Question about grass..........in Northern VA (Merrifield: townhouse, landscaping, to buy) - Northern Virginia - Virginia - City-Data Forum

sharpie1234 · 03-23-2010, 05:48 AM

last year, i had a new yard (.15 acres) and i bought maybe seven 20 lb bags of grass, and spread it. i had Amazing grass for a couple of months...and then it started to be patchy during the summer months...cause of the heat?

anyway, i spread another 2 bags or so in october....and i spread another 2 bags just a couple of weeks ago.

i didn't do aeration....or a soil test......or any fert.

it's just not growing! or am i too anxious and impatient?!
when will the grass look lush and green again? April? May?
ughhh!

normie · 03-23-2010, 06:39 AM

It's normal for grass in northern Virginia to get stressed during the summer. I'm not sure why your grass hasn't started growing yet, but it's early in the season so it might be as simple as that. Maybe you're in a shady or cool area, so your grass will get started a little later than other lawns. Or, maybe you've planted a species that starts later than others. Merrifield Garden Center is the place to ask questions about lawn care. They have fliers, classes, a help desk, and several of their tv shows are devoted to lawn care. Take a look at their web site, and you will probably find all the information you need. If not, I'd take a photo of your grass, go to one of their stores, and talk to the people at the help desk. Dave in particular is very knowledgable about local grass conditions.

cdmurphy · 03-23-2010, 06:50 AM

The soil around here tends to be clay. You may need to rake some loose soil and compost in, and you probably should aerate before seeding. Our builder had the sod laid down right atop the clay without adding topsoil, and we've been working to fix it for six years without resorting to the expense of having it all ripped out and starting over (which is what our neighbor did, and no surprise, he has the nicest yard around).

sharpie1234 · 03-23-2010, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cdmurphy

The soil around here tends to be clay. You may need to rake some loose soil and compost in, and you probably should aerate before seeding. Our builder had the sod laid down right atop the clay without adding topsoil, and we've been working to fix it for six years without resorting to the expense of having it all ripped out and starting over (which is what our neighbor did, and no surprise, he has the nicest yard around).

well, the grass is greener on the side afterall!

bornindc · 03-23-2010, 09:24 AM

In my experience, grass seeded in the spring doesn't do well around here, it doesn't have time to get deep enough roots before the stresses of summer. I only seed in autumn now. Depending on the kind of grass you have it may not be growing much yet, give it until late April or May. If it's not growing by then you've got a problem and you'll need to re-seed later in the year.

Claire2900 · 03-23-2010, 09:52 AM

There are two types of grass, cool and warm and depending on that depends on the time of year its best to spread it. Aerating helps a lot and so does lime.

VRE332 · 03-23-2010, 11:43 AM

I was told by my landscaping guy that Virginia does not have any native grasses. Thus it's not surprising that it will not grow here.

GoHokiesGo · 03-23-2010, 11:48 AM

Since some of you seem to be rather knowledgeable on grass varieties -

My townhouse gets barely any sun in the backyard, maybe a few brief hours in the afternoon. The soil is very rich in the back, as the old owners used to have a garden that was basically the entire backyard (townhouse = postage stamp size yard, lol). Any recommendations for what type of seed to buy?

Price probably doesn't matter much since I only have a small area to cover. I didn't bother with fixing the backyard last year since we had just moved in and had other projects. But I'd like to make it a little more inviting this year and am planning on having a little patio area there as well.

Any grass seed recommendations or other types of ground cover that would be similar?

normie · 03-23-2010, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VRE332

I was told by my landscaping guy that Virginia does not have any native grasses. Thus it's not surprising that it will not grow here.

???? Then what the heck is that green stuff growing wild in the open fields?

Claire2900 · 03-23-2010, 12:09 PM

If you have a small area, I would probably bite the bullet and re sod it. Warm grass does better than cool grass for shady areas, but most seed around here is a blend since we aren't really a "cool or warm" climate. I would head to Merrifield and bring a soil sample and know how many hours of sun the area gets per day. Good luck