Lawn and Landscape

jcramsey said:
I want to get some grass out where we're building our house to help keep the dirt in place. Pokeweed and other native stuff has come in thick and is doing the job in front of the house, but the bank in the back yard has nothing. When/what should I put down to have a decent chance of getting some grass to grow?
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Is the back fill dirt or top soil?
 
paradisePWoffrd said:
Is the back fill dirt or top soil?
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Its not top soil. This area has been graded off so its just red dirt for now.

You can kind of see the bank in this picture.
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jcramsey said:
Its not top soil. This area has been graded off so its just red dirt for now.

You can kind of see the bank in this picture.
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Im going to say hydroseed, but its not likely cost effective. You are going to need fert or organic matter to give some life to that dirt.
 
Fescue does surprisingly decent in red clay if you can keep it moist or shaded.
 
@R Q @guffey24
I need to fix my yard. Used to be fescue, then all this crept in, and this year it has taken over.
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Also, I have this very wiry grass that has come up in spots around the base of most of my trees. I actually really like it, so if there's a way to make it flourish, that would be great too.
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Looks like crabgrass on phone. Gets fuzzy when I zoom in. You need preemergent in the spring. If you want it gone now I got a few jugs of Drive laying around that will knock it down in a few weeks. The thin stuff I cant tell what it is.

I could get you on a program for some great fescue but without irrigation it wont flourish in the summer.
 
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willness33 said:
Looks like crabgrass on phone. Gets fuzzy when I zoom in. You need preemergent in the spring. If you want it gone now I got a few jugs of Drive laying around that will knock it down in a few weeks. The thin stuff I cant tell what it is.

I could get you on a program for some great fescue but without irrigation it wont flourish in the summer.
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I have irrigation, just never had grass good enough to keep up with it.
 
willness33 said:
Has the opinion of lawn chemicals changed over there?
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Not really. Though using something to kill the ahit out of the crap grass in a one time application is probably acceptable. I have some Fusilade ii I bought a year or 3 ago when it was just partially crabgrass, but never got around to using it.
 
I've had a lot of that cluster looking stuff, this year. But with spraying it with weed killer twice, the Bermuda has nearly choked it out. I Thought, that Chickweed, would dye off in the heat, but I'm Still bothered with it. It must travel in the air! Your wiry runner grass, look like Bermuda, though there is a plain wire grass. I've had pretty good ground cover in the back yard & the wooded area back there. Another lawn cutter told me it's called Creping Charlie. I let Charlie have at it; I could never get grass to last back there!
 
I can't tell some of the pics either. Looks like the pre em that you applied in March and May didnt work, you applied them both right? You HAVE to water them in ASAP for them to be useful. As far as the bermuda, it happens and you either fight it or live with it. That thin grass may be Kentucky Blue Grass that's struggling, have you ever bought and put down a shade mix grass? It's usually in there. Aerate, fert, and seed it, and water it! It's a little late to be killing it off and waiting for it to die before you renovate.
 
Better yet I can start bringing you rolls of bermuda when we have extra from sod jobs, after I'm done with my yard of course lol. I experimented some with it in my yard with a no prep approach. Literally rolled it over weedy/fescue areas and did nothing but water it in really well. It's all survived and choked everything else out.
 
willness33 said:
Better yet I can start bringing you rolls of bermuda when we have extra from sod jobs, after I'm done with my yard of course lol. I experimented some with it in my yard with a no prep approach. Literally rolled it over weedy/fescue areas and did nothing but water it in really well. It's all survived and choked everything else out.
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According to Goggle > Bermuda, the sod grown, wont match the seed planted, or naturally growing Bermuda. Not that it would matter to Matt! Soon as I can get 3 -4 loads of dirt in My yard, I may be interested in some rolls too! I will be Fixing my yard back, after Mount Holly Screwed me over with last years Road Improvement. They Broke a few Promises to me also!
 
rodney eppes said:
According to Goggle > Bermuda, the sod grown, wont match the seed planted, or naturally growing Bermuda. Not that it would matter to Matt! Soon as I can get 3 -4 loads of dirt in My yard, I may be interested in some rolls too! I will be Fixing my yard back, after Mount Holly Screwed me over with last years Road Improvement. They Broke a few Promises to me also!
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Totally different grass Rodney. Hybrid, wild/common bermuda is a rampant weed. The cultivars from the sod farms are far superior as a turfgrass
 
jeepinmatt said:
Not really. Though using something to kill the ahit out of the crap grass in a one time application is probably acceptable. I have some Fusilade ii I bought a year or 3 ago when it was just partially crabgrass, but never got around to using it.
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Fusillade will kill the crabgrass and common Bermuda, but multiple apps will get needed and you don’t have enough time to reseed with the waiting period between sprays

I would spray the crabgrass with Drivexlr8, no seeding restrictions, and lay the Fescue seed to it

Then worry about weeds next spring
 
I had a similar problem after I finished building my shed. I had let the grass go in that area for 2-3 years. I was left with lots of crab grass, random weeds, and bare dirt areas. I waited until mid-late Sept and I put my mowing deck down as low as it would go, and scalped the area. I then made about 1,000 passes over it with my aerator. I reseeded HEAVILY, put down starter fertilizer and strawed it. A few weeks later I had a VERY nice stand of grass. I hit it hard with preemergent and fertilizer around late Feb/early Mar the next year, then again about 2-3 months later. That was about 3 years ago. The fescue has thrived. I have a sprinkler system in that area which helped immensely.
 
DSM Turbos said:
Did I miss the window really to already overseed for the fall? I think beginning of September it normally needs to be done by?
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I think you're still ok. It's been pretty warm and dry until this past week. I'm prepped and just waiting on a rain forecast to dump out seed.
 
Mine is all turning brown and I'm happy about it. Hopefully did the last mow of the season today. Didn't really have to mow, but I I wanted it all low and even in case we get a dusting of snow later on. Nothing worse than having pretty snow and having sprigs of grass standing up.
 
So now that my construction projects are completed for the time being, I really need to get some grass going.

I put some contractor mix down last spring with no prep and got the results I probably deserved. This past fall, I went over everything with a disc harrow, then ran a drag harrow over it to smooth everything out, threw out rye and fescue, then went over it with the drag harrow again. I got poor results and was rather disheartened.

This erosion is killing me. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. This is what I'm dealing with.
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I'm in the same boat. I don't even care if its "good" grass.... I just don't want to look at red clay any more. Honestly would be happy letting the lower part of my yard just be wild and only have to maintain a small portion in front of and beside the house.
 
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