Best way to get this new yard to come in

[blb078]

I just finished building my house at the end of spring/beginning of summer. Just before we moved in I had the back yard done with hydro seeding(that green spray stuff), it was done commercially by a company that does it around my area, not a HD /Lowes DIY job. About a week or so after the seeding on the back was done we had about 8 straight days of non stop hard rain, those of you in the midwest know what I'm referring to and pretty much washed and rutted everything out. And what you see in the first pic is what is left over from the hydro seeding after the rain did it's thing and me cleaning up what I could with my tractor. I did some fixing up with the bucket and ratchet rake. Pretty much nothing came in and the spots that did it where not thick at all due to all the rain. When the rain finally stopped after a few weeks of off/on every couple days it was pretty much summer here and I've never had good luck getting grass to grow in our summers due to the heat, right now it's 101* out and it's been near this hot for a couple weeks and probably will be for a couple more so Sept is my last shot before winter.

The ground is clay, grass will grow in it but I may put down some top soil in certain areas, you can see some of the loads of soil in the pics and I'll probably bring in 3 or so more loads. I've gotten most of the sticks, rocks, ect out just using the ratchet rake and even able to clean up some of the weed areas with it, just takes a few passes which is no biggie. One of the issues is that I don't really have any implements. I have my bucket and a ratchet rake and that's pretty much what I've been using to keep the ruts out from rain run off and limit the weeds growing. Although some areas the weeds have taken over as you can see around the driveway and walkway. I thought about renting a tiller or plow but no places around me seem to rent them. So then I looked on craigslist and not many tillers on there and the few I've seen are either 4' or 5'. I'd need a 6'. So would buying a tiller and breaking up this ground be worth it? I guess I can probably use the tiller in the future for a small garden. The rural king king kutter brand is about $2k which I guess I can stomach because it was $2600 for the hydro seeding and that didn't turn out that well.

So my thinking is buy a tiller(if I have to), and either a rotary cutter and finish mower or a flail mower(leaning towards a flail since it can do the job of both and I don't have very thick stuff that needs to be cut). Use the flail to get some of the taller weeds down(you can't see it all in the pics) then the tiller to break it all up and get ready for seeing and then my bucket to smooth it out. Anyone have any other suggestions that might be cost efficient and get the job done? I'm trying to avoid buying the tiller if I have to but I don't think it's gonna work out without something like that. So any and all suggestions are welcomed because I've have about 6 weeks before I need to get this started. And like I mentioned renting isn't an option and craigslist for used items seems to be very limited. Thanks

back yard after cleaning up from rain


front yard


another front yard view


this is was the back yard looked like right after the hydro seeding, unfortunately the rain wasted this.

 

[jeff9366]

Consider a one or two gallon hand sprayer and one container each of Roundup/Glycophosphate and 2, 4-D herbicide for initial weed control. You do not have to use your tractor for everything.

In Maryland, I used ag Gypsum to break up blue clay. You should check with an ag expert or turf specialist before trying same in Missouri, where chemical composition of clay may be different.

I use Argentine Bahia for turf in Florida. Nominally, Argentine Bahia is a vigorous, DEEP ROOTED pasture grass, but many use it for turf grass in Florida. Argentine Bahia might be good for you but check with a turf specialist in your area. Argentina Bahia takes 21-30 days to germinate. In Florida, Lowe's and Home Depot both sell Pennington brand Argentine Bahia in 5 pound and 10 pound tubs.

Pensacola Bahia is a rough pasture grass, unsuited for lawns.

 

[blb078]

Consider a one or two gallon hand sprayer and one bottle each of Roundup and 2, 4-D herbicide for initial weed control. You do not have to use your tractor for everything.

I thought about that but I've been told if you are trying to get grass to grow then it's best not to use that, only if you have an established lawn.

 

[Streetcar]

Let the weeds grow until September, they help with erosion.
Use roundup in fall , smooth ruts and broadcast seed. How big of area are you planting?

 

[blb078]

Let the weeds grow until September, they help with erosion.
Use roundup in fall , smooth ruts and broadcast seed. How big of area are you planting?

It's about an acre of what you see in the pics and then there is about 1/2 an acre of thick stuff that I'll use the flail mower for and either just put down some grass or a small food plot for deer. So 1.5 total.

 

[jeff9366]

I thought about that but I've been told if you are trying to get grass to grow then it's best not to use that, only if you have an established lawn.

Spot application with a hand sprayer should be fine. Roundup/Glycophosphate is gone in ten days.

 

[s219]

I don't think it matters what you do now, as nothing will really grow. Even a warm season grass is past it's ideal germination time and would be a challenge to get started now from seed. Sprigs or sod would be the only thing I'd try now, and of course only a warm season grass. If starting from seed, or wanting a cool season grass, you'll need to wait a couple months to get into a more ideal temperature range.

That gives you a lot of time for weed control (if needed) and soil prep. But plan on doing your finish grading right before you put the grass down. Do it too early and rains will just ruin your work.

If you have clay soil, I think you'll find a tiller is going to be a tough proposition over an entire yard, and then, unless you are able to blend in some organics and/or topsoil, the clay will just re-compact itself after you grade. Best solution I've found for clay soil is a healthy layer of topsoil on top (4" minimum) and then choose a grass that's compatible with the clay base in terms of root behavior. Some grasses will root down into the clay just fine, while others will not. If they can't they won't get moisture beyond the depth of the topsoil, and if it's not deep enough they won't make it through hot spells.

My last house I had the perfect fescue lawn, but boy was it a challenge. My current house I do not control weeds and mow whatever grows whatever time of year. Doesn't look as nice, but looks good enough and I am a lot happier! I did have a section near our house where fescue had been doing fine until this recent spell of 3+ weeks of heat and no rain, and that is about all burnt up now. Will need to reseed that in the fall.

By the way, there is an implement called a soil pulverizer that runs off the PTO and is like a rotating drum with knobs that does a good job loosening clay soil and smoothing things out. It would be far better than a tiller for putting in a lawn. After you control weeds, you could run a pulverizer over the yard to break up the dead weeds and blend everything out. Follow that up with some top soil, then more pulverizing to mix that in, and you'll have a good top layer to support seeding. Consider running an aerator over the yard before seeding, which will put some nice deep holes in the soil for the seed to start in.

 

[ktm250rider]

Get a soil test or your wasting money on seed.

 

[jenkinsph]

From what I see in the pictures I would loosen the ground enough to get enough cover for new seed and plant in end of August or first of September or maybe end of September at the latest.

What other implements do you have? A land plane grader scraper, spiked tooth harrow or landscape rake and a water roller should do the trick for you. I like to add a starter fertilizer for new lawns when putting out the seed. Planting in September usually helps because weeds are less likely to come back this late in the year.

Here are some pictures of a lawn I had to plant in late June (27th) which is the worst time to plant in my local. Plenty of hot sun made for less than ideal conditions but we have to have a nice lawn by middle of September for a customer's party event. This lawn has about 9500 ft of drip irrigation I installed about 4 inches below the surface prior to planting. We have had to hand water with a hose until there are enough grass roots to switch over to the drip system. It has been about 25 days since planting in the picture. In another month it should look great long before the customers event.

 

[TheMan419]

For an 1.5 acre get a good wheeled spreader that you push, not one pulled by your tractor.

Plant back restriction for Roundup is immediate for grass. Meaning you could spray and plant immediately. That said spray and give it 10 days to kill the weeds. Then plant.

I would let the weeds grow for erosion control. Kill them in the fall then plant. Call your local ag extension to find out the optimum time to plant and the type of grass to plant.

Hit with some fertilizer when you plant too that will help the growth.

Here in my part of Indiana mid Aug to mid Sept is the best time to plant a lawn in the fall. Your time frame is likely a bit later, but find that out.