soil temp update..... 3/29..... 1:15 pm

[LwnmwnMan2]

Well... another round of checks of the soil temps with all the nicer weather we've had.

We're all the way up to ......

............

.............

FOUR - ZERO!!! Yes, 40 degrees at mid afternoon, not even at sunrise.

We're still a ways off.

[CJH]

Thanks for the update!! It will be interesting to see how this week plays out with the unseasonably warm weather on the docket.

[CJH]

Purchased a cheap digital meat thermometer at HD today. I am located around the intersection of Hwy 13 & Cedar 77 in the southern burbs. Went outside and checked five spots:

Front yard by Driveway : 53.6

Middle of front yard : 54.3

Side yard (shaded) : 50.2

Backyard right (middle) : 53.3

Backyard left (middle) : 55.6

Kind of surprised they were that high!!! Maybe some margin/fluctuation in the thermometer?

My outdoor thermometer reading the air temp is saying 77.5 right now and it feels like it! Its good to wear shorts again!

[klecker]

So what will happen if crab grass germinates now but in april lets say it cools way down, to like say average temps or below? Being a annual will it be able to with stand a few frosty nights? This is MN like this weather is gonna last. But being that it could.

[LwnmwnMan2]

CJH -

Was that at sunrise? Or after the sun and air temps warmed up the soil.

Also, was it 3" deep? Or just the top of the soil?

[CJH]

It was mid afternoon.

I am not sure exactly how deep I was (didn't know how deep to measure), but I was probably in the 2-3 inch range. There was one spot that was only an inch where the ground was pretty hard.

Thanks for all the help, just want to get it right!! I definitely wasn't going to run out tomorrow and fertilize, but did pick it up at HD before they sold out.

Thanks!

CJH

[jeffreyd]

4 inches at 8 am in the morning for 3 mornings straight. you should see the soil temp rise as air temp rises.

[LwnmwnMan2]

Jeffreyd is right. You're suppose to do it early morning. The reason is overnight, the ground will cool again as the sun goes down.

It's like the desert. Extremely hot during the day, but then cool (sometimes) at night.

[CJH]

Thanks for the clarification guys!!! I will have to run out tomorrow and poke around, as long as its not too wet from the rain!