814-Uncm>f Farming, Saturday, March 13 1993 Turf Scientist Offers Advice * ndclions and ground ivy wild soil lest Mailing kits for a Penn itsSSS sspass£« sss: SSeSESS lize and control certain weeds,” ° °' says Dr. Peter Landschoot, assist ant professor of turfgrass science in the College of Agricultural Sci ences. “Other lawn care practices, such as dethalching, are best de layed undl late summer or early fall.” Weed Control “The first step in weed control is to develop a dense turf," says Landschoot. “If this fails to pro vent weed infestation, herbicides can help.” Annual grass weeds such as crabgrass can be controlled by ap plying preemergence herbicides before weeds germinate in early to mid-spring. Some preemergence herbicides are coated on fertilizers so you can fertilize and control weeds in one operation. Suggested dates for applications in Pennsyl vania are: Southeastern counties - March 15 to April 15; Northern tier and high altitude counties - April 20 to May 20; Other coun ties - April 1 to May 1. “If you have too many weeds to remove by hand, you can control certain broadleaf weeds such as Cook’s Question ANSWER Carol Grove, Sommerville, Va., would like recipes using basic cookie mix. Thanks to Susan Fadeley for sending recipes. Basic Cookie Mix 9 cups all-purpose flour 'A cup double-acting baking powder 1 tablespoon salt 2 teaspoons cream of tartar , 4J4 cups sugar 2 cups shortening 4 cups mix 'A cup milk 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla Mix until well blended. Drop by tablespoonful on greased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 4 dozen. Variations: Add 'A cup chocolate chunks OR 'A cup chopped nuts, dates, or raisins OR 1 tablespoon grated orange rind and Vz cup chopped dates and raisins. Oatmeal Cookies 4 cups mix 'A cup milk 1 egg 1 cup quick oats 1 teaspoon cinnamon 'A cup raisins ’/> cup chopped nuts Mix first 5 ingredients until well blended. Add raisins and nuts. Drop by tablespoonful on greased cookie sheet. Bake in 375 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 4 dozen. Frosted Almond Cookies Substitute almond extract for vanilla in drop cookies and bake as directed. Frosting: 2 cups confectioner’s sugar 4 tablespoons baking cocoa 4 tablespoons hot water 1 teaspoon vanilla Almond halves, blanched Combine sugar and baking cocoa. Add water and vanilla. Put about 1 teaspoonful on each cookie with an almond half in the center. Bake in 375 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 4 dozen. “Fertilization does more to im prove and maintain turf quality than any other lawn care practice,” he says. “Grass normally needs more nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium than the soil can sup ply” In most cases, grass needs two parts nitrogen to'one part phos phorus and one part potassium. You can meet these requirements by applying a 10-6-4 fertilizer having 35 percent or more of the total nitrogen as water insoluble nitrogen (WDM) or controlled re lease nitrogen (CRN). “Make the first application at the rate of 15 pounds of 10-6-4 fertilizer per 1,000 square feet in mid- to late spring," says Land schoot. “Apply the second at 15 to 20 pounds in late summer or early fall.” The only way to determine ex actly how much phosphate and potassium turf requires is from a (Continued from Page B 8) Drop Cookies Fertilization Liming Most tutfgrasses prefer a soil pH ranging from 6.2 to 7.0. If your soil is too acid (below 6.0) Im proper turfgrass growth, apply lime in early spring, fall or late winter. “Rain and snow, combined with freezing and thawing of the ground, help to work the lime stone into the soil,” says Land schoot “ A soil test will tell you how much lime to apply.” Seeding Soils may be too wet in spring to establish a new lawn from seed. Late summer to early fall usually is the best time to establish a new lawn because of drier soil and re duced weed competition. New grass also will have two cool growing seasons fall and spring before encountering its first period of heat stress. Overseeding To repair thin turf or to fill in small patches of bare soil, over seed following aeration (six lo eight passes over the lawn), de thatching or by using a disk-type seeder that drops seed into slits in mmSSSrSL CLUGSTON FARM EQ i!h^M c - EQUIPMENT (nmmr N»«dmor», PA 717.573.2215 BARTRON SUPPLY, INC. Tunkhannock, PA 717-836-4011 CARLYLE A MARTIN, me. Hagerstown, MD 301-733-1873 CONSERVATION PLANTER: HEAVY-DUTY FOR HEAVY-DUTY HELDS H John Deere 7200 Planters, built tough for reduced tillage conditions. ■ 7x7-in. mainframes. Frame and unit-mounted ground attachments available, plenti ful under frame clearance. I MaxEmerge® 2 planter vacuum meter accuracy. On Lawn Care the soil. "Make sure the seed com- is thick. Aerate during cool wcath es into contact with the soil and er (early to mid-spring or late has space to germinate and devcl- summer to early fall) so that the op,” he says. grass recovers quickly. Adequate Aeration moisture is necessary for the acra- Aeration is the process of re- tor tines to penetrate the turf and moving plugs of soil from the turf, remove the plugs. The plugs can creating an artificial system of be broken apart once they have large pores which carry moisture dried, and nutrients into the soil. Acra- “If you already have applied a tion alleviates soil compaction and preemergence herbicide, wait un reduces thatch. It does not have to til early fall to aerate, as the prac be performed every year. lice can reduce the effectiveness Aerate your lawn when the soil of the herbicide,” says Land is compacted and the thatch layer school. Longwood Gardens KENNETT SQUARE (Chester Co.) Longwood Gardens con tinues its program of free garden ing demonstrations with a spring program of six presentations by Longwood experts on a variety of seasonal gardening techniques. The spring series includes “How to Prune Grapes” on March 10, “How to Prune Roses” on March 24, “How to Divide Perennials” on April 14, "How to Plant Early Vegetables” on April 28, “How to Plant a Container Garden” on May 12, and “How to Prune Azaleas” on May 19. The demonstrations coincide with home gardening CLUGSTONAG „ ENFIELD arSKSTik 4 TURF. INC EQUIPMENT INC. A.B C GROFF INC KISTLER INC ChamboratSun), PA 717-283-4103 301-482-5282 *l3-296-2011 DEERFIELD AG & EVERGREEN TU £. CE !" ER -' Nc - tractor co* me. gutshall-s me. LARDIS BROS - w< W 717538135S7 A Lebanon. PA RD8280x74-A 717-838-3887 717-272-4841 LoysvHls, PA 717-291-1046 7900 AJ BA schedules and are presented by Longwood’s gardeners. Particip ants will observe the practical how-to’s of gardening from the experts in time to apply the tech niques at home. All sessions begin at 2:30 pm. The series begins with a March 10 demonstration on pruning grapes to establish structure and increase yield. On March 24 rose growers will get an early look at pruning techniques for additional blooms and disease prevention. \Techniques for dividing peren nials to increase vigor as well as provide additional plants will be 'At ANKLE S FINCH SERVICES- gut<;h ...„ «■£ HANOVER INC. dSSf Mill Hall, PA UM>Ai**r da canlala, PA 717-726-3115 71 7 ’24 9 '2313 I @1
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