Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Yukon is tough to get and from the boards I've been reading has been unavailable the last few years.
Here is a picture of yukon, to me if this is the best Bermuda has to offer I'm not very thrilled.
There's a reason why Fescue/bluegrass is the dominant grass here.
Yukon is easily purchased online.
I think the pics you showed are fine. I have no problem with the look of what is in your pics, especially as it is the wiser choice in such a droughtish area as we live.
I am not so sure that Fescue/bluegrass is the dominant grass. More and more people are changing over to Bermuda. The town of Cary even paid people to do it.
"In North Carolina, the most common type of grass used is Bermuda."
If you don't care for Bermuda, that is fine. I see things I like about both grasses, but the best choice in my situation is Bermuda. I do like the look and I do like my tiny water bill. For me, I would rather not spend all the time and money trying to make Fescue work where it does not want to, all the while using much more water than is necessary.
Fescue has done alright by me. I aerate every other year. Never water my lawn and just lime once and fertilzie three times a year (Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Valentines Day). Pretty easy for me to maintain and the lawn looks great. I travel the Triangle extensively for work and recreation. I would say at least 90% of the lawns I've seen are fescue, but I think bermuda is a good choice for certain situations. Check out your yards and the sunlight exposure. Your site specific conditions will help you determine which may be the better choice for you. Good Lcuk!
"In North Carolina, the most common type of grass used is Bermuda."
You quoted wikianswers? LOL.
Quote:
If you don't care for Bermuda, that is fine. I see things I like about both grasses, but the best choice in my situation is Bermuda. I do like the look and I do like my tiny water bill. For me, I would rather not spend all the time and money trying to make Fescue work where it does not want to, all the while using much more water than is necessary.
I think the point is that Bermuda and Fescue are both low mx grasses. I haven't ever watered my fescue lawn and it looks just as good as NRG's backyard. And my front yard gets 9-10 hours of sun a day, my backyard gets 7+ hours. So the point about fescue having to be watered is simply not true. It will go dormant just as bermuda does. I have relatives in Charlotte, and they have bermuda, and their grass looked just as stressed as fescue does without water.
Fescue as a grass is one of the most heat/cold tolerant grasses out there. Here, instead of wikianswers I will quote the Texas Cooperative Extension service:
Quote:
Adaptation and Use. Tall fescue is adapted to a wide range of soil and climatic conditions, but performs best on well drained clay soils in the "transition zone." Tall fescue demonstrates good shade tolerance in the southern region and remains green year-round under irrigated conditions
If that doesn't describe our soil conditions I don't know what does!
If there was a truly deep green, lush, bermuda out there I would switch to it, as would many others I believe, and overseed with rye in the winter. Personally I like the spreading growth of bermuda and the root system but the color is a big distraction. Tifsport seems to be the closest but no one around here sells it, they only sell the tif 419.
wheelsup. Fescue is an excellent grass in some situations. It is poor in other situations. This is a transition zone. There is no one grass that is best for all. Just keep this in mind. There is a reason why so many people have to overseed Fescue every fall. It is a clumping grass and when the summer heat and drought kill it, it does not repair itself. It has to be manually repaired. That's why there have been signs on the side of the roads and fliers in everyone's doors advertising this service. Big bucks in trying to salvage a beaten down Fescue lawn.
If you want to believe that Fescue is the only grass that anyone should ever use, then that is your choice. I, on the other hand, understand that each lawn has different challenges and needs. Every single Fescue lawn in my neighborhood is currently undergoing aeration and reseeding because of the summer damage. People are working pretty hard to get their Fescue back to where it was in the spring. Lots of money, effort and water down the drain. Meantime, everyone with Bermuda had been busy with Halloween decorating. That's the situation in my neighborhood. Take it or leave it, that's your choice.
I could have quoted many sources stating the facts about Bermuda, but just posted the one link. That was the first one that popped up. I wouldn't get too excited thinking that is all there is. I would suggest you do some research online. There are dozens of places to find the correct info. Or you can come over to my house and speak to my neighbor, who is a Master Gardner. He has Bermuda by choice, also.
Why do you think Cary decided to pay people to switch to Bermuda? Because it is better during drought and heat. Why do you think athletic fields and golf courses use Bermuda? Because of better wear and drought tolerance.
If you prefer the look of Fescue and are willing to put the work into it and waste precious water on it, then that is your choice. All I want in a lawn is even green cover that does not get damaged patches from heat/drought and does not require that I water it heavily to keep it alive. Bermuda works for my application. I like the look of it. Others may not. To each his/her own.
If you prefer the look of Fescue and are willing to put the work into it and waste precious water on it, then that is your choice. All I want in a lawn is even green cover that does not get damaged patches from heat/drought and does not require that I water it heavily to keep it alive. Bermuda works for my application. I like the look of it. Others may not. To each his/her own.
If you have to aerate fescue you're doing it wrong. If by big bucks you mean $30 in seed and $45-$60 in fert every year, I guess you are right, it takes a ton of money and time to make fescue look good (I don't aerate, it is not a natural form of lawn care). If you take a completely hands off approach with bermuda you'll get the same crappy results under the same conditions. Let's not forget the fact that one of bermuda's traits is a negative - it will overtake your beds quickly unless you lay down the law with turflon-ester.
I realize different grasses grow here, but again you keep repeating that fescue needs to be watered and takes a lot of work to get looking good. It doesn't. It comes back just like bermuda.
I've also never watered fescue, except after spreading seed (and then only for a week or so to help things get started). My observation is that people kill fescue by mowing it too short, and too frequently when the weather is hot & dry. I set my mower as high as it goes (about 3.5") and during July-September, if there is no rain in the forecast, I don't mow no matter how long it gets. It's gotten me through every summer since I moved here in 2000.
I've also never watered fescue, except after spreading seed (and then only for a week or so to help things get started). My observation is that people kill fescue by mowing it too short, and too frequently when the weather is hot & dry. I set my mower as high as it goes (about 3.5") and during July-September, if there is no rain in the forecast, I don't mow no matter how long it gets. It's gotten me through every summer since I moved here in 2000.
Great tips. I always mow high. You are so right about people mowing too short.
wheelsup, you could not be any more wrong about Fescue "coming back" like Bermuda. If Fescue gets too far gone, it is gone and does not spread like Bermuda. However, you do not want to acknowledge the fact that thousands of people here in the Triangle have spent that last several weeks aerating and overseeding their damaged Fescue lawns. Remember, there is a difference between drought and heat. Fescue can come back after some drought when there is not excessive heat. However, with long stretches of high heat and drought, Fescue will actually die off in clumps. I cannot do anything further to help someone who refuses to see what so many people are faced with here.
If Fescue works for you in your situation, then great. Enjoy it. It can make a nice lawn in many situations. I am sticking with Bermuda for my lawn. I had a choice to go either way and I prefer Bermuda for this particular lawn in this particular situation. As I said, I am not doing any work to my lawn now and ALL my neighbors with Fescue are repairing summer damage. I have all the evidence I need right outside my front door.
"Tall Fescue usually requires overseeding in the spring or fall....."
"Tall Fescueshould be overseeded every year for thicker sod formation and to repair thinning areas. Heat stress, insect damage, diseases, or other factors play a role in the lawn becoming thinner over the course of the year."
"Although you may have an established lawn, you may need to repair some bare areas. Keep in mind that Fescue is not a creeping grass, so it can't fill in bare areas that occur due to disease or damage."
The best source for turf information whether it be fescue or Bermuda is the local NC State Turfgrass Department. They have an entire website with valuable information:
I've also never watered fescue, except after spreading seed (and then only for a week or so to help things get started). My observation is that people kill fescue by mowing it too short, and too frequently when the weather is hot & dry. I set my mower as high as it goes (about 3.5") and during July-September, if there is no rain in the forecast, I don't mow no matter how long it gets. It's gotten me through every summer since I moved here in 2000.
I agree; typically you see people cut off way too much of the blade as well, which will eventually kill the grass. With proper care fescue can make it thru any of our weather. Overseeding is a fact of life with fescue as some will die and it doesn't creep like bermuda, however the trade off of having to spend an hour a year and a small amount on seed is a lawn that's green (or mostly so) 9-10 months out of the year and year round if you want to water it in July and August. You can water bermuda all you want and put down pounds of nitrogen November - April and it will still be dead looking!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
