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PostPosted: Wed Apr 07, 2004 9:00 pm 
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We are planning on laying sod in the next few weeks, in our front yard where we live near Dripping Springs (southwest of Austin). The area is approximately 2700 square feet, full sun. The area will get kid and dog traffic.

There is mostly rock and clay soil with patchy Bermuda and weeds.

We graded the area with a Bobcat and removed the larger stones. We realize that we will need to add some soil, and want to do it correctly! In saying correctly, we want to give our lawn the best chance to be healthy and lush and want to effectively hold moisture to reduce watering needs.

For a base for our sod, we've been told to put everything down from sandy loam to Dillo Dirt to a mixture of nonshrinking compost/decomposed granite to a mixture to compost/composted rice hulls/granite sand/gypsum. We know sandy loam would be a mistake, but don't want to be foolish with our money and for every "/" the cost increases! Any thoughts?

Also, if Bermuda is too invasive for our taste, is St. Augustine the best for our project? We were planning on zoysia until we read the other posts.

Thanks....any advice would be appreciated as this is our first lawn!


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PostPosted: Thu Apr 08, 2004 9:48 am 
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You don't necessarily need to add anything but all the things you mentioned would be good including the sandy loam. You seem to understand that Dillo Dirt would evaporate leaving you at the same level you are at now. This brings up a question: you have already graded the land. If you add dirt, will this change the grade so that your house is now in jeopardy? The sill of your house must be 4 inches above grade according to FHA rules. So if you want to bring in 4 inches of soil, your house must now be at least 8 inches above grade. Otherwise you have to work with what you have or haul dirt away first. I would work with what you have unless you specifically planned ahead to bring in more dirt and graded appropriately.

If/when you bring in more dirt, you will have to grade again. You might be able to drag it around yourselves but a small tractor with a box blade will do it very quickly and be out of there leaving it perfect.

Again, anything you put down, or don't put down, will be okay.

Lay the sod and put a thin layer (1 cubic yard per 1,000 square feet) of compost down. This is very thin but don't over do it. Since you're talking about sod I assume you have been looking at Tiff types of bermuda. Those are good and not invasive like common is. St Aug is good too. No matter what you get you'll need a weed eater to handle the edging. Be sure you roll the sod down to get good contact with the bottom of the sod and the soil. Another tip is to apply corn meal at 10 pounds per 1,000 square feet right away to forestall any fungus problems you might get with new sod. Keep the sod moist for a week and then start to back off on the watering. After that, here are some general guidelines I've collected for turf management.

1. Water deeply and infrequently. Deeply means at least an hour in every zone, all at once. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds.

2. Mow at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. Bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses are the most dense when mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. Dense grass shades out weeds and uses less water when tall. Dense grass feeds the deep roots you're developing in 1 above.

3. Fertilize regularly. I fertilize 4 times per year using organic fertilizer. Which fertilizer you use is much less important than numbers 1 and 2 above.

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PostPosted: Thu Apr 08, 2004 12:08 pm 
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Thank you for the information.

Grade is not an issue. The area is sloped, beginning at about 6 inches below the foundation and sloping to 18 inches below over a space of 65 feet or so, and it is sloped away from the house. There is also a continuous patio between the turf and house. We were planning in bringing in dirt to decrease the slope slightly, so there will be little on the 5" deep end and much on the 18" deep end.

Is there an issue of negative anaerobic activity if the brought-in dirt is too deep on the 18" side?

In reading your post, it appeared that NO dirt would be an option? Would the sod be "happy" in our natural, rocky terrain? Will the better soil achieve a better result or does it have little impact?

Regarding sod types, will St. Augustine like the full sun?

Many thanks on your input.


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 11, 2004 11:55 pm 
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What is your soil like now? You said it was rocky. I'm picturing something like clay with some rocks in it. Are you saying it's pure rocks? If you have soil between the rocks, then yes, I'm saying you don't necessarily need to add anything.

I see no issues with deep soil. I've seen organic material 15 feet deep on top of sand in the Carolinas.

St Augustine loves full sun. It happens to tolerate shade better than other grasses, but it loves full sun.

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PostPosted: Sun Apr 18, 2004 12:54 am 
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Please don't discount Zoysia especially if you are planning on sodding your yard. I don't know what you have read, but zoysia is a wonderfull grass for the right situation. You say you have full sun so Emerald or El Toro might be good choices. I used Empire which is more shade tolerant but has a bit courser blade texture. I love it and think it is better than Bermuda or St Augustine hands down, although admittedly more expensive. It also doesn't require perfect soil, although I would ammend my soil as much as my checkbook would allow for best results no matter what you choose. See my post reply under 'Zoysia???'.

Jim
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 Post subject: Dillo Dirt Evaporates?
PostPosted: Sun Apr 18, 2004 11:12 pm 
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:shock: WHOA! :shock:
Dillo dirt will evaporate? I thought (and everything I have seen) tells me that Dillo dirt is a dry compost product, produced by the Austin waste water treatment composting facility, so how can it evaporate? Forgive me for butting in on your string, which is a good one, but I was so surprised by that statement that I had to interject. Did I miss something or misunderstand? Please, Dave, clarify this one.

Kathe


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PostPosted: Mon Apr 19, 2004 9:55 am 
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In my experience, Dave's right, although I'm sure he meant to use another word besides evaporate. Compost I've used in building up low areas breaks down over time, leaving you pretty much nothing in terms of fill.

~Dave


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