Best Grass for my Lawn? (Coppell, West: maintenance, store, gardening)

[ChristieP]

St. Augustine is a pain in the rear. The last two houses we've lived in have already had yards full of it. Not only does it need a LOT more water, but it grows in "runners" that constantly have to be trimmed back when they grow over the sidewalk, etc. And if you let it get too dry, it will die quickly, and it's VERY difficult to get it to come back! IMHO, it doesn't look as good as other grasses, and it is not soft! I would NEVER plant St. Augustine grass intentionally!!!

[bookworm2768]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

St. Augustine is a pain in the rear. The last two houses we've lived in have already had yards full of it. Not only does it need a LOT more water, but it grows in "runners" that constantly have to be trimmed back when they grow over the sidewalk, etc. And if you let it get too dry, it will die quickly, and it's VERY difficult to get it to come back! IMHO, it doesn't look as good as other grasses, and it is not soft! I would NEVER plant St. Augustine grass intentionally!!!

That seems to be more or less what I've read online but how does one go about replacing a yard full or the stuff???

[KBilly]

Empire zoysia (ZOY-zha). Great stuff. A1 Grass (http://www.a1grass.com/ZoyEmpire.htm - broken link) has it.

St. Aug can't be grown from seed - sod only.

[james guthery]

Originally Posted by bazcar

Hi All,

We are looking to overseed our lawn. Which type of grass would you suggest for Plano area that:
a) needs less mowing
b) needs less water
c) needs less fertilizer
d) grows in sun & tree shades
e) comes in seeds (we prefer seeds instead of sods)

Thanks.

Pallisade Zosyia is your best bet [mod] no ads, need at least 10 other posts to make specific recommdendations [/mod]

[Terry10]

Murphy-Our kids don't like playing in back yard, because, as they say, it's spikey. Trying to find way to get them to be able to use yard and enjoy the feel of the grass. Any suggestions?

[ETex2]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

St. Augustine is a pain in the rear. The last two houses we've lived in have already had yards full of it. Not only does it need a LOT more water, but it grows in "runners" that constantly have to be trimmed back when they grow over the sidewalk, etc. And if you let it get too dry, it will die quickly, and it's VERY difficult to get it to come back! IMHO, it doesn't look as good as other grasses, and it is not soft! I would NEVER plant St. Augustine grass intentionally!!!

I am the opposite. I've been a homeowner for almost 40 years and my best lawns have always been St. Augustine. I like the looks of it, and it's not nearly as prone to weeds and requires less fertilizer. Bermuda has to be heavily fertilized all year long, and it too has runners that will invade flowerbeds even worse than St. Augustine. I was recently talking to a man who owns a local nursery who specializes in grasses, and he agreed. We sodded our commercial property last year and it looks better than ever. Grows much better in shade than bermuda too.

[Oreo's Mom]

I second Buffalo grass due to low watering and maintenance needs.

[Komeht]

Except for e, zoysiau

[happycrow]

1. Buffalo is tops if you don't have an HOA that will scream at you.

2. Alternate: Mondo grass for along the borders -- NO maintenance required. And then mix zoysia for the sunny spots and red clover beneath your trees. It requires almost no maintenance, attracts butterflies and bees and such, and is very easy on little peoples' feet.

Their feet will eventually adjust, but this will give them some catchup time.

Now here's the trick. You're in Plano, and Plano doesn't *usually* have a ton of water restrictions, but when it does, it's *Bad News(tm)" -- zoysia is fantastic (in fact, I'm going to pick some up this spring for part of my back yard), and it's "drought tolerant for yankees," but it *will* burn and die in TX. The garden crowd screams blue-bloody-murder about it, but when you have to water in a drought, go ahead and do it in the middle of the night when evaporation is non-existent -- the drought itself will keep any night-time mold issues from being a problem.

In either case, it's worth your time talking to a local nursery, because soil conditions in this area can vary wildly depending on where your house was built, and it's quite common here for different houses on the same block to have totally different lawn needs.

As a side note, I never rake up grass cuttings or leaves, but let them go into the soil. No fertilizer needed b/c the nutrients go where they're supposed to -- and my house is the first one on the block to green up in the spring, by about a two-week margin.

[TheOverdog]

Zosyia

I've tried some zosyia, but it is incredibly slow growing, so you have to sod your entire yard - it won't fill in the first year, and I've never seen it available at any gardening store (only grows from sod, not seed) so you have to order online, and it is relatively expensive.

Where do you all buy it locally if you do?

I currently have st augustine, and feel it has the same problems everyone else mentioned -not soft, doesn't wear well, not a terribly attractive green, and requires quite a bit of watering. It does grow relatively well under trees with only a few hours of sun a day and is relatively fast growing, so those are the positives.