I live in central Massachusetts zone 5b. Daytime temperatures have been unusually warm; mid to upper 40'sF, with night time lows as low as the lower twenties. We've had a few frost so far this month, temperature was 22F on Saturday night.

I am not sure when the best time would be to start improving the soil.

Thanks

You've got several problems but red fescue isn't one of them. Probably, that stuff really doesn't perform well in full sun or anything, and I already chimed in on your thread.

Exchange Capacity 3.5: Sandy soil. Your soil can't hold a lot in terms of resources and it'll change fast, so for a perfect lawn, test yearly. Very good, test every other year. Good, test every third year. Because this particular test is pretty far out of line, I'd retest next year to make sure you're on track.

pH 5.6: Symptom, not the disease. But it does tell us that you're well outside of optimal range for a lawn. We'll fix this in calcium and magnesium below.

OM 4.2%: At the lower end of the Good range. In the case of a very low EC soil, I'd try to get this up as much as possible. So always mulch mow, mow all fall leaves, consider stealing leaves in dark of night (I can probably suggest a place to get a ninja suit cheap), and think about feeding organically. Higher organics will raise your EC a bit, increase water retention, and generally increase the health of the lawn.

Sulfur 31: A normal answer with a good amount of margin for playing with (that I don't need).

Phosphorus 140: Low, but not extremely low. The target here will be around 200. We use starter fertilizer to raise this, and you can just get the cheapest as they all work the same and are in the same ballpark in terms of resources. Recommendations below.

Calcium 33.7%: Extremely low. The target here will be (for a low EC soil) close to 70%. To raise this, we use Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime. Other limes require too much mass, are too slow to work, or add other elements in ways I'd rather not. Recommendations below--I'd like to squeeze one this fall, but really can't, December is too late.

Magnesium 14.3%: While this looks great, it's actually going to end up low when the calcium hits and displaces some of the magnesium. We use Epsom salt to raise this, which you can find in the bath or first aid section of your local drug store.

Potassium 6.4%: This is similarly overenhanced by the low calcium, but it should end up in range. I have a suspicion that the next test will show you need potassium. We can wait for that one as even at that point the shortage shouldn't be much of a problem.

Sodium 12.4%: Extremely high by the numbers, but not nearly so bad if you look at pounds per acre. The influx of calcium should dispel some of the sodium, and if it doesn't, there are other things I can bring into play here.

Minor Elements: I mention Boron (deficient) and Iron (talked about) below. The others are in good range.

Iron 127: Normal, but may not produce the best color as the pH rises. If you find the lawn fades, you can apply Milorganite any time you like to slowly raise the soil iron levels. I timed the boron app (which uses Milo as a carrier) for two weeks after the liming to help counter the initial paling out of the lawn.

Boron <0.2: Deficient. We use Milorganite as a carrier and 20 Mule Team Borax as the boron source. You can purchase 20 Mules at the grocery store in the laundry section. In a wheelbarrow or the like, dump the Milo. Spraying very, very lightly with water (I use a spray bottle like the kind people use to damp their clothes when they iron) will help the boron stick. Add the recommended amount of 20 Mule Team Borax and stir, spraying occasionally to get the stuff to stick to the Milo. Then apply over the recommended area. So if going for bag rate Milorganite (1 bag per 2,500 square feet), you'd add 12.5 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax.

Recommendations:

April 1, 2016: Apply 8 pounds per thousand square feet of Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime. This may cause some minor and temporary paling out of the lawn. It'll reverse on its own.

April 15: Apply 5 tablespoons (not a misprint and don't overapply!) 20 Mule Team Borax per thousand square feet in Milorganite carrier.

May 15: Apply 1 pound per thousand square feet of Epsom salt.

Memorial Day: Apply starter fertilizer at bag rate.

Labor Day: Apply starter fertilizer at bag rate.

October 1: Apply starter fertilizer at bag rate.

October 15: Apply 4 pounds per thousand square feet of Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime.

November 1: Apply 1 pound per thousand square feet of Epsom salt.

Thanks Morpheuspa,

Are these soil sample test results indicate the cause for the poor color of my lawn?

When should I re-test the soil to see if I am on the right track?

Thanks again.

>>When should I re-test the soil to see if I am on the right track?

About a year, so figure mid to late November of 2016.

>>Are these soil sample test results indicate the cause for the poor color of my lawn?

What I'd expect is a lawn that generally struggles a bit, responds to feeding (but it peters out pretty fast), and looks what I'd call "OK."

Improper resource balancing definitely causes poorer color, so yes, this could very well be the cause of it. Genetic color of the grass is pretty hard and fast, however, so a paler grass will never attain a deep hue no matter how well-balanced the soil or how much iron it has.

Thank You

Another quick question Morpheuspa,

Do I still use a crabgrass preventer / fertilizer in the spring and how would I treat for weeds?

Thanks

Totally agreed with J4C11. Spring isn't the time to feed--I scheduled the starter fertilizer for the first moment on the "time to feed" clock, which is right around Memorial Day when using a synthetic. Feeding too early synthetically will set off massive spring growth, tap root systems of stored carbohydrates at a time when the storehouse is close to empty, and cost you summer performance (it'll look like crap in July and August).

I use a pre-emergent with no fertilizer in it. Dimension 0-0-7 is close enough that I won't object at all (a little potassium is rarely a bad thing, and it's the nitrogen that causes problems). Barricade also makes a pre-emergent with no nitrogen.

when should I apply the anti-grub product?

any suggestions on what brand to use?

Thanks, sorry for so many questions.

Hey, ask as many as you need to make what you're doing clear!

I use GrubX, but you can use any grub preventative you like. They all work well. Check the bag for the application date. They vary by the chemistry.

For GrubX, optimal application is in May, and it'll protect the lawn (and your gardens if you use it there, but I'd avoid vegetable gardens) for the entire season.

thanks,

I'll take you up on your offer!

with regards to >>>Exchange Capacity 3.5: Sandy soil. Your soil can't hold a lot in terms of resources and it'll change fast, so for a perfect lawn, test yearly. Very good, test every other year. Good, test every third year. Because this particular test is pretty far out of line, I'd retest next year to make sure you're on track.

If the soil is sandy why was it so hard to dig the sample holes even after being aerated?

And how would I improve the make-up of the soil so it can hold the "resources" it needs?

Low calcium and high magnesium (comparatively speaking when compared to the current calcium levels) tend to create a hard, impenetrable soil. Plus, overall, your cation resources (positively charged ions) were low, so the soil just kind of turns into a big, undifferentiated pile of mess.

Any soil can act like a big, sticky pile of goo, and that's why a lot of people think they have clay when they don't.

Aeration doesn't fix the chemical issues in the soil in any way. It has its uses, but that isn't one of them.

Adding the calcium will, over time, tend to lighten the soil. So would increasing biological activity as much as you can--hence the recommendation to feed organically if you can.

You're stuck with your base soil, but the organic ratio has a very high EC (up into the hundreds). Raising the organic matter ratio will also raise your soil's EC a little bit.

GM

Are there other methods to loosen and soften the soil?

Should I still try to water at a rate of 1" per week in one watering session?

What is EC and how did you figure it to be in the hundreds?

(is it the Total Exchange Capacity (M.E>)) My reading was 3.50

Would my organic feeding start in 2017 after I try to improve the existing soil conditions?

Thank You

Organic feeding can start in 2016. It is in addition to the other stuff. Starter fertilizer has some nitrogen but you need more nitrogen for the grass. When Morpheus gives his recommendations for soil improvement, he is not giving nitrogen recommendations. Grass will need nitrogen feedings regardless of the soil. He is suggesting that you do organic feedings. That could be Milorganite or corn, soy, or alfalfa, whatever is available at the least cost in your area. To help soften the soil, you can spray shampoo. Do some googling here to get the details.

Starter fertilizer has some nitrogen but you need more nitrogen for the grass.

I see 3 applications of starter fertilizer in morpheus' recommendations, at bag rate that's 3lbs of N/ksf, seems sufficient to me. Especially since there may be a 4th as winterizer.

+1 j4c11 AND Becky.

2.4 lbs N per thousand may be sufficient, depending on the base grass. Fescues and rye will be happy enough with it, but generally benefit from a bit more. Bluegrass will still be peckish, even with the winterizer. Most starter fertilizers target 1 pound P, 0.8 pounds N or so per application.

>>Are there other methods to loosen and soften the soil?

Yes! Search on the shampoo method on this site; let me know if you can't find it and I'll re-post the book.

>>Should I still try to water at a rate of 1" per week in one watering session?

In a very high sand soil, it's often best to modify that a little bit. Because your soil can't hold a lot of water, water about half an inch at a time...and realize you may have to water twice as often.

>>What is EC and how did you figure it to be in the hundreds?

(is it the Total Exchange Capacity (M.E>)) My reading was 3.50

Yep. Pure, late stage organic matter has an EC of several hundred. Your sand currently has an EC of 3.50...

>>Would my organic feeding start in 2017 after I try to improve the existing soil conditions?

You can start feeding organically any time you like, it won't interact negatively with anything I'm adding (quite the opposite, actually!), and it won't result in overfeeding the lawn even if dropped with the starter.

Morpheus, in general when you give your recommendations you are not targeting the nitrogen needs and people may assume they don't need to do any other fertilization other than what you set forth ("You need a soil test so you can fertilize properly" implies that the analysis is complete). I made this point at the other forum and the response was that people do their nitrogen feedings in so many ways (synthetic, organic, mixed) and it's different for different kinds of grass and different levels of expectations that they didn't want to get into nitrogen recommendations unless asked for them. So now in the instructions for doing soil tests, they say that nitrogen recommendations are not included with the recommendations from the soil test (the soil test itself does not test nitrogen because it's so variable that any results would be useless).That puts people on notice that they may need to do additional fertilizer so the grass has enough nitrogen. You do such a thorough explanation of everything you recommend and give a primer lesson on nutrients. Perhaps there is some way you can explain that nitrogen is an important nutrient even though your focus in analyzing the soil test is on the other nutrients, not nitrogen.

Because the soil was so hard; I thought it may be a heavy clay based soil.

So I had the irrigation system programmed to water the lawn every third day applying a half inch of water at a time to eliminate run-off. (So much for what I know!! )

Is the half inch at a time schedule okay?

Or do you think the lawn may require more than 1" of water per week?

If so; what would you suggest as a watering schedule?

Based on the soil test results do you think my soil problem can be corrected?

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being very bad, and 10 be very good.

Where on the scale would you put my soil?

Thanks again.

@becky: Good point! I should just boilerplate a disclaimer up top. In some cases, I'm slamming the grass with N. In others, nothing...

>>Because the soil was so hard; I thought it may be a heavy clay based soil. So I had the irrigation system programmed to water the lawn every third day applying a half inch of water at a time to eliminate run-off. (So much for what I know!! ) Is the half inch at a time schedule okay? Or do you think the lawn may require more than 1" of water per week? If so; what would you suggest as a watering schedule?

I folded all this together. :-) Observation will show you what's required; during cooler weather, like spring and fall, very little watering may be required, or even none at all. I haven't used the sprinklers since September even though rainfall's been a bit low.

Half an inch on very sandy soil is generally a good place to start, and figure you may need it twice a week in hot weather. Weekly in pleasant summer weather. I always play it by ear and water when my grass starts to wilt--which also sends the signal to the grass that more root mass might be a good idea.

>>Based on the soil test results do you think my soil problem can be corrected On a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being very bad, and 10 be very good. Where on the scale would you put my soil?

All soils can be corrected and yours is certainly no exception to that. Mine started out more than ten times as acidic, with essentially no calcium, modest magnesium, and very low potassium. Not to mention a nearly complete lack of every other resource.

These days, it can grow anything I throw into the soil (as long as the plant is compatible with my climate and the sunlight it gets, of course). The problem isn't getting plants to grow, it's getting them to stop taking over! There was a visible battle front between the ageratum and zinnia this year.

Overall, I'd give your soil about a 5 at the present instant...it's almost exactly what I'd expect for your locale, without modifications. That can easily be turned up to the 7 to 9 range. 10 is possible but would take years of work.

Morpheuspa thank you yet again for taking the time to help me out.

Morpheuspa you replied to +1 j4c11 AND Becky on the N level:

2.4 lbs N per thousand may be sufficient, depending on the base grass. Fescues and rye will be happy enough with it, but generally benefit from a bit more. Bluegrass will still be peckish, even with the winterizer. Most starter fertilizers target 1 pound P, 0.8 pounds N or so per application

If I were to supplement the starter fertilizer with Milorganite when would you suggested I apply the Milorganite?

And is Milorganite considered an organic fertilizer?

What does Milorganite do?

Milo's an organic fertilizer with a large amount of iron (comparatively speaking). Application around August 15 and September 15 would round out the feeding to sufficient for any lawn.

Milo does have a percentage (up to 40) of faster nitrogen, but it's usually not that high. Most grains have 0% fast nitrogen.

Be advised, Milorganite has a sewer smell to it , but it goes away after a few days :-)

Yeah it literally smells like $&!# for a week...

...I kind of like it. It's more like ocean mud flat than $&!#, really.