Spring on the Central Coast

This is our first spring here in California and if you have not experienced a central coast spring I highly recommend it! At this time in the Midwest you never know if you are past the winter days of snow and ice, whether to take cover from a tornado, or if you should turn on your air conditioner or wait it out a bit longer. "If you don't like the weather of the midwest just hang around for 24 hours and it will change," was always the motto or favorite expression of the area. Here on the central coast it is as close to paradise as I can imagine. We have not experienced many daytime temperatures cooler than 55 and just a few nights below 35. PERFECT winter climate, huh?!

Enough about the weather we wanted to give you an update on what we have been up to, since we haven't posted for a while. We are trying to figure out how to get things done around the house and still have time to get out and do fun things with Celine. We have been taking little trips to the beach and Celine loves it with her new hat and we always make time to get downtown on Thursdays for the Farmers' Market in San Luis. We will have pictures of this event soon! Recently we have been going to another Farmers' Market on Friday's at Avila Beach. This market is much more of a social gathering than shopping for fruit and produce with live bands on stage and lots of food vendors. But the big highlight is the amazing view. The ocean is just a hundred yards away and towards the end of the market you can watch the sun set behind the hills of the coastline.

I have been busy tending to our yard and landscape around the house. It gives me an outlet since I am not working outside on the golf course anymore. Christiane continues to be busy with research and projects at Cal Poly in addition to the two of us spending as much time as possible with our little angel. Parenthood has been an absolute thrill! There are many difficult times, but the joyous and happy times far outweigh them in our case; we have been very blessed.

We have included some pictures so that everyone can satisfy their fix for Celine photos, as well as some flower pics from around our yard. Enjoy and check back soon!!

April turf tips

Spring has most definitely sprung for us here on the central coast! As soil temperatures begin to warm up across the country, now is the time to start seeding and fertilizing your home lawns. Fall is always the best time to do this, as seeding in the fall gives your lawn the best chance of establishing its root system before the summer heat, but the spring is not a bad time to overseed a thin lawn or small bare patches. One of the most important steps to the success of this project is preparation of the soil. You want to make sure that the surface is roughed up enough so that you get good "seed-to- soil" contact. This contact is important to germination rates and overall success!

Seed selection is also a large component to a healthy lawn. For instance, if you live in the northern climates you certainly do not want to buy Bermuda seed or sprigs due to lack of high enough temperatures. Now, you can mix your seeding in relation to how much sun or shade it will receive. If your lawn is in the sun you will want to plant grass like tall fescue, certain ryegrass and blue-grass, or bermuda. If you have trees or other predominantly shady areas you will want to select fine fescue, ryegrass, or certain blue-grasses. The goal here is to match the turf with its environment so that labor and water usage are at a minimum since we want to save money and resources! Make sure to read the specifications on the seed containers and match the conditions with the right turf characteristics.

There are a number of different fertilizers out there for you to choose from. When trying to grow seed you will want an analysis that is fairly even or maybe slightly higher in phosphorus (the middle number) for instance, 15-15-15 or 12-24-16. These numbers represent nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium. Nitrogen is the main food source for the plant, phosphorus is used primarily by the plants roots, and potassium is used by the plant to fight off stress like disease and high temperatures. You do not want your fertilizer to contain any herbicides or weed preventer when trying to get your seed to germinate as these chemicals might stunt the growth of your seedlings. Until the grass is 1" tall you will try to keep enough water on the seed/seedlings so that things stay moist not neccessarily wet. Once the new grass reaches 1" in height it is safe to mow and turn down the water depending upon rain and temperatures.

For regular fertilization you will want something with an analysis like 12-3-5 or 25-5-10. The phosphorus and potassium are not as important as the nitrogen. Two 1-lb of nitrogen fertilizations, once in the spring and once in the fall, will be sufficient for most lawns because we want them to look good, but not neccessarily need to be mowed 2-3 times per week. A fertilizer and weed preventer combo is a good investment for both treatments so that you kill two birds with one stone. Follow the rates and instructions on the bag of fertilizer and make sure to water the lawn after this application to wash the fertilizer and herbicide into the soil but not to the point that you create run-off. Good luck with getting your lawns off to a good start this spring and check back next month and we will discuss watering schedules and mowing tips.