my front yard (just the part within the circle drive) needs grass. it used to be covered in english ivy which has been dead and gone for a year and a half now. it has been tilled with one of those giant drag-you-across-the-yard tillers, but there are several spots where the roots are just too thick (in diameter and number). i've fertilized & seeded twice and have 2 small spots where the grass actually grew.

i want to sell my house within the next 2 years. i need a full lawn before then. my backyard is st. augustine, which i love and have cut plugs from to plant up front (they took, but by no means are going to cover the whole yard in time). i wanted st. augustine up front but now i don't care, i just want green grass.

cheapest way to do this? i'd love to get sod but i have a feeling that's $texas. the area is...it's really a half circle with about a 25-30' radius...ish

[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 11:02 AM. Reason : ]

9/4/2008 11:00:08 AM

kudzu

yeah, sod might run you $500 or more. you could buy plugs of centipede grass. that shit spreads pretty fast and looks good.

[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 12:51 PM. Reason : .]

9/4/2008 12:51:16 PM

Any more suggestions of places to seed/aerate for <$320

9/4/2008 1:06:42 PM

you can rent an aerator for probably less than 50 bucks.

a 20lb bag of seed is 20-50 bucks depending on brand

9/4/2008 1:27:00 PM

Yeah, exactly, which I why I don't understand why these places are quoting me so much.

9/4/2008 1:49:56 PM

labor + overhead + profit


hey i was checking on pest service and was quoted $99 for first visit, $65 every two months by bulwark. is that a good price?

9/4/2008 3:42:41 PM

Yeah, but when they own their aerators and they buy seed by the ton they should be able to do it for much cheaper.

9/4/2008 3:46:15 PM

^^

yeah they told me $99 for the first month and then $65 every other month after that, but they were having a special and would charge me $65 for the first month too.

I assumed the "special" was a BS salesman tactic, but i guess that's the real deal.

The first visit they do spray inside as well as outside, and each subsequent visit, they only spray the outside, but if you ask them, they will do the inside again at no charge. So far, so good.

^ I paid EPM ~$150 for seeding and aeration at my old place, which was 0.12 acres. i don't have a comparable quote at my new place (0.25 acres) since i need a hell of a lot more than aeration.

i also got a quote on sod from supersod.com for anyone interested.

for Fescue, Bermuda, or centipede 1 pallet (504 sq feet) is 195 2-6 is 180, 7-13 is 170, and 14 or more is 160

for St. aug, or zoysia, 1 pallet(450sq feet) is 240, 2-6 is 220, 7-13 is 210, and 14 or more is 200.



[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 4:56 PM. Reason : asdf]

9/4/2008 4:48:20 PM

I'm telling you guys that want seeding and aeration - Call TruGreen
They will give you a quote then tell them its way to high - I listened to whole sales pitch and just kept balking. They finally agreed on the $99 special. My yard is around .4 acres. They have honored that price for the last 4 years.

For pest control I got Summit Pest Control for that. Its $35 a qtr and they do inside and out and got rid of my ant problems inside and out. Termites are another thing - house was treated before I moved in so I have been lucky on that front.

9/5/2008 4:08:53 AM

Ok. Once I get one last quote I'll call them and try to negotiate. I talked with the lawn care company my neighbor uses to cut their grass and they said they seed / aerate but it would be very difficult for seed to grow in my soil b/c apparently the builders scrape off any good topsoil and sell it before they build the homes. What happens if I shell out $ to some company and the grass never grows? I decided to call the same lawn care company KB uses since it's obvious they do know how to get grass to grow in this pos soil. If their quote is too high I'll bitch to TruGreen until I get a deal.

9/5/2008 7:42:06 AM

Sorry didn't mean to sound pushy -

You could always use the line that buddy of your has his yard done by them and give them that price and tell them that you would also like to sign up for the quarterly service as well and they might just do it.

9/5/2008 9:49:14 AM

Aside from the $99 thing to seed/aerate do they do any other non pest control work for you at yearly intervals?

[Edited on September 5, 2008 at 10:35 AM. Reason : ]

9/5/2008 10:34:51 AM

If you are asking about the yard pest control :

all they do is come every 3 months and throw fertilizer or spray the bushes or a mixture of the two.
They usually just write on the sheet what they did and leave it at the door.

9/5/2008 12:04:15 PM

I was asking if they have to do quarterly stuff aside from yard pest control.

9/5/2008 12:22:59 PM

we're 95% finished with all our remodeling...

it all started with a "let's paint"... found wallpaper underneath paint in every single room in 3000sqft house, in some rooms, 2-3 layers. so, we removed it all, repaired cracks in plaster, painted, added crown to the couple of rooms that didn't have it... then we refinished hardwoods in 2nd floor... then gutted two baths completely... then converted a second sunroom to a den....then kitchen remodel... then decided to gut third floor to studs... then decided while we had the walls out, we might as well replace all the knob and tube wiring and bring up to code...with the third floor complete, we're moving to repainting all the outside trim (thank god the house is brick!) and will redo the backyard fence.

oh the joys of a 100 yr old home.

9/5/2008 10:05:11 PM

damn, that's a lot of work! do you have before and after pictures?

9/6/2008 12:49:46 PM

Ok I am stumped about a problem that has popped up recently.

In one of the spare bedrooms that isn't being used except for storing my grandmother's china and some other items that cannot be placed in the storage building outside, there is a spot on the carpet that is damp and noticeably darker than the rest of the carpet.

However, I cannot figure out what is causing that one spot to be damp. I checked the ceiling and it isn't wet at all or discolored. I went under the house and looked to see if any pipes were under that part of the house and there aren't any. I pulled the insulation aside and didn't see or feel anything wet in that area....

I really don't want to pull up the carpet but it looks like that might be my only option left. However if I do it will get me to go ahead and put new carpet in the bedrooms...

*shrug*

9/6/2008 2:10:58 PM

Just got another quote to aerate and seed for ~350

9/11/2008 8:24:36 AM

i take it the trugreen thing didn't work out?

9/11/2008 9:57:59 AM

I was holding off for this last quote since I thought I might get a deal since it was the same conpany that did all the other work for the HOA. I'll bitch to Trugeen sometime and see if I can get that $99 deal.

9/11/2008 10:05:28 AM

Bummer man - let us know what you got.

9/11/2008 1:49:22 PM

Scott's is doing ours on the 23rd for $167 (aerate and seed, that is). I'll post up some before and after pics when we get some growth. I'm actually really excited about it.

9/11/2008 4:52:12 PM

Found out during Hanna that one of my windows leaks

9/11/2008 7:04:34 PM

Scotts? Link?

9/11/2008 9:53:38 PM

http://www.scottslawnservice.com/

9/11/2008 11:48:36 PM

Offer
I am renting a sod cutter on Saturday morning to pull up my entire yard. I need some help laying about 3 pallets of sod on Sunday. I should have some help 1-3 people, but if anyone else can help, you can borrow the sod cutter when I am done with it to do some work at your place. It costs me $130 to rent it, and I have it Sat through Monday morning. If you can help / and / or want to take me up on the cutter deal, please let me know.

Im really sweating this work as I have never used a sod cutter before, and dont know how difficult it going to be to pull the existing sod up on Saturday, let alone laying 3 pallets of it on Sunday. I go to raleigh public works on thursday to get a permit to water every day.

[Edited on September 16, 2008 at 4:30 PM. Reason : .]

9/16/2008 4:27:08 PM

Quote :

"Scott's is doing ours on the 23rd for $167"

how did you get that price? how big is your lawn?


so are you supposed to aerate and seed every fall..or just if your lawn "needs" it?

9/16/2008 5:54:30 PM

My buddy is using scott's for $180 for .27 acres. I submitted their form asking for a quote.

9/16/2008 10:56:34 PM

^^ That is just the price they quoted me. Our lawn is fairly small; the whole lot is .17 acres. :-/

As far as the aeration/seeding goes, I've read both points of view. The one that I see/hear about the most is where you only do aeration & seeding as needed, but that you at least overseed and fertilize every fall. We're doing the combo since our lawn is pure crap currently. It's been getting treated by Scotts since July to prepare the soil for the seeding. It's been fertilized and lyme treated to promote stronger roots for better coverage/growth and to prevent weeds in the spring and summer.

They told me to mow the lawn about 1 notch lower than I normally would before they do the procedure. Of course, I also have to go out and make sure there are no parts with large rocks to allow for better seeding and aeration. There are two problem areas for that on my property, so I'll take care of that too.

[Edited on September 17, 2008 at 3:23 AM. Reason : a]

9/17/2008 3:22:48 AM

Oh ok, so the lime was $ on top of that?

9/17/2008 7:55:47 AM

Well, the lime and stuff had been part of the past months' regimen. Usually, you'd get the lawn fertilized and lime treated the same time as the aeration/seeding. I'd assume that it would cost a little extra to get that done by them also. But it shouldn't be hard or expensive to put down lime and fertilizer yourself with a spreader of some sort. Ours is particularly pitiful, so we opted for the longer treatment plan.

9/17/2008 4:56:34 PM

Meant to post this earlier, but have been lazy. I spent most of last sunday with a slit seeder in the back yard to try and start a lawn. My builder sodded the front and sides, and dropped seed and straw in the backyard. We closed in late june, so i didn't even bother trying to water the back, but ninja watered the sod every day all summer, so it's still looking great.

This is all going to make me look like an idiot, if i fail, but let's see how it goes.

Before pictures of the desert wasteland:





BobbyDigital living the mexican dream:






The next day we got a ton of rain. At first I was all happy, then it kept raining and a lot of the seed was washed away. but some of it has already germinated, so i'll probably have to do some more spot seeding. Looks like it won't rain anymore this week, so at least i can control the amount of water.

updates as shit starts to grow.
[/blog]

9/22/2008 10:24:35 AM

Damn, how big is your house?

9/22/2008 11:21:18 AM

Good god - where do you live?

New Mexico?

9/22/2008 4:24:19 PM

Hey Bobby if you're looking for your sunglasses I found em', they're in that tree in your back yard

In early Spring I had a lot of wild onions growing in my back yard. I know there is a certain time of year to cut them so that they die, but not sure when. So, I spent a LOT of time pulling them up by hand, especially after a rain when the ground was more loose. The past week or so they have been popping up again, this time probably twice the amount. Way too many to pull up by hand. The quick fix is to cut the grass but now it smells like fucking onions outside!

What should I do about these? I want to aerate and fertilize soon but I don't want to feed the onions and help them take over.

9/22/2008 6:29:02 PM

I was thinking about just doing Terf Fescue myself since it's in the front and apparently it can grow this time of year. Anyone know anything about it?

9/22/2008 7:28:12 PM

OK, so Scott's is coming to aerate and seed tomorrow. I thought I'd put up some before pics. The left (or top) set if from March of this year. The right (or bottom) is from today (after 3 months of treatments from Scott's). You can see where I've gone out and dug up all the old, dead sod to leave dirt for the seeds.













I'll be sure to put up some more pics when we start getting some growth.



[Edited on September 22, 2008 at 7:33 PM. Reason : more format]

9/22/2008 7:28:59 PM

Quote :

"Good god - where do you live? New Mexico?"

worse -- durham.

9/23/2008 10:10:41 AM

Me too. My neighbor got some nice grass to grow. I may just ask him for help.

9/23/2008 10:11:32 AM

^^ Ahh gotcha.

Does your line go all the way back to that tree line?
If so you have got all kinds of options!

9/23/2008 10:55:17 AM

ah man, i wish. my line is about 6 feet before those shitty landscaped trees and bushes on that hill. It's not going to be built on, and will be owned by the HOA once it's turned over to the homeowners from the builder.

Even more awesome is the dead yoshino cherry tree that never looked any more alive when it was planted.

still fighting with the builder over that one.

9/23/2008 11:02:48 AM

Just spent the last 3 days (12 hours each day) removing the sod at my house, and laying down new stuff. Looks amazing. I'll have pics soon. I really hope it lives! Watering it every day.

9/23/2008 11:04:27 AM

Wow! Now that's back breaking work!

9/23/2008 11:07:42 AM

the sod cutter was heavy and clumsy. It was not fun going down the hills. Managed to snap off one irrigation head, but that was easily fixed. Still a little more clean-up work, but this project ranks high in the hardest work I've done.

9/23/2008 11:42:49 AM

so i have a pretty nice fescue mix lawn in place. it's pretty small, probably under 1000sq ft. the guy i bought the house from took really good care of the lawn. i want to overseed since he said he did it every fall (and there are some of thin spots)

for those of you who have done it, how did you prep the ground (if at all)? sounds like you can use a rake to get rid of all the debris and expose more soil, or rent some machinery. what would you guys recommend? I was thinking for a lawn my size i would just rake the hell out of it.

here are the steps as far as i can tell. please amend or add steps as needed.

1) mow with blade down pretty low and bag clippings. i have tall fescue so i don't think i want to cut it too too short
2) rake the grass clean (expose some soil)
3) spread seed
4) rake again to improve seed contact with soil?
4) topdress
5) water at least twice a day for a couple weeks
6) dont mow it too short, but don't let it get soo tall so light can still hit the base


Where do i fertilize in this process? Before? After? Both? Lime?

Anyone use this Grassfast product?
http://yardener.com/YardenersToolshedofProducts/PlantProtectionProducts/ProtectNewlySeededLawn

I've read some of that info in the link Bobby posted but I just wanted to see how you guys have done it and what you've had success with

9/23/2008 3:09:02 PM

I do 1-3, and 5,6

and i bought a thatch rake for soil prep.



I use the dead grass that's pulled up as mulch for patching bare spots.

ugh, i have a lot of these where the front was sodded, and some of the grass didn't make it. I spent several hours yesterday patching bare spots, and am actually taking tomorrow off to finish that up.

9/23/2008 4:07:19 PM

Also, to you guys that have Fescue Lawns, if you have a problem with Crab Grass and you didn't us a pre-emergent in the spring, mowing the lawn at 4.5" will encourage root development, thus choking out the weeds.

9/23/2008 5:06:21 PM

New and improved yard

Quote :

"mowing the lawn at 4.5""

Sounds great, but how many lawn mowers allow mowing at that height that arent really expensive?

9/24/2008 9:24:01 AM

I bought the el-cheapo from Home Depot and it does that height.

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=100614793&N=10000003+90401+527106

9/24/2008 9:39:55 AM

i know the yard doesn't look as good that long, but it has worked for my parents...

i have bahaia (sp?) and I hate it...but the closer I mow mine, the more it encourages root (and rhizome) development.

[Edited on September 24, 2008 at 9:41 AM. Reason : .]

9/24/2008 9:41:39 AM