That fancy grass seed.

Ratmagiclady · 03-30-2010, 10:33 AM

No, not *that* kind of grass seed. Lawns.

I've been noticing like a new generation of the self-feeding grass seed (from a major brand, this time) on TV commercials lately: I was wondering if anyone's tried anything like it. It's kind of out of season, but I'm always looking at this long-neglected lawn and soil and thinking that stuff's pretty tempting for some tricky-looking bare spots, especially if the birds actually won't eat it all up. Just maybe I'll be able to get it started before it all washes away.

Parallax · 03-30-2010, 11:07 AM

I would think that the difference in that and buying the seed, feed and fertilizer separately might be like the difference in buying a cake and buying ingredients and baking it. The components individually would be probably be cheaper and you can tailor them to your specific conditions.

Nowhere Matt · 03-30-2010, 12:48 PM

Someone suggested to me that newly laid grass seed will deepen it's roots greater in early fall and therefore be more successful in growing and returning in spring.
I am an unsuccessful grass farmer myself and have tried a few things during both ends of the warm season with mixed results. You'll remember the two active dogs of which I post pictures.
The crazy miracle grow anywhere grass looks simple enough but will the grass grow roots deep enough and be healthy enough to thicken and prosper? That's the question.

Good luck.

little laker · 03-30-2010, 04:12 PM

I don't know why, however when I did lawn maintenance I was been told that the main thing about planting grass in the fall is you want it to grow enough to cut at least once.

Ratmagiclady · 03-30-2010, 05:05 PM

Agreed, both of you guys, (Well, that was to Matt and Parallax, I got distracted mid-post a while ago.

) both on money, season, and the rest.

(The stuff may just cost too much to get, anyway: if I owned this house, I think I'd have the whole mess up, do a bit of landscaping, and sod over the rest: I'm just a) trying to do something nice for the landlord, and b) Really not liking to see what's left of the soil wash away. )

My suspicion here is that it's just possible that if this stuff can get a foothold in a few areas the drought, some overzealous mowing, (even though nothing was growing! Gah! Machines!

) ...then lots of rainy season, seem to just keep washing out.

(Though I seem to have met with some limited success in getting *some* nutrients to stay: a little decomposition going on in there, anyway, and some bits of green waking up with the spring, yay! Not,, however, enough to hold well here, I think. It'd seem )

I was poking at it this past weekend, you see, and when the commercial came on, thought it might just take, since each seed's kind of self-supporting for a while. The idea that birds and I-thought-they-said bugs might not eat it might be really helpful, too: as long as that's not due to anything scary and wrong chemicals-wise. Lots of things just get eaten around here, let me tell you.

(Especially while lots of birds seem to have marked me as a Denny's for their migrations. I've been like, "Here, I'll just give you the bag."

But, the bugs, well, they seem to come out of nowhere, if they find anything tasty around here. )

Anyway, that's why the interest in this stuff in particular. Especially with the limited tools we have here, being renters and all, it seemed like it may just be worth a try.

Anyway, not expecting miracles, here. Thought I might grab a bit at the home center if I see it.

mel · 03-31-2010, 07:27 AM

When we lived in the south we always had Centipede grass. And while it was rather slow at first to get a foothold, once it got going it did really well at filling in the holes and such. And it's hard to kill.

reeftool · 03-31-2010, 07:57 AM

I have lawn problems too. The back yard is ok but the front has some awful bare spots and my "soil" is mostly sand. Part of the problem is I'm halfway down a hill and every time a heavy rain comes along, lots of sand and gravel wash down with it and bury the grass. Also, there is the sand and salt that the town spreads on the roads and it is rough on the lawn also. My solution has been to rake in some peat moss and spread that dirt cheap annual ryegrass seed around. It comes up fast and stays green all summer. I have to do it every year but that happens anyhow. We have a short season here, first frost by mid september most years. I don't know how that grass will be in a warmer climate with a longer season.

Ratmagiclady · 03-31-2010, 09:08 AM

Originally posted by mel

When we lived in the south we always had Centipede grass. And while it was rather slow at first to get a foothold, once it got going it did really well at filling in the holes and such. And it's hard to kill.

Hrm, well, that's interesting, Centipede grass. (See, I'm actually more familiar with issues like Reeftool is reporting: down here, I'm not even sure how things are *supposed* to be, even if it weren't a matter of drought followed by severe erosion from more-than-normal rains and all neglected a long while. .

)

Anyway, a foothold is exactly what I'm trying to provide, here, for starters. Maybe that kind of grass could follow. (It occurs to me that it might very likely be more suited to conditions here than whatever kind comes in the 'pre assembled' stuff. Plain old seed isn't that expensive.

It's such a disaster, (at least if you like your lawn to be a monoculture:

) they'd have to turn it all under at least, to do it right, anyway, I think.

If we owned this place, (not a terribly likely purchase, for many reasons) I pretty much know what I'd do, given materials and some contracting help: it'd be pretty involved, I think.

mel · 03-31-2010, 09:35 AM

Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak

gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud).

Ratmagiclady · 03-31-2010, 09:43 AM

Originally posted by mel

Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak

gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud).

Heeheehee. Oh, no, I wouldn't wonder. I've actually done my share of transplanting grass out of one place it's not intended to be, to where something's gone bare, etc.

Can't say I ever thought to *buy* them.

Actually, if they *have* these plugs, that may be a much better and more direct solution than this fancy seed stuff. My idea was if I put some of this stuff in and on this tough soil, some might get a foothold before seed/food/stuff wash away in whatever combination, this can skip some of that worry entirely if they can take hold.

BPT · 03-31-2010, 10:35 AM

Originally posted by mel

Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak

gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud).

Has he tried green paint yet?

Nesster · 03-31-2010, 12:47 PM

Originally posted by mel

So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud).

I got a vivid image of certain men, with the hair plugs, who obviously hope hair works like Centipede grass...

Ratmagiclady · 03-31-2010, 01:00 PM

Originally posted by Nesster

I got a vivid image of certain men, with the hair plugs, who obviously hope hair works like Centipede grass...

Heheh. They could be like, "I'm not just a member of the Horticultural Society, I'm also a client."

03-30-2010, 10:33 AM	#1
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563	That fancy grass seed. No, not that kind of grass seed. Lawns. I've been noticing like a new generation of the self-feeding grass seed (from a major brand, this time) on TV commercials lately: I was wondering if anyone's tried anything like it. It's kind of out of season, but I'm always looking at this long-neglected lawn and soil and thinking that stuff's pretty tempting for some tricky-looking bare spots, especially if the birds actually won't eat it all up. Just maybe I'll be able to get it started before it all washes away.

03-31-2010, 09:43 AM	#10
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by mel Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud). Heeheehee. Oh, no, I wouldn't wonder. I've actually done my share of transplanting grass out of one place it's not intended to be, to where something's gone bare, etc. Can't say I ever thought to buy them. Actually, if they have these plugs, that may be a much better and more direct solution than this fancy seed stuff. My idea was if I put some of this stuff in and on this tough soil, some might get a foothold before seed/food/stuff wash away in whatever combination, this can skip some of that worry entirely if they can take hold. Last edited by Ratmagiclady; 03-31-2010 at 09:54 AM.

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03-30-2010, 11:07 AM	#2
Parallax Senior Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: South Dakota Photos: Gallery Posts: 19,332	I would think that the difference in that and buying the seed, feed and fertilizer separately might be like the difference in buying a cake and buying ingredients and baking it. The components individually would be probably be cheaper and you can tailor them to your specific conditions.

03-30-2010, 12:48 PM	#3
Nowhere Matt Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Nowhere Land Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,362	Someone suggested to me that newly laid grass seed will deepen it's roots greater in early fall and therefore be more successful in growing and returning in spring. I am an unsuccessful grass farmer myself and have tried a few things during both ends of the warm season with mixed results. You'll remember the two active dogs of which I post pictures. The crazy miracle grow anywhere grass looks simple enough but will the grass grow roots deep enough and be healthy enough to thicken and prosper? That's the question. Good luck.

03-30-2010, 04:12 PM	#4
little laker Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,697	I don't know why, however when I did lawn maintenance I was been told that the main thing about planting grass in the fall is you want it to grow enough to cut at least once.

03-30-2010, 05:05 PM	#5
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Agreed, both of you guys, (Well, that was to Matt and Parallax, I got distracted mid-post a while ago. ) both on money, season, and the rest. (The stuff may just cost too much to get, anyway: if I owned this house, I think I'd have the whole mess up, do a bit of landscaping, and sod over the rest: I'm just a) trying to do something nice for the landlord, and b) Really not liking to see what's left of the soil wash away. ) My suspicion here is that it's just possible that if this stuff can get a foothold in a few areas the drought, some overzealous mowing, (even though nothing was growing! Gah! Machines! ) ...then lots of rainy season, seem to just keep washing out. (Though I seem to have met with some limited success in getting some nutrients to stay: a little decomposition going on in there, anyway, and some bits of green waking up with the spring, yay! Not,, however, enough to hold well here, I think. It'd seem ) I was poking at it this past weekend, you see, and when the commercial came on, thought it might just take, since each seed's kind of self-supporting for a while. The idea that birds and I-thought-they-said bugs might not eat it might be really helpful, too: as long as that's not due to anything scary and wrong chemicals-wise. Lots of things just get eaten around here, let me tell you. (Especially while lots of birds seem to have marked me as a Denny's for their migrations. I've been like, "Here, I'll just give you the bag." But, the bugs, well, they seem to come out of nowhere, if they find anything tasty around here. ) Anyway, that's why the interest in this stuff in particular. Especially with the limited tools we have here, being renters and all, it seemed like it may just be worth a try. Anyway, not expecting miracles, here. Thought I might grab a bit at the home center if I see it.

03-31-2010, 07:27 AM	#6
mel Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Virginia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,531	When we lived in the south we always had Centipede grass. And while it was rather slow at first to get a foothold, once it got going it did really well at filling in the holes and such. And it's hard to kill.

03-31-2010, 07:57 AM	#7
reeftool Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Upstate New York Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,554	I have lawn problems too. The back yard is ok but the front has some awful bare spots and my "soil" is mostly sand. Part of the problem is I'm halfway down a hill and every time a heavy rain comes along, lots of sand and gravel wash down with it and bury the grass. Also, there is the sand and salt that the town spreads on the roads and it is rough on the lawn also. My solution has been to rake in some peat moss and spread that dirt cheap annual ryegrass seed around. It comes up fast and stays green all summer. I have to do it every year but that happens anyhow. We have a short season here, first frost by mid september most years. I don't know how that grass will be in a warmer climate with a longer season.

03-31-2010, 09:08 AM	#8
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by mel When we lived in the south we always had Centipede grass. And while it was rather slow at first to get a foothold, once it got going it did really well at filling in the holes and such. And it's hard to kill. Hrm, well, that's interesting, Centipede grass. (See, I'm actually more familiar with issues like Reeftool is reporting: down here, I'm not even sure how things are supposed to be, even if it weren't a matter of drought followed by severe erosion from more-than-normal rains and all neglected a long while. . ) Anyway, a foothold is exactly what I'm trying to provide, here, for starters. Maybe that kind of grass could follow. (It occurs to me that it might very likely be more suited to conditions here than whatever kind comes in the 'pre assembled' stuff. Plain old seed isn't that expensive. It's such a disaster, (at least if you like your lawn to be a monoculture: ) they'd have to turn it all under at least, to do it right, anyway, I think. If we owned this place, (not a terribly likely purchase, for many reasons) I pretty much know what I'd do, given materials and some contracting help: it'd be pretty involved, I think.

03-31-2010, 09:35 AM	#9
mel Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Virginia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,531	Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud).

03-31-2010, 10:35 AM	#11
BPT Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Fruitvale, British Columbia Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 310	Originally posted by mel Centipede grass is a "southern" grass and does really well there. It does however, go brown in the winter. One can add winter rye to fight the brownness but after a couple years, my husband the lawn freak gave up and let it be brown like everyone elses. It's a creeping grass, creeping over the top of the ground and sending down roots. So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud). Has he tried green paint yet?

03-31-2010, 12:47 PM	#12
Nesster Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NJ USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 13,072	Originally posted by mel So once it gets going it spreads over the bare spots. When you go to the gardening places you can buy plugs and put those in and it'll spread from there (just in case you've seen plugs and wondered who on earth would plant just a little tuft of grass for cryin out loud). I got a vivid image of certain men, with the hair plugs, who obviously hope hair works like Centipede grass...

03-31-2010, 01:00 PM	#13
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by Nesster I got a vivid image of certain men, with the hair plugs, who obviously hope hair works like Centipede grass... Heheh. They could be like, "I'm not just a member of the Horticultural Society, I'm also a client."