When we moved into this house the lawn and gardens were pristine. Grass was lush and thick, all the beds were meticulous, no weeds. Next season the weeds were creeping in and the lawn took a beating over winter, so I did 1 weed n feed application. Next season I cut watering WAY down because the water rate increases effectively tripled our bill. I did 1 weed n feed that first spring because there was some pressure to keep it looking the same, plus the guy across the street is total Hank Hill with his lawn. But using all these herbicides doesn't really fit with my overall philosophy on the environment, garden and plant care, and water is too damned expensive here, so I have been reading about clovers. Looks like dutch or dwarf white clover is where it's at since it's max 6" tall. I'm going to seed in my current lawn to fill in bare spots and it's supposed to choke out weeds. It's a nitrogen fixer, drinks less water, gets green earlier than grass and can take the heat better. It's pollinator friendly. I don't know why more people don't have a mixed lawn.
It’s a little work, but do a soil test if you can. Depending on the results, a lime application may help with that.
How bad are your neighbor's yards? If none around you give a fuck, it can be an up hill battle to keep weeds at bay While my neighborhood was getting built the builder seeded crab grass on the lots as it's fast growing and inhibits erosion. The downside: it is a weed, will quickly overtake a yard and difficult to herbicide as most will also kill the grass you want to keep.
I'm not sure where you live, but in Georgia, each County has an extension agent that will come out and test your soil for you. They can recommend a fertilizer that will make huge difference, as well a recommend targeted treatments for weeds.
Massachusetts, so we have two narrow windows in which to grow grass before it gets too hot or too cold. Unfortunately, I don’t think we have a service like that. I put a ton of lime down a year or so ago to wipe out the moss that the prior homeowners let take over the yard.
If you have a land-grant university in your state, you probably do. It's kind of part of the deal that they're responsible for handling federally-funded ag programs.
I'd love it if moss entirely took over my yard. You don't have to mow moss, just blow the leaves off of it. I've actually transplanted some moss into some of my shady areas.
Our yard is shady with lousy drainage so, moss. I’ve limed it nearly every year for 20 years to no effect. I’m not going to bother this year.
All kidding aside, that is a pretty cool service that I would take full advantage of if it were available locally. As it is I have a few test kits that I occasionally remember to use (and probably fuck up) to try and keep ph/etc straight throughout the year.
Yeah, it's funny - on some construction projects I've had Contractors that are struggling to get a permanent grass stand after the temporary dies off. I write into my plan the recommended grass and fertilizer applications for the zone. But I ALWAYS add a note about having the County Extension service make a recommendation, AND I bring it up at the preconstruction meeting. And they don't do it. "I've got a grassing guy." Yeah, how's that working out for you?
I live in PA, about an hour north of Philly. We have the Penn State Master Gardener Extension that will test your soil for free and, like Rush said, recommend the best treatment. It's just a matter of me getting to the local garden center to pick up the test. Every time I'm there for seed, I forget to get one. My usual treatment is to put the weed and feed on, wait two weeks, and then seed. We'll see how this year goes, but I am interested in a soil test regardless.
I wish ours looked that lush. It’s more patchy, and pulls up from the ground when I rake leaves in the fall. Better than bare dirt I guess.
If you're ready to embrace the idea of a moss lawn, look up how to start and grow one. They take work to start, obviously, but I think they're less maintenance once you get it going. Get a small leaf blower. Little bitty cheap one. Big powerful ones will blow your moss right off the ground. Good thing is, if you do damage your moss lawn you pick up the pieces, put them back in place and stomp them back down.
Unless you're dealing with a really weird situation and have decent light levels... grass is easy. When the lawn is new make sure to use a feed with phosphorous content if your soil needs it because it's essential for building that root system. The first year, smack the weeds down in the late part of the season. I strongly prefer liquid application over the granular as it's a whole lot easier to get stuck to the foliage of the weeds. Do it late in the season so that the weeds are weak already and so that some of the harder to kill varieties have lost their protective foliar coatings. After that just make sure to apply nitrogen regularly and mow consistently. You may have to kill weeds again the second year, but if you're facing weed problems after that you're just not feeding the grass enough to keep them choked out. Never skip the fall feed if you want your lawn to be the one that shines in the early part of the season. That grassold picture is my first house. I moved into a lawn of nothing but weeds and because I was a young guy with other priorities I pretty much just let is fester for the first two years I lived there. Eventually I got sick of the neighbors giving me the evil eye and within a season had it pretty much prime. The grassnew I moved in in Michigan February with no lawn and that's halfway through the first summer. My newest neighbors were annoyed with me all last summer because I didn't bother getting around to putting my lawn in until late and it looked like shit last year. Couple of mowings into this year it'll be close enough to perfect up front. My kids love playing in the yard so I'm big on getting the grass nice.