Restoration

We are often asked… “When should I overseed my lawn?” and the answer for our areas of Kansas and Missouri will always be “in the Fall.” Because the longer you can give those new seedlings before the hot Summer the better. Lawn restoration is a process to say the least. Grass needs the vitals, such as food, water and sun. Too much or too little of any can be the demise. Food comes in the form of the soil and supplemented with fertilizer. Water, comes from rain or is supplemented by a lawn sprinkler or underground irrigation system. Finally, sun is vital for helping the grass perform photosynthesis to be able to process the food and water. Keep those trees trimmed.

If you believe your lawn is in need of restoration, please read below to determine which process best suits your needs. Call 913-256-5296 or email us today for your Free Estimate.

Read more in our blog post here: So You Want Your Lawn Back…

A complete lawn restoration using a Lesco Lawn Renovator verticutter.Verticutting uses a machine to cut straight lines into your lawn. The depth of these lines is variable and a by-product of the slicing action is known as de-thatching. A verticut machine, like the aerator, has several blades attached to a drum. These blades slice the ground producing a proper seed bed, or corn-row, while removing thatch along the way. 

Verticutting is the best way to prepare a lawn for over-seeding. By removing the thatch and cutting the rows, a “clean” evenly distributed seed bed creates an even lawn. Verticutting should be done in two passes. Seed is then placed by a broadcast spreader. It should not be ignored that verticutting does also decrease lawn compaction by cutting in the rows. It is, however, not to the extreme as a core aerator is.

Verticut costs have been seen advertised starting at $70 per avg. Johnson County lawn. Again, higher pricing doesn’t mean a rip-off. The machine types, removing and collecting the thatch and two directions are all factors to consider.

Seed placement is done with a broadcast spreader.

A starter fertilizer is placed at the time of overseeding and a 4-week follow-up is strongly recommended for success. Grass needs warm temps, water and food (fertilizer) to grow.

We offer our lawn aerating / verticut / verticutting / overseeding services to all the cities of Olathe, Lenexa, Overland Park, Shawnee, Prairie Village, Fairway, Gardner, Spring Hill, Merriam, Mission, Mission Hills, Leawood and more in Johnson County, Kansas as well as in Kansas City, Mo and Kansas City, Ks. Don’t see your city? Just contact us and we would be happy to discuss it as we service most of Kansas City and the Metro.

HOW TO PREPARE FOR VERTICUTTING

  1. Water – watering your lawn in the 2-3 days prior to verticutting will loosen the soil and allow the verticutter to cut into the soil easier.
  2. Mow – Mowing is extremely important for greater success. DO NOT SCALP your lawn. Simply mow and bag, if possible, at a setting of one or two lower than normal. 2-1/2″ to 3″ is perfect.
  3. Flag your sprinklers & Drains – Be sure to flag all sprinkler heads. You can do this by turning on the system and when they pop up, flag them. Also flag any known valve boxes and underground drains. Pretty much anything you wouldn’t want to get damaged by our machines. This is something you are responsible for and we are not liable for damage to unmarked heads or other items. So get them marked. We have seen just about everything used to flag sprinkler heads. From coat hanger wire to real flags. You can purchase flags in a bundle from your local hardware store.
  4. Remove Pets – Be sure that any pets are harbored away for the day we are verticutting. We love pets, but can’t be responsible for them.

**SOMETHING TO KEEP IN MIND – Verticutting is a global fix. Meant to add thickness and health to your entire lawn economically. It is possible to need to focus on some spots after the service. This does not mean the service was performed incorrectly. It simply means that area needs more special attention.

 

WHAT TO DO AFTER VERTICUTTING

  1. Water – Watering your new seed is top of the list. DO NOT DRENCH your new seed. The goal is to keep the seedbed (yard) moist and free of cracks from drying out. If you have a sprinkler system, set it to run every day for just a few minutes a time first thing in the morning. Depending on the heat and drought conditions, you may run it again early to mid-afternoon. Check it after work, and make a judgement decision. If you don’t have a sprinkler system, Call us 🙂 and be sure that your lawn is getting enough water to moisten the soil, but not so much to wash away the seed. The first waterings are CRITICAL to not be too much water and wash away your new seed. We can tell when this happened, because you will not have any new growth at the top of a hill and amazing new growth at the bottom of the hill where all the seed and fertilizer washed away to. We know! LOL.
  2. Mow – If you simply had an overseed and your lawn is otherwise still in tact, wait 7 days or so to mow. This may be the one time you are excused to cut more than 1/3 the blade length off. Certainly DO NOT mow within 48 to 72 hours.
    If your lawn had many bare spots and only new growth is occurring, then wait for the new grass to exceed 3″ in length, then cut down to 3″ using a sharp blade.
  3. Fertilize – The ideal situation calls to re-apply a high nitrogen fertilizer again 4 weeks after service.

**The success of your lawn depends on these actions after verticut. If you don’t have enough water, you will not succeed. Water, water, water. BUT DON”T wash it away! This service does not have any warranty.

Seed Options

We prefer to use seed from Grass Pad but also purchase from other area vendors upon request. Grass Pad creates seed blends for our area, as opposed to the big name brands in the box stores that have generic mixes. Quality fescues, bluegrasses, and perennial sports-turf rye seed specifically selected for the Kansas City area.

FESCUE
Fescue grass is a cool season grass adapted to the transition zone. The fescue species are easily seeded and include the sub species of tall bunching grasses named tall fescue and fine shorter fescues named creeping red, hard fescue, chewings fescue and sheep fescue. Fescue grass varieties are drought tolerant and thus eco-friendly.

Unlike the majority of cool season grasses, Fescue grasses are shade tolerant and perform well in the lower areas of the transition zone, such as our area in Kansas City, where the season is too hot for the other cool grasses and in the area of the transition zone that is too cold in the winter for the warm season grasses.

Fescue grass seed are also found in many seed blends with grasses such as Kentucky Bluegrass and Ryegrass varieties.

Varieties
Macho Mix Fescue grass seed for the Kansas City Area.Macho Mix, elite fescue/sports turf rye grass seed mix, specially selected for Kansas City. Heat and drought tolerant grass seed varieties chosen for color and wear. Excellent full sun performer as well as very good shade tolerance. Macho Mix contains 5% perennial sport turf rye. Sports turf rye has the ability to hold the fescue up in heavy traffic areas. Great for play zones and dog runs. The quick germination from perennial sports rye makes Macho Mix a valuable tool when needing quick cover or a fast start for slopes.

 

 

 

Fescue grass seed for the Kansas City areaOvertime Mix, is a fescue mix similar to Macho without the Rye.

 

 

 

 

 

BLUEGRASS

Kentucky Bluegrass is a cool season lawn grass. Bluegrass can be planted from seed or sodded and is one of the most popular turf grass lawns in Northern America. Bluegrass requires medium amounts of lawn care and makes beautiful home and sports grasses.

Bluegrass has a later green-up period and is often seeded specifically with ryegrasses for this reason. Bluegrass is one of the longest living perennials grasses grown. Although a reseeding grass; many factors over a period of time may thin or kill sections of these lawns and reseeding or patch seeding may be required. The reasons for this can be due to disease, insect damage, wear, climate swings, water deficiency, or other environmental factors. Reseeding affords the homeowner a chance to upgrade the present lawn with improved qualities.

Varieties

Estate Mix, similar to Bluemaster, bluegrass and perennial sports turf rye mix, is an excellent choice for spring seeding and fall lawn renovator. Give your lawn that soft well manicured look of a golf course fairway. Aggressive bluegrass varieties will fill in routine damage and perennial sports turf rye adds durability in heavy traffic areas. Good for shade areas and excellent in full sun.

Bluegrass seed for the Kansas City areaBluemaster, is a bluegrass mix alone.

 

 

 

 

 

RYE
Both Perennial and Annual Rye grass can provide a winter green lawn overseeded on warm season grasses that go dormant in the fall/winter. Used on newly sown lawns of cool and warm season grasses it acts as an erosion barrier while the permanent lawn develops plus giving any area an almost “instant” green coverage. This green coverage is the chief purpose for using annual ryegrass. Clippings mowed are left on the developing lawn as it grows, helps adds extra nutrients as the ryegrass decomposes.

Bright green, fast growing, and prolific; the ryegrasses do much for lawns by adding contrasting color to early spring flowers, trees and shrubs.

2 Comments

  1. Ksrem

    Can I buy macho mix anywhere in Chattanooga Tn
    Or can
    You
    Recommend a alternative

  2. Admin

    Macho Mix is a local blend of 3 fescue species that do well in the KC area. What you are looking to ask for is a 3-way fescue blended specific to your region. A local home and garden store would have something like this vs. a box store running national brands and blends.

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