Bermuda, Fescue, or ??

atoner – posted 25 July 2003 21:08

Greetings,

I moved into a newly built house in North Carolina last August. The builder had seeded with, I assume, Fescue. It didn’t take well due a drought, but the Bermuda that was on the property already is doing pretty well.

My neighbor is really into Fescue and is trying to get rid of Bermuda. He also fertilizes a lot, so his lawn is much darker than mine. I feel guilty about keeping Bermuda around when he’s working so hard to get rid of it.

A little seeding was done last fall, then I did a lot this spring with topsoil and Kentucky 31 Fescue.

We had about two weeks in June when there was little rain and we were on vacation, so most of the Fescue in the back died. Examination showed shallow roots. The soil is dense clay with some dark topsoil and many rocks ~4+ inches below the surface. The dead spots have filled in with low weeds.

I’m planning to kill weeds, aerate, rake, fertilze, and plant new seed this fall. I think it would be a waste of time to try and kill the Bermuda. However, I want something that’ll stay green in the winter.

Should I continue trying Fescue, or something else like Zoysia, Creeping Red Fescue, or Bluegrass. I don’t see much Zoysia in the stores around here.

I was also thinking about trying different seed, maybe the Rebels that’s twice as expensive. The lawn is almost all sunny.

Thanks,Adam