Peter Reynolds said:

Anyone?

You are going to have to invest more than a minimum amount of maintainance
to get a good stand of grass. Once it is well established you can ease up on
it. However, unless you want to be right back in the same situation it would be
best to do some watering during droughts and at least one fertilizing each year
in the fall. And irregular mowing (letting the grass get very tall and then cutting
it very short) will quickly destroy a lawn.

You'd probably do best with a blend of bluegrass, fescue, and ryegrass.

Check out the Rutgers Cooperative Extension Service bulletins on lawns.
(You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them online.)

http://www.rce.rutgers.edu/pubs/subc...p?cat=5&sub=39



I wrote:

My family has a fairly large back yard, and I'm afraid
that it's been badly neglected. In addition to scattered
sections of sparse, unmatched grass, there are patches of
bare soil, moss, ivy and all sorts of weeds.

We've decided that the best course of action is to kill
everything and start over. (We obviously aren't gardeners,
so we'll be hiring someone.) I'm seeking recommendations
for an appropriate type of grass seed, and also the best
time of year to go forward with the project.

We don't want to invest more than a minimal amount of effort
into maintenance, (watering, mowing, etc.) as we literally
never use this yard. We would, however, prefer that it look
fairly presentable when we glance out the window.

The yard contains a combination of sunny and shady areas.
We're located in central New Jersey. (Zone 6, according
to this map: http://www.growit.com/bin/USDAZoneMaps.exe?MyState=NJ)
We experience both droughts and long periods of rain.

Thanks in advance!

--
Pat in Plymouth MI

Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
(attributed to Don Marti)