Grasses and ground covers

News

• Wait for fall to reseed cool-season grass
  Wednesday, May 22, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo. – If you’re thinking of reseeding your lawn now that warm weather has arrived, think again.
  
  Media available: audio
• Spring comes late to the dance
  Friday, May 3, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo. – Talk about being all dressed up with nowhere to go. Too many Missouri gardeners are watching spring days slip away because of cool, wet weather, which has delayed the gardening season well past the frost-free date.
  
  Media available: audio; photo
• Clay soil: A mixed blessing, but easily corrected
  Monday, April 29, 2013
  KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – You dig your first spadeful of soil in your new garden and discover you have a shovel full of clay.
  
  Media available: audio; photo
• Start your engines: Mowing season begins
  Wednesday, April 3, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo. – Winter is finally releasing its grip, so lawns will be greening up and growing. It will soon be time for one of the most basic homeowner rituals: mowing the lawn.
  
  Media available: audio; photos; video
• Getting ready to grow
  Friday, March 29, 2013
  KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – Winter is the time when Mother Nature slumbers. Spring is when plants, trees and gardens begin to wake up. So as the greenery rubs the sleep from its eyes and readies for the growing season, there are chores you need to do.
  
  Media available: audio; photo
• Winter weather and plant injury
  Tuesday, March 12, 2013
  KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – Road salt comes in handy when streets, sidewalks and driveways are slippery with ice. It’s not so handy when it splashes onto plants or soaks into the soil.
  
  Media available: photo
• Helping your soil be all it can be
  Tuesday, March 12, 2013
  KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The earth beneath your feet may seem ordinary and benign. It’s anything but. Good soil can mean the difference between a garden that thrives and one that struggles and dies. Plants depend on soil for water, nutrients, minerals and even physical support.
  
  Media available: photos
• Tips for a healthy lawn
  Friday, March 1, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo.– Homeowners looking forward to a lush, green lawn this spring and summer should take care not to overdo it, says a University of Missouri Extension turfgrass specialist.
  
  Media available: photo; video
• Soil tests take the guesswork out of fertilizing your lawn and garden
  Friday, March 1, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo.– Many garden and home-improvement stores offer a seemingly endless selection of fertilizers. What’s the best choice for your lawn or garden? Only your soil knows for sure.
  
  Media available: photo
• Practice good garden hygiene by sanitizing tools
  Friday, March 1, 2013
  COLUMBIA, Mo.– Just like surgeons and dentists, gardeners should work with clean tools. Sanitizing garden tools between uses will lower the risk of spreading diseases from one plant to another, says a University of Missouri Extension horticulturist.
  
  Media available: photo
• Major factors for horticulture irrigation are water and time
  Friday, January 4, 2013
  MARSHFIELD, Mo.– There are a number of things to consider when making decisions on irrigating horticulture crops, but the most important is determining water needs based on the mature crops, says Bob Schultheis, a University of Missouri Extension natural resource engineering specialist in Webster County.
• New app helps you name that weed
  Wednesday, December 19, 2012
  COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension has released a free app for iPhones, iPads and Android devices to help people easily identify weeds in the field, lawn or garden.
  
  Media available: photos; video
• Deliver plant nutrients throughout the season with organic matter
  Thursday, October 4, 2012
  BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. — Increasingly, gardeners are interested in finding out how to grow vegetables without using synthetic fertilizers.
  
  Media available: photo
• The secret's in the soil
  Tuesday, January 31, 2012
  COLUMBIA, Mo. – A healthy garden starts from the ground up.

Websites

Browse these University of Missouri websites:

• Gardens for Everybody
  Tips and techniques for gardeners of all types.
• Missouri Woodland Steward Program
  Introduces landowners to basic forestry and wildlife management and shows them how to integrate both forms of management on their property.
• Soil and Plant Testing Laboratory
  Analyzes soil, plant, water, manure, compost and greenhouse media.
• Sports Turf AdvanTage
  Information about turfgrass and ornamental horticulture.

You may be interested in these external websites:

• eXtension Gardens, Lawns and Landscapes Resources
• eXtension Lawns Resources
• eXtension Master Gardener

Publications

• G6661, Ornamental Grasses
• G6700, Cool-Season Grasses: Lawn Establishment and Renovation
• G6705, Cool-Season Grasses: Lawn Maintenance Calendar
• G6706, Establishment and Care of Zoysiagrass Lawns
• G6708, Thatch: Enemy of Lawns
• G6720, Home Lawn Watering Guide
• G6722, Caring for Flooded Lawns
• G6725, Grasses in Shade: Establishing and Maintaining Lawns in Low Light
• G6730, Establishment and Care of Buffalograss Lawns
• G6749, Natural Lawn Care
• G6756, Turfgrass Disease Control
• G6955, Improving Lawn and Landscape Soils
• G6956, Making and Using Compost
• G6957, How to Build a Compost Bin
• G6958, Grass Clippings, Compost and Mulch: Questions and Answers
• G6959, Don't Bag It Lawn Care
• G6960, Mulches
• IPM1024, Identifying Grass Seedlings
• MG10, Managing Lawns and Turfgrass
• MP733, Lawn and Garden Soil Test Interpretations and Fertilizer Recommendation Guide
• NCR26, Lawn Weeds and Their Control
• NCR400, Ground Covers for the Midwest
• NCR403, Seed Lot Sampling
• NCR461, Ornamental Grasses for the Midwest

You may be interested in these related publications:

• AGW1016, Tree and Shrub Injury Symptoms in Lawns Treated With Imprelis Herbicide
• CB1, Agriculture Guide Book
• CB5, Binder of MU Agricultural Guides G6000 - G9999
• CB19, Missouri Master Gardener Core Manual
• EQ500, Protecting Water Quality During Lawn Establishment and Renovation
• G6954, Soil Testing for Lawns
• G7358, Clover Mites
• IPM1020, Turfgrass and Insects
• IPM1029, Identification and Management of Turfgrass Diseases
• MG1, Missouri Master Gardener Program Policies and Procedures
• MG4, Soils, Plant Nutrition and Nutrient Management
• MX345, Turfgrass Diseases I
• MX348, Turf Pests I
• NRAES184, The Woods in Your Backyard: Learning to Create and Enhance Natural Areas Around Your Home