Grass and yard questions....

Chuckman

Chuckman

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I have a shady, acidic yard with a lot of moss but very little grass. I am going to till it, mix in topsoil, lime, and fertilize.

What's the best kind of grass to use? I don't care about a lush lawn, I just want something green.
 
rdinatal said:
Rocks, green paint, done.

Seriously, the shade will be tough, how much shade? 100%? In my experience you need at least 5hrs of sun for Fescue to grow. Anything less and after 3 years it's back to weeds and moss.
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I'd say 70% shade...
 
Yep, even the so called shade mixtures of seed don't do too well in lots of shade. You can do ground covers with something like Mondo Grass or spreading Liriope.
 
And are you wanting it green year round


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Creeping red fescue and you’ll have to lime it several times a year
 
when we had shade (cut down the trees) i would seed annual rye grass.
it would grow, get green, die and i would do it again.
no fertilizer, no nothing, just seed.
cheaper than other options.
 
Creeping red fescue does well for shade but you will need seed every year in the fall. Usually Southern States has it in a mixture blend with fescue. I used it last year and it came in lush but if you have a long summer dry spell period it will not survive.
 
I am in a similar shady situation 😂

is there anything that you can seed now that will grow? Or did the window already close and need to plan for next year?
 
I swore growing up that I would have a concrete yard. Hated cutting grass. Now I'm old and still hate cutting grass. Can't afford
a concrete yard so off to mow I go.
 
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Go ahead and take a soil test. You are throwing your money away until you get the results back and have time for the lime to start working.
The PALS system (where NCDA publishes the results) is public information. You maybe be able to search some of your neighbors or other folks in your community to get an idea of what you need to add by searching the PALS database.
 
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Apparently leaves make for very acidic yards.... particularly oak leaves. When they fall, and then get rained on, and as they fade away, whatever they deposit into the ground is very acidic.

So, lime a few times a year helps. But according to a landscaper friend of mine, getting a bagger for your mower and getting leaves up often helps as well.
 
vp9c said:
I am in a similar shady situation 😂

is there anything that you can seed now that will grow? Or did the window already close and need to plan for next year?
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Really its a waste of $100 bills to seed now. It will be too tender to survive our heat in the summer. Late August, early September. Lime, kill the weeds, and plug. Fertilize with a high middle number which will release for months. Eliminate the weeds will make room for actual grass and eliminate nutrient competition.
 
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We (foolishly) thought that we could put down topsoil and sod with fescue last year. Looked great until September. Then, over about the course of a week the whole freaking yard died. I had to lime, aerate and seed it in October. It's green again, but patchy...maybe 70% coverage. I'd be thrilled to have the holes fill in with clover or fescue, don't care which.

Also, moles seem to be present. Never had that problem before. Not sure what do. I have a dog so traps and poison are out.
 
Timfoilhat said:
We (foolishly) thought that we could put down topsoil and sod with fescue last year. Looked great until September. Then, over about the course of a week the whole freaking yard died. I had to lime, aerate and seed it in October. It's green again, but patchy...maybe 70% coverage. I'd be thrilled to have the holes fill in with clover or fescue, don't care which.

Also, moles seem to be present. Never had that problem before. Not sure what do. I have a dog so traps and poison are out.
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You need a new dog. Mine used to dig up the moles on a regular basis. Poison and traps are hit and miss. Best thing is to treat the yard to get rid of what they are eating and then they will move elsewhere.
 
Schattenreiter said:
You need a new dog. Mine used to dig up the moles on a regular basis. Poison and traps are hit and miss. Best thing is to treat the yard to get rid of what they are eating and then they will move elsewhere.
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What are they eating? All that's back there is grass...unless there's like grubs or something I'm not aware of.

The dog is really chair bear. A lazy fur ball who shows strangers where her bowl and toys are.20210306_172858.jpg
 
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Timfoilhat said:
What are they eating? All that's back there is grass...unless there's like grubs or something I'm not aware of.

The dog is really chair bear. A lazy fur ball who shows strangers where her bowl and toys are.View attachment 315330
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They eat earthworms, grubs and other insects. Treat the yard for the insects but the earthworms will still be there. There are repellant products available but I don't think they are terribly effective or last very long. First thing you need to do is make sure it is moles and not voles you are dealing with because the cure is different for each. Voles eat plants. A little googlefu will help you decide what you have.
 
Timfoilhat said:
We (foolishly) thought that we could put down topsoil and sod with fescue last year. Looked great until September. Then, over about the course of a week the whole freaking yard died. I had to lime, aerate and seed it in October. It's green again, but patchy...maybe 70% coverage. I'd be thrilled to have the holes fill in with clover or fescue, don't care which.

Also, moles seem to be present. Never had that problem before. Not sure what do. I have a dog so traps and poison are out.
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Did you also put down a chemical for sod webworms and cut worms when you put down the sod? the worms are killing your sod. The moles are after the worms.
 
Regardless of what any advertisement says NO grass likes shade. Some market their variety as “shade tolerant”, but most any grass that will survive in the southeast requires at least 6-8 hours of sun a day to be healthy. 70% is a lot of shade. Just a couple suggestions: Any pruning you can do to introduce more light to your yard is advisable. Use NC State’s soil testing service, as mentioned before. They’re free for homeowners I believe. Takes a few weeks for results to come back, but recommendations are provided for lyme or any nutrient deficiencies. When you get whatever grass you choose established, mow it as high a height of cut as you can. More leaf tissue allows more photosynthesis and less stress on the plant. Resist the temptation to go out and juice the hell out of the grass with fertilizer, specifically high nitrogen fertilizer. Follow fertility recommendations for the grass you choose, and don’t overdo it. High Nitrogen levels will lead to potential disease stress that you already have with that much shade.
 
Schattenreiter said:
They eat earthworms, grubs and other insects. Treat the yard for the insects but the earthworms will still be there. There are repellant products available but I don't think they are terribly effective or last very long. First thing you need to do is make sure it is moles and not voles you are dealing with because the cure is different for each. Voles eat plants. A little googlefu will help you decide what you have.
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This makes sense. I've been treating for insects. Lots of worms. The dog eats the worms all the time. That makes me feel a little off about poisoning them. Off to search on the mole vs vole issue now.

edit...looks like it's probably voles, I don't have volcano type mounds that moles make. Based upon the guidance my backyard is vole paradise. Trying to make it unwelcoming to them means completely changing my yard as it exists. This sucks.
 
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Timfoilhat said:
This makes sense. I've been treating for insects. Lots of worms. The dog eats the worms all the time. That makes me feel a little off about poisoning them. Off to search on the mole vs vole issue now.

edit...looks like it's probably voles, I don't have volcano type mounds that moles make. Based upon the guidance my backyard is vole paradise. Trying to make it unwelcoming to them means completely changing my yard as it exists. This sucks.
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Well at least now you know. Not understanding what the problem is is like fixing a flat tire when the gas tank is empty. LOL
 
Wolfpack33 said:
Go ahead and take a soil test. You are throwing your money away until you get the results back and have time for the lime to start working.
The PALS system (where NCDA publishes the results) is public information. You maybe be able to search some of your neighbors or other folks in your community to get an idea of what you need to add by searching the PALS database.
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100% on the money.

In 2019 I was talking to a friend of mine who is a landscaper at UNCC. He told me 2 things. First, get a soil test. Until then you're just guessing. Second, take the test to Site One and do what they tell you. I put it off a year and finally got on his program last fall.

My lawn is 10,000 sq ft. If you don't know the actual size of your lawn, go measure. You need to know as it relates to how much fertilizer / lime you use. Did the first soil test last September. Instead of just "throwing out a bag of lime" I was instructed by Site One to put out 200 lbs in September then take another soil test in February which I did. They recommended another 250 lbs 2 weeks ago. The soil test actually called for 60 lbs per 1,000 sq feet, 600 lbs total. Site One thought it would be best to kinda ease into it instead of dumping that on all at once.

I bought the seed and fertilizer last fall from Site One and the pre-emergent last month from them as well. I have spent less money than I usually would have at Lowe's, minus the lime, because I probably would not have bought any. You know how it feels when you walk when the ground is very wet and it feels soft because of the mud? That's what it feels like walking on my grass now because it's so plush. It should only get better because it takes 3 months or so for the lime to actually start working. I have mowed 3 times in the last 15 days and it needed it.

Other things I have done is to use compost to fill low / bare spots instead of top soil. Also I keep my mower blade sharp. I mow my 1/3 of an acre with a walk behind and I sharpen the blade 4-5 times a year.

It is a process that takes time if you want to see the results. You have to decide if it's worth the time and effort to you.

.
 
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