Ahhhhh… spring. Even though the snow will still try and surprise us here and there, the longer days and climbing temps guarantee us that spring is on the way!
So what to do, what to do…we want our plants to recognize that our mood is lifting and we want to be outside, shoes off, with our toes in the plush grass, soaking in the sun and smelling the flowers of spring. But there sits our landscapes, refusing to green up!
Even though air temps may be climbing into the 50s and 60s, soil temperature still is hovering in the 30s and low 40s. This is where your plants survive, through their roots, during their dormant period. So things are still a little chilly in your plants lives. You may see turf and plants near buildings on southern exposures coming out a little more quickly, a confirmation of this relationship, as radiant heat warms those soils faster. So what can you do, other than wait it out and let the sun do its thing? I'm glad you asked! There are actually quite a few tricks up the experienced gardener's sleeve, most that follow time honored spring preparations. I'll begin with turf, but some of the same actions can benefit your bedding and garden areas as well, so if you'd like a leg up there too, follow along.
Your first step is to get any matted plant material left over from last year up so that the sun can reach the soils below. This means that long grass that you never quite got around to mowing for the final time last year. Go ahead and set your deck to one of its' lowest heights, throw the bag on and give it a once over, sucking up as much of the dead stuff as you can.
Now is the time to open the soil and let some of that warmer air get into that cooler soil. Since we don't want to till up our turf and start over, the answer is core aeration. I've covered this in other areas here many times already with its many benefits, but for this discussion, not only do we get the opportunity to mix warmer air into the top of our soil profile, but the cores themselves will absorb heat during the day and slowly release it back out long after the sun goes down, helping to heat the surface. Isn't solar gain cool! In fact, many golf courses use a similar trick, top dressing with dark colored compost to absorb heat on those sunny day, breaking down just about the time it's no longer wanted for that purpose, enriching the soils beneath. For the bedding areas where we can actually turn the soil, turning it in not only readies it for planting, but it mixes warmer soils from the top down lower and brings the cooler up, giving you a leg up on getting to the temps you'll be looking for, soil wise. Add to that compost/mulch and the natural heat created by that breakdown, and you'll get a winning recipe for starting off in the cold climates.
One side note for turf is that of power raking. I actually have no idea why this practice persists in this market with its primarily blue/rye/fescue mixed grasses. These are vertical growing turfs that do NOT need thinning, unless you like weeds, that is. The primary function of those machines is for horizontal growing turfs, like Bermuda and St. Augustine, very rare in Utah, even in the southern part of the state. They indiscriminately rip your turf out, pulling quality plants out along with whatever thatch there is there. Thatch in the turfs that we have is necessary for protection of the roots of the plant, providing host to beneficial organisms and water conservation. Managing excessive buildup and is simply a matter of proper mowing, watering and fertilization practices. I liken this to combing your hair with duct tape. So why would you want to do that, let alone spend money for it? If you've got a "turf guy" selling you that service, it's time to start looking for a new turf guy.
So let's move on to the fertilizers. You know that the real, dark green is going to come from this, but the question is when, what and how. There are a couple of things that you want to know about fertilizers before you go shopping for one or allowing the fert company to make its first call to your property. First, and perhaps most important in the still cooler temps of the spring, is that plants actually need help from soil microorganisms to convert nutrients into a form that the plant can use. When the soil is still very cool, these organisms are not very active and depending on your soil and fertilizer types, you may be paying for something that will not be in your root zone when those "helpers" begin to be active. To be safe, I recommend slow release products early, in hopes that they will hang in the profile until they can be used. Throwing Urea in February does nothing but help the sellers of that idea meet their early sales numbers. It won't gain you a thing.
What you need is a complete fertilizer with lower N to P-K ratios (what’s this?). The reason is that some of the root building formulas can be a little "hot" for warmer temps, those with higher P-K (second and third number on a fertilizer bag, phosphorus and potassium) ratios, perfect for thickening a lawn. So we go for these in the spring and fall where we can make big strides in the density of the turf and have the flexibility that the cool temps afford. Use your favorite broadcast spreader, apply at half the recommended rate listed on the bag label and throw the other half in a couple of weeks. For more specifics, browse through some of our other articles that explain how the various primary, secondary and micro nutrients do their thing in the typical Utah soil along with pre-emergent weed control use.
Finally, there are some extreme tools in your arsenal that include plastic sheeting, exotic composts and other chemical applications all designed to warm the soil, but stick with the basics of removing old, matted plant materials, opening the soil and getting a nice slow release, balanced fertilizer down and before you know it, you'll be into your weekly mowing chores! - BD