Any hope for this dry lawn? (flower, lawns, landscape, fertilizing)

[jjspelman]

Would anyone have any experience or ideas on what might be done to help this lawn? It is terribly dry and sandy and many spots. I am not a landscaper so just looking for ideas and input.

Thanks!

[Cambium]

Im not a landscaper either but usually grass comes back.. Have you tried a sprinkler on it daily?
Otherwise you can always:
Aerate.
Get 15 yrds of screened Topsoil
Re-seed
Enjoy new lawn

Your location isnt on the info so not sure if rain is in the forecast for you. Good luck

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by jjspelman

Would anyone have any experience or ideas on what might be done to help this lawn?

Start over completely.

After you're done the tilling and fertilizing and grading and rolling...
bring in a sprinkler crew to at least run the pipes before the hydroseed crew shows up.

If no/low rainfall is the norm around there... then hook up the sprinkler heads/valves too.

[chiroptera]

Where are you located?

[jjspelman]

Thanks for al the replies!

We are in S Tampa.

[Butterfly4u]

JJspelman,
Your lawn looks like mine did when I moved in.
I have sand too, and this is what I found out.
Plant a grass that likes sand and heat.
Centipede grass is the best, a specialty grass that grows
in acid sand with poor nutrition.
Buy some regular yard sprinklers, buy some centipede grass seed
(the kind with the mulch on it) and spread the seed, and water.
Because your soil is very sandy, you will always have to water frequently.
Water at least twice a day til it grows in, be very generous with the seed too.
After it grows in, only water early in the morning, when the grass looks dry.
Don't mow it til it's about 1 1/2 inches high, then keep it at that length.
Now is the best time to seed a warm season grass too.
Put in a cement block path to the front door so you don't have to constantly
walk on the grass to get in the house too.

[imcurious]

Lawns are a waste of water and land. Plant flower and vegetable gardens - you have a huge lot, you could make an awesome garden. Look at some gardening magazines for ideas.

[jjspelman]

Thanks Butterfly4U. Some great stuff there to consider. Not sure i can water that often though with the restrictions currently in place.


@imcurious - some good thoughts there as well, as far as adding a garden, but I don't think lawns are a waste. I'm sure there must be a happy medium there somewhere.

[chiroptera]

I like Butterfly's suggestions too.
I'm no expert on lawns but back when I lived in Colorado I bought a house that had a terrible-looking yard both back and front. Plus water is short out there and it's not responsible to water too frequently.
For the back yard, I bought a locally-blended grass seed mix that was formulated for playing fields, parks and so on. It was quite expensive but worth it because it was tough as nails and needed very little water. My main reason for going with the "tough" grass for the back yard was because I had two large dogs and wanted grass that would withstand dog use.
On the suggestion of the same nursery I bought the grass seed from, I overseeded my front lawn with clover. Again, that worked beautifully. My current front yard naturally has a ton of clover and is greener that my neighbor's lawn. I never fertilize or use weed killer and as long as it's mowed to be kept fairly short, it looks great.

CloverLawn.org | Promoting clover as a lawn alternative

[jambo101]

Usually your local garden center will be more than happy to give you all the info you need to improve your yard, bring that picture along with you.
Trouble with Florida its really hot and the earth is very sandy and nutrient poor, if you want great looking lawn its going to come at a price.Although a layer of topsoil and a reseeding and some fertilizer will certainly make your current lawn look a lot better .