Planting grass in Plano (Buffalo: place, brick, sunny)

[jimithing78]

i would definitely recommend sodding with bermuda since you've got some shade. it stands up well to traffic as long as you water it regularly and fertilized it twice a year.

[loves2read]

first of all--sounds like you planted rye grass seeds which are good in cool weather and die out in summer heat--had nothing to do with the dog running over the yard--its DNA does not allow it to live when temps get into 90-100s...

second of all--you are watering TOO MUCH--both for the good of your lawn and the good of the water system

third--and don't mean to be rude but read something about lawns/gardening for this geo zone...it takes five minutes to educate yourself about some of the basic concepts

fourth--it does matter what grass you have now because normally you cannot use the same fertilizer/weed killers on Bermuda that you do on St. Augustine or other grasses since grasses can come from different families and react differently to topical applications/water schedules/shade or sun availability
general info
AggieTurf.tamu.edu (http://aggieturf.tamu.edu/aggieturf2/lawns/selection.html - broken link)

new strain of TAMU grass for TX
Reveille (http://dallas.tamu.edu/Reveille/index.html - broken link)

threads about similar topic
What grass this time of the year
Best Grass for my Lawn?

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by Grainraiser

So what are you going to put down.

I don't know yet. I haven't started my research yet to see what would be best in our situation. The neighbors St Augustine has almost taken over one side of our front yard. The other side and the back get WAY TOO MUCH shade for the Bermuda to even grow good and thick. Then I'm tearing out about 1/2 or more of the area we have in grass now. Part for the new garage and the rest a "garden" area w/ a water feature. I want easy maint., low water needs, etc. in this area.

[taylor400]

It absolutely does have something to do with the dog running over it because there is a trail leading from the deck to the back of the fence, and it happens to be the exact path he takes everyday.

I'm watering, in the heat of the summer, 10 minutes 2 to 3 times per week (based on a 7 day week, not 5), depending on the rainfall. At any rate, I'd say I'm not watering enough, but I cut back to save water, both for the environment and for my wallet. Every other house on my block waters every other day. Some of my neighbors even complained because my grass "burnt" or "died" before theirs, so my yard didn't look as nice.

Don't think I'm an idiot or too lazy to take 5 minutes to "educate" myself. I can read all the manuals in the world, but I also still like to hear other people's tried and true opinions. That's what this forum is for, isn't it?

[Grainraiser]

Just a little advice. Water your yard for 30 minutes once a week instead of 10 minutes 3 times a week. It is a more efficent way to water and your grass will have stronger more drought tolerant roots. Even in the hottest parts of the summer I water my yard once a week. I deep soaking is what you want. I personally like the look of Bermuda grass over St. Augustine but I hate how it invades my flower beds. If you plant both St. Augustine and Bermuda in the same yard the St. Augustine will take the Bermuda over. My neighbor planted St. Augustine in his yard 5 years ago and every year it creeps over in my yard by a foot or so. Eventually I will have to change my grass to St. Augustine or have two different grass in the front yard separated by the walk up sidewalk.

[jcaughron]

Agree w/ above. You want longer deeper soaks (not to the point of flooding), but it does provide deeper more healthier roots. As far as the original poster, I love my St. Augustine grass. It's deep green and really thick and edges nicely. Would highly recommend. Some people say that the upgrade from both St. Aug and Bermuda is Zoysia. Note that there really aren't "seeds" for St. Aug, it's all sod/ plugs.

[loves2read]

agreed--the short water cycle encourages surface root system which is more fragile and damages more easily by heat --
check to see if the old grass has created thatching effect which acts as coating over the ground and really prevents most water from actually being absorbed into the root system--it runs off like there was plastic on the ground--after you water and then dig down into the soil to see how deep the water went--if it went only just under the surface then there is thatch --dead/left-over grass cuttings

it needs to be removed so that water can permeate into the ground better and actually do some good

Home Tips : Lawn Restoration Tip #1: Remove Thatch & Weeds

from my experience St. Augustine won't take over Bermuda unless the Bermuda is in lots of shade or just not the best grass for the location--
Bermuda is very vine-y and it can go under metal edging and shade cloth and manage to emerge in flower beds with both...StA seems little better mannered plant but it does not work that well to have two kinds in same yard--schizophrnic type of maintenance is required at times...
check the ph of your soil--Callaways is offering to test it for free right now
soil balance has impact on which does better as well

in our old house we have two large pecan trees on the west side--they shade most of the yard along that side of the house and St A is what we have had to plant as the Bermuda gets shaded to death...I planted 25 yards of it last year over the spindly Bermuda that was more weed than yard
we also have big bed of Asian jasmine directly under the trees as well

[El Passeaux]

also use a little baby shampoo, it helps the soil absorb the water better. large farmers use it but refer to it as sulfoxides

[EinsteinsGhost]

Originally Posted by taylor400

I have no idea whether it's Bermuda or St. Augustine. The trees block the sun from hitting the ground only about 2 feet out from the trunk. I might go with the sod, don't know why I didn't think of that to begin with, that would definitely be quicker than waiting for the seed to grow. Where would a good place be to buy the sod?

Thanks again for all your help!

I will highly recommend St Augustine. It works very well in shade and in sun (although rises higher than bermuda so mowing has to be done regularly). It is thriving under one big tree I have in the front, and one smaller tree in the backyard, and in the sun elsewhere. And has managed to survive my 80 lb dog.

You may be able to buy a whole pallet for about $200-225 at Lowe's or Home Depot.

[loves2read]

not really a good time to lay sod now because the grass is basically dormant at this time of year--does not start to grow until nights are warmer and ground stays warm for longer periods...if you lay sod now and there is a heavy freeze or another snow (which is possible--there has been snow on valentine's day before) you could lose your money and hard work...new sod does not have a deep root system like a growing lawn and is more vulnerable...

if you want to go ahead though and lay it---
make sure you dig out the old grass--whatever it is--and rough up the dirt you will cover up--if you are using StA then water that dirt until it is soppy and soft and when you lay the sod on it, step it into the sod/dirt to get maximum root coverage/sinkage---you want to make sure that the roots will not just be lying on top of the ground's surface when ground dries
water it in good after you finish and every day after you need to water to encourage growth
that is why this time of the year is not optimum to lay new sod--there really is not a lot of growing that will happen...
April is probably better than March for when to start...