RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@ STARBULLETIN.COM El Toro Zoysia for $6.98 for 11- by 22-inch trays at Home Depot.

Grass tactics

Learning how to pamper
your lawn will reap rewards

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By Ruby Mata-Viti
rmataviti@starbulletin.com

Blades of grass are like people: No two are exactly alike. Collectively, however, they speak the same language, and to be master of your turf, you need to understand what it's communicating.

Pampering will reap rewards. Neglect or bad treatment causes grass to rebel by withering, thus taking more effort to revive or, at worst, leaving the landscape barren.

With developments sprouting in Hawaii Kai and West Oahu, and the real estate market pumping, new homeowners will benefit from taking up grass-speak. The rest may just want a refresher course.

Pop into most open houses and grass seems abundant, therefore, taken for granted. Potential homeowners rarely give a second thought as to how grass can prevent erosion while providing children and picnickers with a cushy carpet on which to play and lounge. Nor do they consider the effort it takes to maintain healthy turf.

RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@ STARBULLETIN.COM Seashore paspalum, selling for $4.47 for 11- by 22-inch trays at Home Depot.

Information is available for any lawn-chair gardener on the Cooperative Extension Service Web site (www2.ctahr.hawaii.edu/ctahr2001) maintained by the University of Hawaii-Manoa College of Tropical Agriculture & Human Services. Click on free publications on the home page for tips on grass selection, maintenance, sprinkler choices and more. Handouts of the same can also be picked up at the Urban Garden Center in Pearl City, said Jan McEwen, who heads its Master Gardeners program.

The center occasionally offers classes in grass selection and care. McEwen said volunteers in the Master Gardeners program are also glad to give advice, as are plant nursery owners such as Tom Staton of Quality Turfgrass in Waimanalo.

UH-Manoa's tropical agriculture staff can also point out resources or provide information if you're fortunate enough to catch someone with a rare free moment between classes or meetings.

A common misconception about grass care seems to be over water, fertilizer and mowers, the keyword for the first two being over.

RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@ STARBULLETIN.COM Seashore paspalum from the side.

RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@ STARBULLETIN.COM El Toro Zoysia from the side.

"People think the more water and fertilizer they give it, the better it is. That's wrong," said Stanton. He's accustomed to hearing laments about lawns as customers seek his help on how to bring theirs up to par.

"The grass will tell you when it needs water," he said. Signs of a thirsty lawn are not yellow, not brown, but gray patches. Those who get antsy from watering restraint can put their finger or a screwdriver to the test by sticking either 3 to 4 inches into the soil. If it's moist, he said, you're on solid ground.

Sometimes, the watering method itself is wrong, said McEwan. Some just sprinkle the surface for a few minutes, which means the water doesn't catch the roots. This is easily solved with a sprinkler, she added, set for 15 to 20 minutes per section.

COURTESY CRAFTSMAN Reel mowers, like Craftsman's 18" Cut Path 37619, available at Sears for about $120 is ideal to maintain a manicured lawn.

TIMING IS everything for planting grass as well. Jay Deputy, a specialist in landscape horticulture, said grass growth often slows during winter, even in Hawaii. Growth speeds up in March and February, the best time to plant. If you start researching now, there's ample time to plan a strategy for spring and build the budget.

Look out for a new variety of improved common Bermuda grass called Blackjack, available through Koolau Seed and Supply, that Deputy mentions with enthusiasm. It's less costly -- at about $4.50 per pound -- than most varieties, he said, because it can be easily propagated by seed rather than sod, a more expensive method sold at about $5 and up per tray.

Deputy, who teaches a turf grass class at the university and wrote some of the material on the mentioned Web site, suggests three things to consider when choosing grass: type of soil, turf use and maintenance.

For instance, if you live near the ocean, something salt-tolerant such as seashore paspalum is in order. If the turf will get heavy use, such as pathways, for pets, or for kid's volleyball, then a wear-tolerant grass is recommended, but you also need to consider recovery rate. Zoysia, for example, resists wear, but Bermuda grasses have a faster recovery-from-injury rate. If you don't have much time for gardening, then a low-maintenance grass for your soil type is preferable.

The right mower is also key. "Any old weed whacker just doesn't cut it," Deputy said. The mower's blades need to be the correct height from the ground, and sharp. He suggests frequent cutting -- more than once a month -- with a reel mower.

Staton agrees. More mowing stimulates new, dense growth so it can out-compete weeds.

Lawn care in general, said Staton, takes practice and patience in which you foster an understanding of your relationship with the leaves of grass.

"You have to watch and develop an eye for the turf. After a while you get used to it; it gets easier to recognize what it's telling you it needs."

COURTESY L.R. NELSON CORPORATION Hose-end impact or implulse sprinklers like the 1717 RainPulse brass impact sprinkler by LR Nelson are best for large areas.

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