I just bought a house that has some fixable lawn/grass problems that I'd like to fix myself instead of paying $2k to put down new sod.

Problem 1: My back yard is pretty much weeds with a little patch of st augustine. I threw out a bunch of weed and feed about a month ago and it did an ok job of killing most of the weeds, but there is still some left. Would it be ok to throw out turf builder to try to promote the st augustine grass growth or am I just screwed? Should I try more weed and feed?

Problem 2: The hurricane followed by a long drought here in Houston a couple years ago caused the roots from my oak tree in the front yard to come up and there is no grass. Should turf builder help grow grass in these root areas? Apparently the guy before me tried to get it to grow but didn't have much luck.

Front yard:


I'll try to get a couple pictures or back yard tomorrow in the sun light.

I had a landscaper we've used before come out today and quoted $4k (which I can't afford) to do everything I wanted, but around $2k to do new sod. If I can just get my grass to grow I can do everything else myself.

[This message has been edited by E (edited 3/20/2014 9:18p).]

How much light is getting to the grass? If it's surrounded by trees as big as the one in your picture you may need to thin things out or at least make sure to go with a type of grass that handles shade well.

like fife said:
1. you need to start with the shade issue. St. Augustine needs at least 4hrs of sunlight to thrive. If the trees have not been trimmed in a while then get a estimate from a insured arborist, preferably an Ag. Another thing I normally do is observe the suns path periodically thru the day and see if it is even possible to get sun in there. Your neighbors trees or other structure might block the sun.
2. Do you have a irrigation system? If not I would highly recommend/consider one.
3. Once the trees are cleaned up and you think you have about 4hrs of sunlight then have a landscaper install some topsoil to grade out the yard and then install sod.

re: weed & feed or turf builder, turf builder is not going to make grass magically appear where there is mud. Turfbuilder is just a weed & feed fert. Most of those weeds will die out with repeated mowings & warmer weather. I would be more concerned with getting light in there, installing some topsoil, and then sodding

As for the shade, the tree does cover a lot of the yard, which I will get it trimmed later this spring, it's the only thing I don't want to do myself. The crate myrdles(sp?) lining my neighbors driveway and mine don't help either. Neither does my little carport haha.

Anyone have experience with grass seeds advertising for dense shade? I was thinking of buying some soil to cover the roots and putting these seeds down.

For the back yard I'm gonna rent a tiller to level out the back yard and weed, then throw some new seed out.

Forgot, I don't have an irrigation system. The water that comes off my roof and onto my front plant bed flows to where that dead grass and roots are showing.

where you located?

you need to address the issue of water coming off the roof and the soil erosion. I know a lot of people don't like gutters especially if you have trees but you need to find a way to channel that water away from the house and try to get it to the street.

If you want to try seed under the trees you can go with fescue but if it gets afternoon sun in the summer it will die out. I wouldn't trust the stuff in the big box stores that advertise that it will grow anywhere especially in full shade. You can also try the fescue in back especially if it gets a lot of shade. Obviously Bermuda seed will not take if it is in shade, needs 8hr sun. might as well say this now... there is no St. Augustine seed, its propagated asexually

Good luck!

I'm in Houston. I was thinking of putting in river rock where the water runs off but I don't think that will change the direction of the water runoff away from the dirt.

If the soil is compacted and hard, you may want to consider aeration before you top dress with compost or soil. You can rent them from home depot.

Dang, I was hoping there was seed for st Augustine...

Boy I tell ya what now that looks like a mighty fine spot to xeriscape.

/Hank Hill voice

Here is what I've done so far:



I added river rock where the bed meets the front porch slab (also where the roofs join up and most rain pours off of). I dug out the high spots and tested the flow and it no longer pools up by the house.

[This message has been edited by E (edited 3/31/2014 10:26a).]

I was going to ask how you felt about bushes along your porch. Hardy bushes in planting beds with rocks are great for rain. My mom used to have this problem until she put in some boxwoods put rocks around them. It stopped the soil erosion and gave her a little more privacy on her porch.

I kinda like the little green ones next to the porch and rocks, but couldn't care less about the bigger ones under the windows. My mom pulled out some other plants I hated around the smaller ones and out in front. We planted some small plants in that small bed in front of the porch, we'll see how they grow.