I've killed my lawn - what's next?

[W.D.]

I just killed off all the weeds (and what little grass there was) in the front lawn of my Atlanta home by spraying it with Roundup on Sunday and am ready for the next steps. Here's my plan of attack:

1. Till the lawn on Friday afternoon (am I better off renting a slicer seeder and skipping the tilling? If I till, how deep should I go?)
2. Apply seed and cover (straw?) on Saturday
3. Keep moist for several weeks until it starts to grow

Am I missing anything? Should I put topsoil or fertilizer down first? I'm obviously a newbie so any time/labor saving hints would be appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

[Jim Sullivan]

I thought the next thing to do after applying the roundup was to wait 2 weeks for it to wear off. If you plant too soon, the roundup will kill the seedlings.

[Chet Hayes]

You can seed 7 days after applying Roundup. It usually takes at least that long for the grass to die anyway.

If the soil is good and you're not planning on mixing in more humus, etc, then I would not till it. If you do, you're going to wind up with clumps of dead grass, it will be uneven and a lot more work to level. I'd just mow it short when it's dead, rake up any excess clippings, fill in any low spots with top soil, then use a slice seeder. The dead grass will also act as mulch to help keep it damp, so I'd skip the straw, which usually has weeds in it.

You should also put down starter fertilizer. Have the soil tested and if necessary lime with the appropriate amount. Keep it constantly moist, which probably means watering lightly at least twice a day.

[benzette]

you need to keep the soil moist for several MONTHS till the grass plants can get some good root growth

[benzette]

I would thatch the old dead grass out which will take the dead grass out and even up the soil surface if you have a thatch blade for your lawn mower. Worms make mounds in the soil and make the soil surface uneven. Thatching or scraping the soil surface will let you see if there are high/low spots so you can even up the soil surface better.

Tilling will leave clumps like Jim said and. Tilling will create alot of work to get the soil surface flat again across the whole yard. I had to use an 10 foot 2x4 with screws in it. The screws helped comb the clumps out. Nails will work also.

New grass seed doesn't need anything to grow but to be kept damp. New grass clppings and manure might have too much nitrogen for the seed and fry it. Nurseries etc sell fertilizer for new lawns.

Hay and or compost mixes to cover the seed will help keep the birds from eating any seed. Seed cover will help keep the seed moist longer.

W.D. wrote:

[Anonymous]

Just one point I think needs correction. You definitely don't want to use hay for ground cover. Wheat straw is what you want. Hay has seeds in it which will germinate right along with what ever seed you throw out.

If you've got the dough, you might want to get a landscaper that has the equipment to do hydroseeding to do your lawn. These guys have equipment that sprays a mixture of seed, starter fert, and celluose (which is dyed green), and water. I'd do the ground prep as described by the others. The celluose holds in the moisture and keeps the seed damp without having to worry about introducing weed seeds into the lawn. Around here this is not too expensive, much less than sod but more than do it yourself. The system works well. With proper watering I've see lawns that look like they were started from sod in about 6 months.

Till> I would thatch the old dead grass out which will take the dead grass out

[W.D.]

Thanks, Chet. Your plan sounds reasonable, and tilling/leveling appears to be much more work than I had bargained for, and perhaps not necessary. I will plan on seeding "as is" with a slice seeder and some fertilizer, adding some straw/cover where needed, and see what happens. If it doesn't take I can always hire a professional in the spring to fix it, and I will have not invested an undue amount of money, time or labor.

[Sterling]

I think you have already gotten a lot of good advice. But - since I am in Atlanta also, and I have a real struggle with my backyard grass every year - I will add that if you seed and you get a ton of leaves coming down, you will have problems with the new baby grass. You can't rake, you can't use a blower and if the leaves cover the new grass, it will die back.

I have learned all it takes for the leaves to really start fall> I just killed off all the weeds (and what little grass there was) in the

[benzette]

you definantly dont want to put down seed and try to grow some new grass while the weather is cold. the leafs are ok to help keep the seed moist but is not good for "the growing grass" plants.

once you put down seed, you can't walk on it, blow it, rake it, etc etc etc for a looooong time. sooooo, if you are "reseding" you have to mow right before you reseed...

Sterl> I think you have already gotten a lot of good advice. But - since I am

[Steveo]

Your spelling and top posting sucks.