Lawn, Turf & Fertilizer

The key to a beautiful, lush, weed free lawn is consistent, proper care and maintenance.

Quality Granular Fertilizer

The proper management of lawn nutrients and the use of weed control methods will promote a thick stand of turf.

Empire Spray typically recommends 4 (optimal) or 3 granular fertilizer applications throughout the growing season.  The timelines below will achieve the best results from the product when weather conditions are favorable.

Lawn Fertilizing in Spokane

  • For optimum results we recommend 4 granular fertilizer applications 45-60 days apart.
  • A minimum of 2 treatments are crucial to maintain a lawns health quality.
  • More than 4 treatments of our fertilizer is unnecessary and environmentally irresponsible.
  • Fall application is the most important for your lawn’s health and ability to recover from winter come springtime.
  • Services are available “a la carte” – you are not locked into a “plan” you don’t want or need.

Recommended 4X Schedule

Spring - April - mid May
Summer - late May - June
Late Summer - July - August
Fall - late September - October

3X Fertilization Schedule

May
July
September-October

TIP: Request a fertilizer application 2-3 weeks before hosting a special event such as a wedding, party or having guests from out of town. Your lawn will look sensational!
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Broadleaf Weed Control

Common Weeds in Spokane

Broadleaf weeds may include:

  • Dandelion
  • White Clover
  • Black Medic (Japanese Clover)
  • Oxalis
  • Spurge

Broadleaf Weed Treatment

3 sprays are recommended and should coincide with a lawn fertilizer application.  

  • Spring – April – early May
  • Summer – late May – June
  • Late Summer – July – August
  • Fall – Sept – October (important treatment – this cleans up winter annual weeds that germinate late summer, lay dormant through winter & are first to appear in spring

Click here for lawn and turf fertilizing schedule.

Crabgrass Control

  • Crabgrass is an Annual Grass Plant – it dies in the Fall
  •  Leaf blades are flat & broad,  1/4 to 1/2 inch, two to five inches long,  sometimes hairy
  • Leaf sheaths are hairy & often purplish
  • Crabgrass is NOT a Broadleaf Weed
Treatment

1st Treatment in April – when soil temperatures reach 55 -60

2nd Treatment follows 30-45 days after 

  • Best control is achieved by Stopping seeds from germinating April through June
  • A dense, lush  lawn with a deep root base will crowd out crabgrass & effectively aide chemical treatments
  • Proper balanced fertilization & deep, infrequent watering.

 

Crabgrass removal in Spokane

Common Lawn & Turf Fungi in Spokane

Necrotic Ring Spot ‘NRS’

  • A fungal disease primarily occurring on Kentucky bluegrass lawns 2- to 5-years-old grown from
  • Infection occurs during early spring, late summer, or fall
  • Roots are damaged & the infected patches lift easily from the soil
  • Small 2″-5″ circular, yellowed areas with reddish-brown margins appear & can expand to up to several feet in diameter
Treatment

2 Fungicide treatments to affected areas – May & Aug

Home Owner Management

  • Provide adequate, balanced fertilization & deep, infrequent watering.
  • Over watering only further enhances the disease
  • Water in the morning so grass can dry quickly.
  • Mow turf at a height  2 ½ to 3 inches
  • Remove thatch & aerate as necessary

necrotic ring spots
TIP: Chemical treatments will only suppress and reduce the severity of NRS and will not eradicate the fungus.
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Fairy Ring

  • Several species of fungi can cause fairy rings in lawns.
  • Areas of dead grass with darker green grass & umbrella shaped mushrooms on the inside &/or outside of the ring
  • Symptoms appear spring or fall when adequate moisture is present.
Treatment

2-3 treatments specifically timed for optimum results

  • Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the disease
  • Best results are achieved when mushrooms appear and the ring is most pronounced
  • Fairy rings are more severe on sandy soil with low fertility.

Fairy ring in lawn

Red Thread (Laetisaria fuciformis)

  • Common lawn fungus causing patches of dead grass during wet summers & in autumn.
  • Light pink to red fungus strands appear in patches, giving a ragged appearance
  • Effects of the disease appear in spring and fall
Treatment

2 chemical treatments recommended – May & September

  • Treatments will provide adequate control
  • Red thread infections are rarely severe enough to kill a lawn

Home Owner Management

  • Timing of fertilization & correct nutrient content is important to aide in control
  • Irrigate in the mornings so grass can dry quickly.
  • Deep, infrequent watering is best.
  • Collect infected grass clippings to help reduce spread of disease.

Red thread in lawn

Common Lawn Insects

Chinch Bug

Chinch bugs (Blissus leucopterus) are plant-eating ground bugs that form large swarms on grass and turf. They will eat away at turf grass to the point where a lawn looks dead from lack of watering.

  • Feed on the stems turf, injecting a toxic saliva
  • Grass turns yellow and dies, typically appearing in mid- to late summer
  • Often misdiagnosed as drought stress
  • Adults are small black bugs with white wing markings
  • Immature bugs (nymphs) are reddish with black or white markings

Chinch bugs lawn damage

Lawn Moth, Grub & Crane Fly

These insects usually appear when a lawn is stressed such as drought or lack of nutrition.  Treat your lawn as symptoms present themselves.

If you think you have a problem with lawn insects, please contact us.
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