Looking for guidance to revive my back yard

Mine went from this


the whole backyard looked similar, mostly a bare mud pit with splotches of centipede/st aug here and there.

to this in one year



There were a few spots of gravel like you have. I shoveled it out and replaced with a mix of mason's sand and top soil. I plugged hybrid bermuda in the area in the photos but I also seeded zoysia and common bermuda in other spots. I didn't worry about weeds last year. It really took off this spring. There are almost no bare spots this year and the few left are filling in quick. I aerated fall of 2022 and fertilized a few times since.

If you have enough sun bermuda spreads quick and can take a beating from dogs. I had a big live oak limb that shaded the lawn that I removed in 2022. I was trying to get st aug to grow then and it didn't hold up to the wear the dogs were putting on it. Bermuda and zoysia are thriving in spite of the stupid bastards running around all over it.

Certainly not too late in the year to take steps to transform your lawn, no need to wait until fall particularly if planting sod or seed is involved.

Do you have any lawn grass at all to work with? If so what type? Lots of sun, shade, mixed? You have a grass preference type? Gravel removal - flat shovel & wheelbarrow would be my initial approach.

Without photos no one here can give you advice as to whether to nuke the lawn with non-selective herbicide and re-sod or seed the entire lawn or start using selective herbicides to kill the weeds and take steps to let whatever grass you now have flourish and fill in with sod or seed in bare areas.

Aeration is good, you will need to fertilize - lawn grass, not weeds, & pre-emergent & selective post-emergent herbicides will be very important.

What I can tell you, there are many knowledgeable lawn people on the H&G board, some professionals that do it for a living & others that have good knowledge of the subject, that can help & guide you with advice to transform your lawn - you sound committed, that’s the first step. Patience & persistence…….

Everyone- Thank you for the responses.

I will try to get some pics after work but my yard pretty much looks like Loups before picture. It’s a pretty large back yard and there are some pretty decent parts of the yard. I believe the parts that are doing well are St. Augustine.

We have 2 Australian Shepherds that run roughshod out there.

Would Sticking to St. Augustine where it seems to be doing well and then Seed With Bermuda / Zoysia in the spots that are not doing well be a good approach? Do you just put the 2 different types of seeds in a seed spreader and just walk the area?

I was able to find a couple pictures on my phone..

Part that’s it’s doing okay

Well you can certainly turn around the St Augustine, but with two active dogs (thanks for pointing that out) and a very sunny lawn, I would think that one of the Bermudagrass cultivars might be the direction you want to consider. Hopefully ronk will enter the thread, he’s a lawn professional, and a Bermudagrass expert. And with Bermudagrass you can go with seed, St Augustine for bare areas will require sod.

quote:

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Seed With Bermuda / Zoysia

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Zoysia is one of the most difficult turfs to establish from seed.

Bermuda will be easier and will fill in more quickly.

Another novice here too, but I’d say let the rye die out on its own, probably in May, and by then the soil temps will be all the better for Bermuda seed germinating. Early April would be borderline temps. And would the germination and establishment be adversely affected by the herbicide residual, even if it can be used on bermuda? I think it’s a legitimate question.

Also if I wanted to go this route with the were is it as easy as just spreading rye seed?

I literally threw mine out on dirt by hand while being heavily buzzed after LSU beat Mizzouri last year.

It is THE easiest grass to grow ever.
Fertilize it well for best results.