Hey! This is a weird request, I know. Awhile back on Twitter I came across a thread from a Ute fan that had created a lawn care plan. Is anyone familiar with this?
I recently moved in with my father-inlaw to help out, and the lawn is a nearing disaster. I know it’s late in the season but does anyone have any tips, or recall this plan I vaguely remember? The lawn is patchy, dead in some areas, and crab grass galore.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
IFA 4 step?
The one I’m thinking of was actually created by a fan that I found on Twitter. I remember he had a website and I believe a Facebook group (I don’t have Facebook though). He doesn’t offer any services beyond laying out a monthly plan including when to water, when to mow, etc.
Do you recommend the ifa 4 step? Is it simply to late in the year?
it’s the off-season, there is no such thing as “off topic”. 
Right, in fact off-topic in the off-season is on-topic/on-season.
That’s the one! Thank you!!
Thanks. I’m at the point of patchy grass, weeds, and big crabgrass, so was thinking I’d just pay to get it stripped and re-sodded, but maybe with some consistent effort and some patience, I can bring it back and pay less overall.
my neighbor who is quite frankly overly anal-retentive about lawn maintenance has sold me on this. IFA Draper is just down the street from us too.
Seems to work better than the Scott’s stuff from Home Depot.
Problem is I always have some other project taking me away from making a beautiful lawn, and right now I have massive yellow spots because I water infrequently and I also wore down another section with a wheelbarrow for days.
This site looks pretty cool and good info on it. You could probably substitute your fertilizer and weed control of choice.
I’ve worked hard to conserve water and learn what my lawn will tolerate. I’ve found basically that if I fertilize well I can get away with watering every 5-6 days and in high heat every 4. The other trick is to keep you mower on the highest setting. I may get a few brown spots by mid august but most of that has to do with me taking the time to condition the soil better and fix some sprinkler patterns.
I have a little more time to do that. Plus this year I’ve been using my water share and a sprinkler pump I bought at harbor freight combined with an oscillating sprinkler. I can water in front on day and in back the next. $15/year is much better than $100/mo on average from May - September.
Also, I never water before May 15 or after Sept 21, but often can extend that to June and early September. Just watch for when your lawn starts to look a little bit dull when deciding when to first water, but the ground is typically well saturated before that.
I’ve never understood people who water in March and April, or in October. Spring the ground is already wet and the lawn is just coming out of dormancy, in October the lawn is dormant and literally you are just dumping water on the ground with no benefit.
Finally, don’t water dead spots, unless you also possess the power of resurrection. It won’t come back except when it comes out of dormancy in earth September. You might rehab it then, but once it’s dead, it’s dead.
All great ideas.
I also mow only as necessary. unless you’re over watering, cutting the lawn once a week when it is as warm as it is now, is unnecessary and actually causes the lawn to require more water. During July and August, I cut with my old mulcher. The mulch helps keep the ground moister longer.
but if you’re mulching you can’t let it grow too long between mows. If I don’t cut weekly I end up cutting half the grass blades and that’s not good.
If I don’t cut every couple of weeks, what little watering I am doing becomes ineffective.
Did I say I Round upped my front yard by accident? 
By “Accident”.
Thought I was using generic Weed B Gone. Bottle was the right size, the right color, but I didn’t actually read what was in the bottle.
Sprayed it all over the front yard thinking I was killing weeds. It killed the weeds alright. It also originally looked like I killed a lot of the grass, too.
Six weeks later, the grass is beginning to rebound.
Wife is still laughing at what I did.
Mistakes by degree:
I’m sorry Greg, but on the other hand:
And most importantly, wives are usually kind enough to stop laughing sooner than their husbands…
For the record, I told her of the mistake before she discovered it.
She blamed it on my case of brain fog I had at the time.