A Patch of Green

We have gone back and forth on whether to put on what to put down for a patch of green in front of our home. We discussed the no-mow alternative of Dwarf Mondo Grass; the traditional grass lawn; and one night at the Donkey, fueled by tequila, we tossed around the pros and cons of artificial turf (or indoor-outdoor carpet as we were referring to it that evening).

 

 

The Lazy Donkey in Carrollton. No swag involved, just admiring their grass...

 

About the Lazy Donkey; everyone from toddlers held up on his back by their mothers to margarita drinking mid-lifers jumping on his back as they leave the establishment, the donkey and his artificial turf see a lot of action. The owners tried to grow grass out front, it would look great for a few weeks but nothing they tried could stand up to the heavy traffic. Then they put in artificial turf and it looks great. Really great. People keep squatting down to touch the turf to see if it is real. But we decided we just aren’t that type of gardener.

Mister didn’t love the idea of Dwarf Mondo grass but said that if I loved it we would plant it. I don’t love it as much as I love the idea of not mowing, but he pointed out to me that I would have to pull weeds and rake. On thinking it over I decided I might as well mow.

So that brings us to our current plan for a patch of green. No surprise, no wow factor, just regular old grass.

Found this pic on the web

I reached out to our local Master Gardener’s organization for advice on what grass to grow. They gave me a bit of a quiz about the sun exposure and they tested the soil. Our future patch of green gets 4 hours of direct sun a day (more in winter) and is enclosed by pine trees on the north, walkway on the east, house on the south, and trees/neighbor’s house on the west. Our soil tested acidic at 5.4pH.

The Master Gardener recommended a tall fescue blend for our patch of green. Fescue prefers soil to be 5.5 to 6.5pH, will grow with our amount of sun, and is (I am told) easy to seed.

Instructions for establishment:

Incorporate 15 pounds of 10-10-10 per 1000 square feet into the top 4-6 inches of soil prior to seeding. In November and February, apply 3 pounds of 34-0-0 per 1000 square feet. Follow this program for the first year, and then use the maintenance recommendations.

Instructions for maintenance:

Apply 8 pounds of 10-10-10 per 1000 square feet in September. In November and February apply 9 pounds of 16-4-8 per 1000 square feet. In May, apply 1.5 pounds of 34-0-0 per 1000 square feet.

You remember that cranky old lady from your childhood, the one that watched from her front window and stomped out the front door if you got too close to her lawn? Yea, that will be me soon...

 

Picture from webiste "I Can Has Cheezburger?"