Question
The grass in certain areas of my lawn is not growing well. I've been told it may be due to the fact that they're adjacent to pine trees, and that fallen pine needles have caused locally acidic conditions. It is suggested that I apply Gypsum in these areas. Are the diagnoses and suggestions plausible ?
Answer(s)
I do not recommend adding gypsum. Our Utah soils are high in the mineral calcium and gypsum is calcium sulfate. Generally the reason lawn is not growing under your pine trees may have more to do with sunlight as the dense canopy of pines do not allow the lawn enough sunlight to grow well.
Plants growing near the trunk of a tree out to the drip line are competing with the tree for water and nutrients. A suggestion would be to use a coarse or large nuggest bark mulch around the base of the tree that will offer weed control, keep soil moisture, and moderate soil temperature that will benefit the health of the tree.
Other Questions In This Topic
- I have black spots on my tomato plant leaves and some on the main stem. Will it kill the plant? Can I get rid of it? Will it apread to the soil or other plants? HELP. I see it in most of the greehouses I have been to. Is it to late to find someone with a place to find a clean tomato plant and still plant it and get fruit?
- Is Fall a good time to plant a new lawn? I am a 72 year old homeowner. My back yard (about 2000 sq feet) is barren except or weeds (which my daughter and grandchildren are busy removing).
- I have an older crab apple tree that is focal point of my small yard. About 3 years ago the leaves became infected with powdery mildew. I have been told to not do anything with this, as it will eventually go away and the tree will fine - but over the years it has gotten much worse each spring. There are only about 60% of the leaves that are starting to look healthy by mid-June. Over all, the leaves are withered and this year we have very few blossoms. Another problem: The tree also has four large limbs that come out of the trunk. I noticed that there seemed to be wood pulp inside a place where a branch was cut off years ago. I scooped out the pulp and found that some bug or other creature has created a cavity that goes 6” into the 10-12” diameter limb and a large man’s fist could easily fit into the hole that has been created. While inspecting the hole I discovered a ¼” or so hole in the very back of the cavity, but no sign of the culprit. The limb seems to be doing fine, as the leaves on the branches from this limb are in no better or worse shape than the rest of the tree. I had my tree pruned by a highly recommended person this spring, in hopes that this would help with my powdery mildew problem. I love my tree, what should I do next about my perpetual powdery mildew problem and the unknown culprit who is dinning on my tree limb?
- I would like to put a barrier inbetween my lawn and my side yard where we have quakies to keep the suckers from coming up. What can I use and how deep do I put it into the ground? Also, they are next to my neighbors driveway, how far do the roots travel and should I barrier that side as well?
- The leaves on my strawberry plants have turned a very pale green or yellow with some brown on the edges what do they need?
- I am preparing to sod my front yard in the next couple of weeks. I am looking for a grass that is hardy, drought and weed resistant. I also have a dog that can be somewhat hard on grass. I looked into Zoysia grass, but determined it wasn't a really great grass for this climate. What would you suggest, and where might I find it in Northern Utah?
- I would like to find out where I can obtain a list of the daily rainfall/precip totals for the Logan area.
- My newly sprouted green bean plants are getting small to medium holes in the leaves. Could this be from pests or the heavy rain in East Millcreek?