Go BottomRenovating Lawn Core Aerator or Overseeder
 | Lee
Join Date: Posts: 1 
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1999-12-29 11583
My lawn was destroyed by the draught last year, I did not do anything in the fall so now I have grass plug city.I am wondering what is the best thing to do to fill in the plugs. The dead sod between the plugs has begun to rot, so I thing it might be ready to start some remedial action.I was considering renting a core aerator to pull behind the tractor, or I have seen a "Overseeder Machine" for the 3ph.Is one of these better than the other, and when is the best time to do this in the PA area? Is it possible to do during a winter thaw in Feb? or When?Lee
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| MichaelSnyder
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
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1999-12-29 11589
Lee,
The two animals you mentioned serve different purposes, so I'm a little confused on the comparison..However..I am unfortunately in your shoes as well. Not to change the subject, But I also live in PA (eastern) and can tell you that this situation has forced me to learn more about grass than I really ever wanted to know. My first advise is to have a soil test taken. I'm almost confident in guessing you need LIME really bad. BTW: I just finished spreading 4 ton on 2 acres and doubt its enough. I also own a coring aireator and can tell you its worth it if you have heavy traffic or compacted soil. but this won't solve your problem, it will only better prepare the bed. The slit seeder works like a champ. My father rented one for a day and did his whole 1 1/4 acre in a day in September. The yard looks great already. The key to sucess is quality grass seed and proper PH levels in the soil. Naturally water is a good thing as well.
My advise would be to buy your seed now..and overseed very early spring. I've heard that speading grass seed over the "last" melting snowfall provides for excellent germination with very little foot compaction. Resulting from the spring mud or soggy soil. ....
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| Lee
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-12-29 11590
The PH looks pretty good, but around these parts you almost can never do enough of it. I did the lime thing in the spring and I used Organic fertilizer as well. The grass plugs that I have are outstandingly healthy, its jus the gaps between. I guess from what you have said the core aerator does not work for seed, at least not compared to the overseeder.
Is it easy to calibrate the overseeder for different seed densities like coarse Rye versus very small fescue and bluegrass, from the looks of these machines the could eat up a ton of product, or are they easy to calibrate. How much seed did you father use on the 1 1/4 acres and was it easy to calibrate or do you wind up going over it twice or more? Thanks ....
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| MichaelSnyder
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
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1999-12-30 11611
Lee,
If you can rent an aireator inexpensively, I would recommend doing so. Your biggest enemy at this point is frozen soil. Secondly, you will need lots of weight, if your soil is similar to mine. The grey cinder/hollywood blocks were hardly sufficient in allowing his 4' aireator to penatrate. My father has 2 man-hole covers weighing in at about 125-150lbs a piece. Plus I threw my 2 wheel weights (120lbs) on top of that, which worked quite well.
Going over the lawn a few times will put quite a bit of soil on top of the old sod, assisting in germination. My father also has a pull behind roller filled with oil. Using the roller sometime after aireation will further assist to break up the soil cores the aireator will place on top of the sod. As far as the overseeder, I will have to check with my father concerning seed consumption and adjustability, since he is the one who used it. The overseeder uses knifes/blades to slit the sod bed, allowing the seed to penetrate the soil. They are also self propelled, providing a constant speed. Small as it my be, High/low spots can be leveled out a bit by raking the soil cores from high spots into the low spots.. ....
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| Jim Shupp
Join Date: Posts: 1
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2000-01-01 11636
Michael is right they are two different animals. I'm from eastern Pa. and have installed and renovated many lawns proffesionally.I have 3 acres of my own and suffer from the "bare spot clump" syndrome, but then so does everyone else who had a quality lawn.Depending where in Pa. you are your ground is not frozen. Now is the time to aerate,you will have 3 months for the plugs to break down.Depending on the size of the area to be done, you may want 3point or walk behind. The 3 point requires added weight and a moderate speed which helps to drive the tines into the surface, slower is not better. The walk behind units work better at a slower speed.As far as overseeding, a land pride is hard to beat in 3 point, and Ryan for a walk behind, and both can be rented.DON'T use a Blue Bird overseeder, their thatchers are good, but the overseeder is just an attachment that hangs on the back of their thatcher.The type of grass you use will depend on your rate, if your using a rye,fescue,blue grass blend, seed at 2.5 lbs. per 1000 square feet on an overseed,if is totally bare double the rate. Overseeders have charts for the proper settings, base your setting on ryegrass.Don't be to anxious to get the seed down early, moisture is only half of the recipe, you need the ground to be warm enough for germination.So basically the grass will only germinate in April/May anyway.If the seed is put down to early and it sits there wet and possibly gets snowed on besides, there is a chance the seed can mold or rot. It's not real likely, but it can happen.And lastly be selective on your choice of preemergent herbicide, if you use one, because they prevent the germination of grassy weed seeds(crabgrass,etc.)but they also have the same effect on freshly sown grass seed. Sorry to be so long winded, but this is the condensed version.Re-post if you want to E-mail direct. Good Luck!! ....
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