lawn seeding

jetmonkey

New Member
So my lawn is about 100% weeds. I would like to seed but in the fall I get a tremendous amount of leaves. It seems the raking/blowing would ruin all the seedlings or the leaves would kill them. And if I plant in spring i get the heat and the mowing killing it. What is my best option?
 

lovinmaryland

Well-Known Member
So my lawn is about 100% weeds. I would like to seed but in the fall I get a tremendous amount of leaves. It seems the raking/blowing would ruin all the seedlings or the leaves would kill them. And if I plant in spring i get the heat and the mowing killing it. What is my best option?

PM Toppick

YW :love:
 

itsbob

I bowl overhand
Kill off your lawn in late fall, reseed then..

Our neighbors across the street have the nicest looking lawn I've ever seen.. First year they killed off the entire lawn, then came back and reseeded.

Now they kill off small portions (where the weeds won't give up) and just replant those small patches..

I want to do the same, but I want to level my yard first.

If you do replant in the Spring, I think I would let it grow out considerably, and cut it at a very high height until it's well established.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
I would like to seed but in the fall I get a tremendous amount of leaves. It seems the raking/blowing would ruin all the seedlings or the leaves would kill them.

When Yardguy did my new baby grass, it was in the fall. He said to leave the leaves alone until they got really thick, then rake lightly. A layer of leaves won't hurt it, it's just when the new grass gets smothered that it's bad. You also have to water every single day, without fail, and twice a day where the sun hits.
 

Ken King

A little rusty but not crusty
PREMO Member
So my lawn is about 100% weeds. I would like to seed but in the fall I get a tremendous amount of leaves. It seems the raking/blowing would ruin all the seedlings or the leaves would kill them. And if I plant in spring i get the heat and the mowing killing it. What is my best option?
Sod.
 
T

toppick08

Guest
So my lawn is about 100% weeds. I would like to seed but in the fall I get a tremendous amount of leaves. It seems the raking/blowing would ruin all the seedlings or the leaves would kill them. And if I plant in spring i get the heat and the mowing killing it. What is my best option?

Zoysia or Tarheel 2 red fescue.....just some ideas.
 

jetmonkey

New Member
Sounds like I should plan for this fall, and just let the leaves lay? They get thick pretty fast. I have these oak trees that seem to grow dead leaves all winter. The back yard is pretty covered right now and they look like they are still holding like 50% of their leaves.


So here is my next concern. I have lots and lots of moles also. Now I know to get rid of moles you need to get rid of the grubs and to get rid of the grubs you need to poison. I live pretty close to the water, as does most anyone in SMC I guess. I'm worried about the poison affecting my birds that I feed and getting into the bay. I am alos worried about the weed killer and fertilizer, etc. getting into the bay. Should I be?
 
T

toppick08

Guest
Sounds like I should plan for this fall, and just let the leaves lay? They get thick pretty fast. I have these oak trees that seem to grow dead leaves all winter. The back yard is pretty covered right now and they look like they are still holding like 50% of their leaves.


So here is my next concern. I have lots and lots of moles also. Now I know to get rid of moles you need to get rid of the grubs and to get rid of the grubs you need to poison. I live pretty close to the water, as does most anyone in SMC I guess. I'm worried about the poison affecting my birds that I feed and getting into the bay. I am alos worried about the weed killer and fertilizer, etc. getting into the bay. Should I be?

Get rid of the leaves..and sow at the first of March....JMO

Check your ph first, and lime if necessary.........6.5..is good.
 

Cowgirl

Well-Known Member
Sounds like I should plan for this fall, and just let the leaves lay? They get thick pretty fast. I have these oak trees that seem to grow dead leaves all winter. The back yard is pretty covered right now and they look like they are still holding like 50% of their leaves.


So here is my next concern. I have lots and lots of moles also. Now I know to get rid of moles you need to get rid of the grubs and to get rid of the grubs you need to poison. I live pretty close to the water, as does most anyone in SMC I guess. I'm worried about the poison affecting my birds that I feed and getting into the bay. I am alos worried about the weed killer and fertilizer, etc. getting into the bay. Should I be?

You don't want to plant too late in the fall. Best time for seeding is August 15th-September 15th. Just water. And can you get a leaf blower?

Also, try Milky Spore for the grubs. It's a natural product. A little pricey, but worth it.
 
Sounds like I should plan for this fall, and just let the leaves lay? They get thick pretty fast. I have these oak trees that seem to grow dead leaves all winter. The back yard is pretty covered right now and they look like they are still holding like 50% of their leaves.


So here is my next concern. I have lots and lots of moles also. Now I know to get rid of moles you need to get rid of the grubs and to get rid of the grubs you need to poison. I live pretty close to the water, as does most anyone in SMC I guess. I'm worried about the poison affecting my birds that I feed and getting into the bay. I am alos worried about the weed killer and fertilizer, etc. getting into the bay. Should I be?
Yes. That being said, use yard products with care, and you can minimize the runoff. Follow the directions on the products and you should be ok.
 
You don't want to plant too late in the fall. Best time for seeding is August 15th-September 15th. Just water. And can you get a leaf blower?

Also, try Milky Spore for the grubs. It's a natural product. A little pricey, but worth it.
Milky spore is supposed to be great. Kills the jap beetle grubs too.
 

jetmonkey

New Member
You don't want to plant too late in the fall. Best time for seeding is August 15th-September 15th. Just water. And can you get a leaf blower?

Also, try Milky Spore for the grubs. It's a natural product. A little pricey, but worth it.

I have a leaf blower but my yard is windy all the time, it swirls the leaves around more than moving them off the property; I usually have to rake them close to where I want them to be then blow them where there is a little wind break.

NEXT QUESTION:

My back yard could stand a good grading, it's pretty jacked up; will lawn services do this or do I need to contact a landscaper like Wentworths?
 
T

toppick08

Guest
I have a leaf blower but my yard is windy all the time, it swirls the leaves around more than moving them off the property; I usually have to rake them close to where I want them to be then blow them where there is a little wind break.

NEXT QUESTION:

My back yard could stand a good grading, it's pretty jacked up; will lawn services do this or do I need to contact a landscaper like Wentworths?

You need a Bobcat.......and contact Wentworths
 
C

CalvertNewbie

Guest
I have a leaf blower but my yard is windy all the time, it swirls the leaves around more than moving them off the property; I usually have to rake them close to where I want them to be then blow them where there is a little wind break.

NEXT QUESTION:

My back yard could stand a good grading, it's pretty jacked up; will lawn services do this or do I need to contact a landscaper like Wentworths?

Our backyard was horrible when we moved here. We had to do quite a bit of grading and had the dirt delivered here by a local landscaping company. Then we had a long day with the bobcat we rented and got the yard graded exactly the way we wanted it.

We rented the bobcat from Jim's Air Tools in PF, which cost less than renting from Home Depot and was a lot closer to us. We've also rented other equipment from them and never had an issue there. I see you're down in SMC so I'm not sure what companies are close to you. Good luck!
 

itsbob

I bowl overhand
You don't want to plant too late in the fall. Best time for seeding is August 15th-September 15th. Just water. And can you get a leaf blower?

.

Dunno about Aug - Sep those sound like New England seeding dates... here in SoMD I think you'd be good seeding in Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, and even February.. and if there's snow on the ground, just throw it on the snow and it'll settle when it melts that afternoon.
 

Cowgirl

Well-Known Member
Dunno about Aug - Sep those sound like New England seeding dates... here in SoMD I think you'd be good seeding in Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, and even February.. and if there's snow on the ground, just throw it on the snow and it'll settle when it melts that afternoon.

Nope, those are the dates for ideal pasture seeding. Lawns are pretty much the same. The whole idea is to let the grass get established before the cold sets in. The grass will take off much quicker come spring and will be much better off than later seeded lawns. You can seed early in the spring (March), but the late summer planting is always better.
 

Cowgirl

Well-Known Member
Here's a great site from the University of MD with information about establishing and maintaining fine leaf fescues.

Establishment: For best results, seed fescues between late August and late September. Do not seed after 15 October. Spring seeding (i.e., March 15 to May 15) is likely to produce an inferior turf; whereas, summer seeding should be avoided altogether.

If you scroll down about halfway, there's more information about establishment.
 
T

toppick08

Guest
Do Not Use K-31 in the tri-county area, unless you LOVE to water..........it just can't stand up to our summers.

Bermuda grass is better.

:coffee:
 
Top