 1 ACRE AND I BURNED THE YARD WITH A WEED AND FEED. SHOULD I USE COMPOST AND WATER IT WELL? Esmer,
Yes adding a 1/2" layer of compost will help rejuvenate the soil by adding the organic matter and microbes into the soil. Follow up with an application of our Premium Lawn Fertilizer 7-2-2 and water it in with Medina's Soil Activator and you should see results. If the yard is totally gone then you will want to either lay new sod or broadcast seed to start the lawn off this spring. | Hello Amy, I have a few questions for you... #1 I would like to know if the North East side of my home that gets plenty of sun would be an ideal place to till up a vegetable/flower garden? #2 Also, I am very concerned about crop rotation, and all of the issues of depleting the soil, and diseases staying in the soil. Anyway, I read something about adding a solution of bleach to water and spraying the garden area to kill any diseases in the soil. Is this considered a natural/organic method? If not, do you have any ideas as to how I can, when the time comes next year, to keep from being concerned about crop rotation and the problems there are when it is done incorrectly. I look forward to reading your response. Thank you, Tracy Burton, Texas Tracy,
Yes a full sun area is a good place to install a garden, when you till the soil don't forget to till in compost and fertilizer to give the plants a good healthy soil to start in. When rotating crops it is always good to till the left over plant matter into the soil to give back the organic matter that was lost in the growing season. I would not recommend spraying bleach on any soil, instead every year mix compost into the soil to build the health of the soil. If you have any other questions please let me know. | I do high pile (6'), high heat composting. I neglected to turn my pile for a while and it went cold and stayed cold, after a few months i came back and turned it in the hopes that the air-ation would spark microbe activityand it would heat up again and get back to composting. However it has now been 2 weeks and the core temp has not gone above 60 on warm days (60's) or below 50 on cool days (30's). What can i do to get this unfinished pile cooking again ? Oh by the way i'm certified organic so keep that it mind. Thanks, Scott Scott,
Is the temperature measurement Fahrenheit or Celsius? Bat Guano, manure, and molasses are good ways to feed the microbes in the compost pile, check your moisture level in the pile if it is too dry composting will not occur, add water and one of the mentioned above to the pile and turn once more. About a week after amending the pile and turning check the temperature, ideal composting temperature will be 55 degrees Celsius or 131 degrees Fahrenheit. | Hello I have a great leaf collection system on my mower and a hickory grove that I can gather the leaves that have fallen. I am wondering if there is a concern with hickory leaves like that of walnut tree leaves. I would like to use the leaves as a mulch next spring in the asparagus bed. Thank you, Rita Rita,
I have not heard anything bad about using the hickory leaves as a mulch. But to be on the safe side you might want to either compost the leaves or mix the existing leaves with compost at a rate of 3 parts leaves to 1 part compost. Composting the leaves will cook out any chemicals that might be in the leaves to suppress growth in plants. | I'm trying to get control of the mulberry seedlings that keep growing in my yard. I read on some other sites that there are some Ortho products that can be used to inject into the roots, but I wanted to check with you guys to see what safer products or methods you would recommend. Thanks, Brian Organically the only suggestion I can make is to mow over the area and spot treat the growth with 20% Vinegar, once the plants are dead you will want to go over the area with compost to help the grass get back to good health. As a preventative twice a year spread corn gluten meal around the tree at a rate of 10# per 500 square feet to keep the seedlings from germinating. | Hello. I've gotten advice from you in the past on what to do for roses. It's helped out. But this year, it's not been good for the roses. We inherited a bunch of rose bushes and a few trees and vines when we bought our house a year ago in Cedar Park. They're all in the ground (a couple in whiskey barrels). I've been told I have a green thumb, but I've had at least seven of them die since we moved in. So I've met my match with roses, and can verify I, indeed do not have a green thumb at least with roses. We planted a native/adapted plant landscape garden in San Antonio and never had problems with it. I trimmed when necessary and fertilized at the beginning of the season with a liquid fertilizer, then as needed during the growing season. I watered every week or two during the hottest, driest weather, and got nice comments from our neighbors and how nice our yard looked. I guess I got spoiled. Don't get me wrong, we get really nice comments from everyone who visits our house about how beautiful the yard looks with the roses and other plants out there. I'm just having problems keeping some of them nice. New growth comes out, then it sometimes shrivels later. Then canes start dying. I've used Rose Defense, Potassium Bicarbonate, Rose Food from Gardenville, Soil Food from Gardenville, have composted mulch on them, etc. It tends to work in the short term, but eventually, they go back to looking diseased. I feel like I've done all I can with them. I have a feeling they've been too wet this year. So I'm letting them dry out some while we have this dry, warm spell. They seem to do better in the hotter, drier weather with periodic watering, rather than a constant soaking. I'm trying to stick to the organic route. That's not easy. But since we have a dog, and I don't like to mess with chemicals if I don't have to, I think it's safer. Anyway, if you have any other suggestions from an organic standpoint, please let me know. Thanks. Sincerely, David Cullen David,
You might want to try and acidify the soil around the roses. Our soil here in South Texas is an alkaline soil. One way to change the ph of the soil is to add a 2" layer of compost around the plants and mulch with a pine bark mulch. That should drop the ph of the soil and help the roses out. You also might want to take a gallon sample of the soil around the plants and send it off for analysis. You can go to http://www.txplant-soillab.com/, and get the details on a standard topsoil analysis. Let me know if you have any other questions.
| I have land in Atascosa county. It is very sandy but, has some coastal grass growing. In the past I've used it for cattle grazing. It's had no chemical fertilizers in over 10 years. Now I'd like use it for cattle and only want to use organics on it. I like to plant about 3-4 acres of hay grazer or oats. What do you recocmmend to go organic? I've seen the bennefits of organics at home and would like to continue at the farm. You absolutely cannot go wrong with using compost. It enriches the soil and replenishes the nutrients that are lost from years of growing and grazing. Garden-Ville offers a compost that is inexpensive and can be spread with a manure spreader. Our Premium Compost is made from composted biosolids from the San Antonio Water Systems' plant located on the south side of San Antonio. If you would like pricing and delivery options, please feel free to call our San Antonio Bulk Sales Representative, Mike Conner, at 210-279-0154. | I am building a home on a newly purchased lot (about 5 months from completion) and I would like to prepare my soil for organic vegetation. What would you recommend as the steps I need to take to start a new lawn essentially from scratch. Here is a brief summary of my land. Currently, I have black clays and ground cover consist of what appears to be wild grass as well as some mature oaks, Mt Laurels, and hackberry trees. I have about 4 acres, with about 2 acres in a drainage easement. Clays appear to sustain growth of the groundcover quite well as I initially had it dozed for building in Feb 07 and I greenery everywhere now. I had the unwanted trees/shrubs pushed into piles that I do plan to grind and spread over the area of my property that sits in the drainage easement to reduce weed growth. If the soil you have is healthy I would just amend it with a little compost (about 1-2”) and fertilize the grass (when it is laid) with our Premium Soil Food 7-2-2. After the trees are ground you might want to keep some of that mulch aside for any beds that you may make around the house. You are on the right track to a healthy organic based yard and if you have any other questions please let me know. | I live in stoneoaks area and have St Augustine for my lawn. My land has a steep gradient. I apply Scotts fertilizer twice a year and water the lawn 2 to 3 times a week. My lawn however has a lot of patches of thaw (dry grass). I am told by my neighbor that the lawn needs a top dressing. Please advise if this is correct and if so - what do I use for top dressing and - where do I get it - how do I apply Thanks in advance If you have a ½” layer of compost spread on the grass and follow that up with a good organic fertilizer your grass will start to show improvement within a couple of days. The compost will add the organic matter that erosion and chemical fertilizers have diminished over time, as well as cook the thatch that develops when you do not bag the grass clippings. The organic fertilizer will feed the beneficial microorganisms so they can start building up the health of the soil. Another thing you may want to look in to is aeration, by aerating the lawn you are allowing the compost and fertilizer to get deep into the soil where the roots are. You can pick up the compost and fertilizer at any Garden-Ville location or if you do not have a truck you can have it delivered through our delivery service. | We have an acre lot southwest of San Antonio, Texas with a poor soil and a rich supply of grassburs. I know D Dr. says build up the soil to discourage the burs. We are on a limited income. What do you stock that we need for this problem. I have a p/u so I can haul materials if I could get them in bulk quantities and maybe be more economical. How long would it take to grow a blackeye pea crop on the garden area and till it in to enrich the soil there. Would it help that much anyway? Jim Russell ( a devoted Dirt Dr. fan. The answer to poor soil conditions is compost. Garden-Ville has a production facility over at the SAWS water treatment facility located on the south side of San Antonio. There we produce a great inexpensive compost that will do wonders for soil conditioning, how much area are you looking to condition? We offer a delivery service and can carry up to 15 cubic yards in a single load. The black eyed pea will set pods at 60 days and mature between 90-100 days, so realistically bringing in compost to condition the soil might cost a little more but it would give faster results than growing the peas and tilling them in. To further prevent the grass burs spread out corn gluten meal in the fall and spring as a pre-emergent to keep the seeds of the burrs from growing (just be careful that you are not growing anything else from seed when you apply the corn gluten meal as it will keep them from germinating also). If you would like pricing and delivery cost to your home let me know and I will dig up some information for you.
| My home/yard in Prosper,TX is 3 years old and the soil is black clay. In March when digging about 1 foot down to move sprinkler lines I didn't see any earthworms. I've read they don't like clay and die out in the heat of summer. Could it be that coupled with the drought of last year, when I basically gave up watering my bermuda backyard,is the reason i'm not seeing any worms even with the good rain we had this winter? Would you recommend I buy some and spread them around the yard or facing a continuing drought would it be a waste of time? Is there a treatment to break up the clay that can be spread on the lawn to help the earthworms? Thankyou for your help. Terry Terry,
Yes I would agree with you that with the drought and lack of watering to the soil the worms left and looked for soil that is cool and moist. You can release earthworms into your soil, but before you go through that you will want to amend the clay soil with compost to enrich and break up the soil. The compost will also help the soil retain water when the drought time comes. Spread a 1/2" thick layer of compost over the yard using the back side of a metal rake and water it in. If you do that once in the spring and once in the fall the condition of your soil will increase and the earth worms will start to come back. Using "organic" fertilizers along with the compost will also give the worms a good place to come back to since there will not be a lot of salt residue in the soil. | Questions & Comments: I cannot make up my mind about core aeration. I have read so many pros and cons. Please help me. My yard is about 7,000 sq ft of turf with 8 matures pecan trees around back and side and two large oak trees in front. Will aeration hurt my trees roots. Can I compost without aeration and get a good result? Thanks. You can apply compost without aeration and it will be beneficial to your yard. The main reason why people aerate their yard is to break up the hard ground to help the compost get into the soil. If your yard is full of trees then it probably would not be a good idea to aerate. A good compost to use would be the Premium Compost, it is a great compost for yards that has nitrogen and other trace minerals. When you apply the compost don't forget to broadcast a good organic fertilizer like Garden-Ville's Premium Lawn Food 7-2-2. | I live in San Antonio Texas and I am having a "top dressing" applied to my yard next week. Should I apply corn gluten meal prior to this application? Yes, it would be good for you to add the corn gluten meal prior to the compost application. If the company is not already going to add a fertilizer you might want to apply it before they come in. | I am looking for a good inexpensive organic fertilizer for my ranch. We have one-12 acre costal field that needs some good fertilizer and we have other pastures that could also stand some attention. Do you have any recommendations and sources? Thanks, Gary You can use compost, dried molasses, or we have a fertilizer that comes in a 40# bag and will cover 4000 sq feet per application. For the compost you will need about 800 yards and the price per cubic yard for that would be $11 plus delivery. For the fertilizer you would need 132 bags and the cost for that would be $9.25 per bag. The benefits of the compost are the addition of beneficial microbes for soil conditioning and trace mineral nutrients as well as nitrogen. With the fertilizer you will get your NPK but not the soil conditioning benefits of the compost. All products listed are produced by Garden-Ville and can be picked up or delivered to you. Where is the ranch located?
| When is the best time to add compost to my St Augustine lawn? And when is the best time to apply beneficial nematodes for grub control? The best time to add compost to your yard is in the spring and fall, the best time to add nematodes is when your soil is still wet. You need to make sure that the soil does not dry out this summer, adding the compost will help keep the soil temperatures down and the moisture in. | I'm looking for a vegetation based compost to apply in a vegetable garden with sub-surface harvested parts (carrots, turnips and beets) as well as above-the-ground harvested plants (letuces, etc). Are there recommended composts for this tye of garden? If you are in the Austin area we have a product called TOP Compost. It is a vegetation based compost that we offer in bulk. | When spreading compost in my yard at 1/2" to help the soil, do I need to cut it in or just let it settle in on its own? And should I aerate first? Thanks Sean Yes you should aerate before laying the compost down. When you are applying the compost work it between the grass blades with the back side of a rake to help it get to the soil. | I have a puuting green that is overseeded with winter rye grass. In the spring I want to re-seed it with Riviera bermuda for easier management. What would be your suggestion for this procedure, areating verticutting?? and what would be the best way to appliy the seed?? I do not like the idea of using herbicide to kill out the winter rye, heavier verticutting and more seed are my possible solution. Thanks I would recommend that you aerate the surface, spread a ¼” thick layer of compost and seed with your choice of seed. The winter rye will die off when the weather gets too warm. | | |
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