My plans…..Any suggestions????

joshua5438 – posted 30 July 2007 11:20

I am getting ready to plant some grass in my bare spots. I have a bermuda lawn but an area with several oak trees that the bermuda doesnt like to grow under. I talked with a rep. at Scotts and they suggested that I plant Creeping red fescue and said that it would match the bermuda the best and can tolerate shade alot better than the bermuda. I am going to till the ground up since it is very hard. Then I am going to spread the fescue then spread some started fertilizer and cover that up with straw. Is there anything else that I need to do to prepare the ground? The soil is very compacted in this area which may be another reason that the bermuda doesnt grow well there. Any help is appreciated.

Josh

TexanOne – posted 01 August 2007 00:19

The planting / soil preparation methods you describe sound good, but I question the use of Creeping Red Fescue as a shade turfgrass alternative. CRF is not very adapted to warm to hot climates such as yours and tends to become very stressed with temperatures above 90 degrees for long periods of time – not to mention the water use involved.

I would suggest you look at Zoysia Japonica turfgrass for use in your shady areas for a couple of reasons:

1: Zoysia texture is similar to Bermudagrass.

2: Water requirements are roughly the same for Zoysia and Bermudagrass.

3: Zoysia and Bermudagrass will both go dormant in the winter (CRF will generally remain green during the winter).

Zoysia Japonica comes in many different varieties, such as Zenith (seed), Empire (sod), Palisades (sod), etc… Don’t try plugging Zoysia – it is just too slow. Either consider sod or seed, but preferably sod.

[This message has been edited by TexanOne (edited 01 August 2007).]

joshua5438 – posted 01 August 2007 06:54

Thanks for the info. I have been told now that I should put down soil conditioner, Gypsum and Lime to help the compacted soil to allow the new grass to grow. I was also told to either plant Zoysia or Centipeed. I should till the ground and then add the conditioner, gypsum, lime and seed and cover with pine needles… Does this sound right? Should I then add the starter fertilizer after all of this??

TexanOne – posted 01 August 2007 18:34

I would definitely go with the suggestions of the local landscapers on the soil conditioning. Soil conditioning factors are all very local and specific. The local mom & pop nurseries and local landscapers usually know exactly what you need for best results and success. I’m not talking about the large chain-store nurseries, although you may get lucky and find someone that knows what they are talking about.

I don’t have a clue what kind of soil you have in Memphis, but I could steer you in the right direction if you were in West Texas!

I just want to reemphasize – go with solid Zoysia SOD if you decide to go the Zoysia route. If you do a search at this website, you can find dozens of horror stories about the failures of seed and plug Zoysia attempts – some of which I wrote.

Good Luck!

copperjohn – posted 20 August 2007 08:59

Before you go with Zoysia Sod (sodding is better) you should make sure the area to be sodded gets enough sunlight. You mentioned in your post that you have oak trees. Large oak trees produce a lot of shade. Zoysiagrass will tollerate a moderate amount of shade but will thin out as shade gets heavier. Zoysiagrass should be grown in a minimum of 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. It will grow with less but somethimg to take into consideration. If there is any kind of setback,eg Brown Patch disease, Rust disease, White grubs etc. It does not recover well if it is in too much shade. The more sunlight the better luck you will have with Zoysiagrass. If it doesn’t get 6 hours of sun you may consider St. Augustine. Eventhough St. Augustine isn’t without it’s problems too, it is considered the “shade grass of the south.” Also, If you are going to till the soil be careful not to damage the roots of your trees. It is also a good idea incorporate the soil amendments as you till.

[This message has been edited by copperjohn (edited 20 August 2007).]