What type of grass should I use?

Florida Greyhound Mama – posted 17 March 2004 07:24

I have a horrible looking lawn in Central Florida. It is supposed to be bahia and we have fought weeds for a few years now. I’ve given up and want to resod it. I’d say the soil is sandy, at least in front. My next door neighbor sodded with Empire Zoysia last year, which looks great. I’ve read that you do NOT need a special reel mower with the Empire since it has a wider blade, which is a bonus.

I have 3 greyhounds that I let out in my backyard. The bahia is mostly weeded out back there and the boys run around and have started digging, so I’ve got a lot of dirt, too. It’s a new house and we’ve been here for 4 years, so our 3 sycamore trees don’t have tremendous growth yet. We do have a fence up around the backyard, which does give a little shade.

I’ve talked to different sod companies. One person says use Floratam, another says use Bitter Blue, then another says Bitter Blue can’t stand sun, while another says of course it can because it was grown in an open field. I’m thinking of the Empire Zoysia. My rationalization is that if it’s sturdy enough for a golf course, then it’s sturdy enough for my greyhounds. I talked to a guy the other day that said Empire Zoysia needs sun all day…

I’ve tried reading about sod at www.sodsolutions.com, but I guess I’m just not getting all I need out of the website. Can I get some feedback from some of ya’ll, maybe in the Central Florida area, that have Zoysia? My neighbors yard is just coming back from dormancy right now, so I can’t see how it does in the shady areas at his house, but I haven’t heard any complaints from him since he put it in…

ALL comments would be greatly appreciated!!

Also, with the dogs, what should I do after I’ve resodded? Should they not be allowed to potty on the lawn for a certain period of time???

[This message has been edited by Florida Greyhound Mama (edited 17 March 2004).]

[This message has been edited by Florida Greyhound Mama (edited 17 March 2004).]