Taking back the yard...where do I start?

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ZeroHero44 Sunnyvale, CA May 20, 2012

So we had nice sod YEARS ago, but 4 of us grandchildren, an above ground pool, 2 dogs, a family of moles/gophers/ tunneling rodents of some kind, a broken sprinkler system and years of neglect later, there is nothing left of it. Now, something needs to change. I am tired of our embarrassment of a yard. It is covered in foxtails and misc weeds. We want to rototil and sod it. I was wondering if we need to remove the weeds completely, spray them with weed killer or if we can just rototil them in and the lack of sun from the sod will kill them. We do have 6 chickens so we would need something animal friendly. I have heard roundup is ok for them but pretty expensive. I have a tight budget so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also, if anyone has a suggestion of grass that would do well in full sun, that would be great too. I'll try and post a pic of the yard.

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ZeroHero44 Sunnyvale, CA May 20, 2012

Here's a photo. Can't get it to rotate, sorry.

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livnthedance Lincoln, ME May 21, 2012

I once had a yard that looked like that! If I were you I would till it under and put grass seed down. (not sure what kind) When i did mine I diddn't have access to a tiller, but I put seed any way, I was told later it would have grown better if I had tilled it, because it is easier for the grass to take root if it isn't all hard packed dirt. I don't know if that is true, just what I was told. In two years I had a nice lawn.
hope that is helpful, good luck!

Ruth

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yardener Greenfield, OH(Zone 6a) May 22, 2012

Add a little lime (its not too expensive) and till it a minimuym of 2". You don't have to go real deep. Rake the area smooth
Seed the area. I like to seed a little heavier than recommended. Put a thin layer of straw to help retain moisture.
Finally, water, water water. You want the seed to stay moist but not water logged. DO NOT let the seed dry.
Once you get about 1" of growth, apply a fertilizer thats for newly seeded beds.
Continue to keep the grass moist till the first cutting. You can back off with the watering to an average of 1" of rainfall per week.
Don'y worry about the weeds. You can deal with them later, pus a heavy stand of grass is the best weed control.
Good luck

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) May 22, 2012

I'd check the soil pH before adding lime--soil out here tends to be alkaline anyway and making it more alkaline by adding lime isn't necessarily the best thing.

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ZeroHero44 Sunnyvale, CA May 22, 2012

Thanks for the replies!

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