Whatever you do Surfguy, please stop responding to Swoly lol. Why does everyone take his BS bait? He continues to troll here because posters just can't let him have the last word. Let him think what he wants.
He gives useful advise. For the most part, if you just do the EXACT OPPOSITE of what he suggests, you should be fine.
You need to post a picture where the grass is in focus and not the wall at the far end of the picture. Reseeding or resod is not needed if you follow the right maintenance habits for the type of grass you have. Sounds weird, but I promise you if you create the correct environment the type of grass you want will take over with force. This is the reason people who mow St. Aug so low lose it to Bermuda or zoysia.
Fellas, I know everyone said I have St. Augustine grass but I didn't think I did. I did some more research and confirmed what I thought. Here are a couple pieces of grass I plucked from my yard. I went online and verified that it is Bermuda Grass: This is a blade of St. Augustine grass from my neighbors yard:
I looked at the following link for verification: http://www.scotts.com/smg/templates/index.jsp?pageUrl=grassIdentifier&stp=1
If you prefer to have St. Aug grass, mow way higher (like 3 to 3.5" grass height) if you prefer to keep Bermuda mow low. Bermuda is more work and you need to mow more often but it can be a great looking lawn. St. Aug is like a weed that chokes everything out with less work. You can fertilize and when the summer hits you will probably have a decent looking lawn and a great looking lawn next year. Go to John Deere Landscapes and get some Lesco fertilizer, more correctly, water deeply.
How could I speed up the process of getting St. Aug Grass? Should I buy some sod and lay it around the perimeter of my yard? I'd prefer St. Aug at the end of the day.
You could go buy a few squares and plant them. You need to water the crap out of them though. Now is a good time because it isn't so hot yet, but you still need to water them heavily so I would get about 5-10 squares max. Just accept your yard is in a period of transition and that your patience will be rewarded. Don't go at the perimeter because your neighbors grass will spread when the high mowing conditions favor st. aug in your own yard. It will easily out compete Bermuda at 3.5 inches of mow height. And like I said go to JDL to get a bag of fert. It will be less than 30 dollars and depending on your yard size over a years supply.
Surfguy, why don't you just blow off grass in the shady spots and put in some other ground cover. If shade is the issue you will have the same issues with most grass (some are shade specific but not sure how well they work)
I live at the end of the street so I don't share any of my lawn with the neighbors. Should I still only get 5-10 squares and randomly place them in my yard? I got some Bermuda seed because I originally wanted to reseed that but now am leaning towards St. Aug.
Digging up your old lawn? Poisoning it? What the hell is wrong with you people? As long as you have a tiller, laying sod isn't that bad. Till up all the existing grass and soil. Even it out and lay the sod down. Deep root water and that's about all there is to it. I did about 800 sqft last spring in a 3-4 hours. It looks good now. unfortunately, the rest of the lawn probably needs to be resod but I just haven't had time with recent travel. I'm afraid I missed the perfect window and might just wait until next year
That sucks. If it were me I would find all of the really rubbish spots and get sod for those, then take a few squares and space them out. I would suggest to buy as much sod as you feel like planting and watering all the time for 2 weeks and no more. You will learn how to make the St. Aug thrive and then know more about lawn care than anyone on your street when you watch Bermuda get choked out by St. Aug. If you mow high it will spread like wildfire. I often see chain link fences where Bermuda is on the outside and St. Aug on the inside just because of the different mow heights. Make sure your mower can go high enough, some can't. Also sharpen your blades.
That is not a great idea because you churn up seeds and bring them to the surface. Tillers are made for gardens and it just makes it harder to get your lawn smooth again. Round up is better but I just prefer patience to save the lawn. This isn't Kentucky Blue grass or other cool season grass.
