Prepping for Argentine Bahia Grass Seed FINALLY

[SandraOpines]

Finally ready for grass seed in this area. It was once VERY densely wooded but Hurricane Michael zapped all of the trees. It has taken 8 months to get it where we can seed it. It is a huge milestone for us.

Today, hubby (PSDStu on here) disk'd with his Kubota M7060 and I did the drag harrowing with our DIY chain link fence contraption. We got errr done.

I can't wait for more green stuff! Bring on more rain!!!

 

[jeff9366]

I sowed 25 pounds of Hancock's 2018 harvested, Florida grown, coated Argentine Bahia seed this Spring without a $7.00 soil test. Zero visible germination. It was unusually dry 130 miles SE of you in my part of Florida this Spring.

Subsequent IFAS soil test specifically for Bahia grass shows my soil very low in Potassium and 7.4 pH, with 5.5 pH ideal for Bahia.

I purchased 50 pounds of Turfgro brand 24-0-11 from Lowe's for $27.98, to address low Potassium.
My wife purchased 30 pounds of Espoma brand soil acidifier, 18% sulphur, to lower 7.4 soil pH closer to 5.5 pH.
I intend to amend soil in September then amend again in March prior to sowing sometime in April.

Hancock advises Argentine Bahia seed requires 60 days to germinate ~~ a very long gestation. Argentine Bahia sown now may not germinate until mid-August which is late but a desirably moist time.

Spring 2020 I will attempt Argentine Bahia again, likely with improvised temporary irrigation. I have Hancock's India origin Sunn Hemp up 1-1/2" now, as a cover crop. Sunn Hemp germinated in three days during five days of rain totaling 7".

Good luck to you. I will follow this thread with interest.

 

[SandraOpines]

We haven't tested our soils but here is what we have thus far.

Area 1: A spot treatment from Puppy training area. I drenched it with water daily for several weeks (Dilution is the Solution for doggie pee) and then reseeded it in Hancock Centipede about 2 weeks ago. It has baby grass growing as of today.

Area 2: We keep in a mix of Centipede and Pensacola Bahia. The storm took down about 12 trees in the area so destroyed the leveling etc... I Toted and Floated top soil to a bunch of root ball holes etc... and then seeded them with Pensacola Bahia 1 week ago today. No signs of germination yet. We got a lot of rain since it was seeded so I am very hopeful.

Area 3: The one spoken about in my initial post has always been far too shady to have grass. The soil is VERY rich looking so hopeful that it will grow Bahia easily now that it has so much sunlight. Seed will go in tomorrow.

Area 4: Was moderately wooded and not enough sunlight to really grow but we tried Pensacola Bahia many years ago. As soon as the light hit it the whole area went crazy with grass. It is just beautiful now that the trees are cleaned up and the grass is growing. The seeds sat there for I would say 10 years.

Will keep you posted. I love fiddling with grass. Fascinating stuff!

 

[SandraOpines]

I have been pondering the "Coated" seed part of this equation.

We used Coated seed for Pensacola Bahia and RAW for the Argentine Bahia. It will be interesting to see if that makes a difference.

Re: Soil testing

We can't really test our soil since all the trees came down (thousands in total) and soooooooooooooooooo many root balls got filled with fill dirt and covered with top soil from various places. There is a total mix of soil everywhere. Our yards and fields are about 200 acres so the soil is different everywhere.

 

[jeff9366]

I am confident germination failure did not relate to Hancock's coated AB seed.

Shortage of Potassium and Nitrogen combined with high pH may have wiped out the seedlings before they produced Chlorophyll.


And it was dry. Seedling may have died from lack of water before they produced Clorophyll.

Those are my two theories.


And there is the possibility that with rain some of the AB seed may yet germinate amongst the Sunn Hemp.

 

[jeff9366]

Finally ready for grass seed in this area. It was once VERY densely wooded but Hurricane Michael zapped all of the trees. It has taken 8 months to get it where we can seed it. It is a huge milestone for us.

Was Michael clearing the jungle positive? What implement did you use for tree root, grape vine and rose-corm removal?

Did you burn debris?

 

[SandraOpines]

We are working on 200 acres but that particular 6 acres me and hubby cleared 99% with our Kubota's. There is a dam and spillway that large equipment can't cross so only light machinery could work in there.

Me and hubby with 6 chainsaws and dragging to the ditch for FEMA was the biggest part of it. An excavator did uproot some of the ginormous rootballs and hubby rolled them to the ditch. FEMA did great, we had about 2000 or 3000 feet or maybe more of ditch that we just filled and as soon as it was about full, FEMA picked it up and we filled her again. Over and over and over.

Logging crews worked on the other side of the lakes for a while but left. We await their return.

In a situation like this, you just do whatever needs to be done, however you can to get rrr done.

It was just insane. We couldn't video for a long time because all you could see was walls of downed trees. So this was back in Feb

This is a typical scenario... not being able to see where you are going with a load then pulling out on to the pavement to drop the load where FEMA wants it.

I really should write a book one day.

 

[SandraOpines]

Here is another video of some fine tune clean up I did in a ditch beside the spillway.

Thank God for Tractors with hydraulics

 

[jeff9366]

It is closing on 60 days since you started this thread.

The weather where I am, 120 miles SE of Mariana, has been consistently damp.

None of the Argentine Bahia I planted is evident.

Is your Argentina Bahia germinating?

The Sunn Hemp I planted as a fast germinating, fast growing summer cover crop/soil builder is flourishing. I will Bush Hog the Sunn Hemp, then disc and rake smooth, in preparation for seeding forage Oats for deer in the next two weeks or so.

 

[SandraOpines]

It is closing on 60 days since you started this thread.

The weather where I am, 120 miles SE of Mariana, has been consistently damp.

None of the Argentine Bahia I planted is evident.

Is your Argentina Bahia germinating?

The Sunn Hemp I planted as a fast germinating, fast growing summer cover crop/soil builder is flourishing. I will Bush Hog the Sunn Hemp, then disc and rake, in preparation for seeding forage Oats for deer in the next two weeks or so.

Hi Jeff

I just bush hogged the whole area yesterday and I took some pictures of what germinated......... at the bottom of the hill near the lake. SIGH We are surrounded by Pensacola Bahia in all of our fields and a PB sod farm across the street so it was to be expected.

Anyway, the Argentine washed down the hill to the lake and germinated there. The Pensacola Bahia is everywhere as is Centipede. Gonna just have to roll with the flow on this one me thinks!!