hi all,
i am hoping someone has some advice. i live in a condo building in
sunnyvale, CA. (silicon valley) i think it is sunset western zone 15
or 16, if that makes a difference. on the north side of our
four-story building is a struggling lawn. there is a melaluca (sp?)
tree in the middle, and some trees on the north edge; it does get some
sun, but not a lot. probably under 4 hours per day, and less in some
areas. i am guessing the soil is adobe-like. i think now it is a
mixture of bluegrass, bentgrass, fescue, crabgrass and mushrooms.
obviously not all of it on purpose. or any of it. there is a small
muni golf course within 100 yards which may contribute to the variety.
our landscape maint. crew doesn't seem to know how to fix it. we
dont have tons of money to spend, so putting seed and/or soil on top
is probably best. sod is not likely to be funded. they suggested rye
(seed), but from what i have found, it doesnt seem like rye likes
shade. also, the lawn doesn't drain that well. anyone have any
suggestions of what to overseed with to thicken it up? any other
tips?

thanks so much
cheryl

cheryl wrote:

hi all,
i am hoping someone has some advice. i live in a condo building in
sunnyvale, CA. (silicon valley) i think it is sunset western zone 15
or 16, if that makes a difference. on the north side of our
four-story building is a struggling lawn. there is a melaluca (sp?)
tree in the middle, and some trees on the north edge; it does get some
sun, but not a lot. probably under 4 hours per day, and less in some
areas. i am guessing the soil is adobe-like. i think now it is a
mixture of bluegrass, bentgrass, fescue, crabgrass and mushrooms.
obviously not all of it on purpose. or any of it. there is a small
muni golf course within 100 yards which may contribute to the variety.
our landscape maint. crew doesn't seem to know how to fix it. we
dont have tons of money to spend, so putting seed and/or soil on top
is probably best. sod is not likely to be funded. they suggested rye
(seed), but from what i have found, it doesnt seem like rye likes
shade. also, the lawn doesn't drain that well. anyone have any
suggestions of what to overseed with to thicken it up? any other
tips?

thanks so much
cheryl

get a better landscape crew. go to a nursery. go to the nearest UC and
see if they have a master gardener available.

With only four hours of sun or less daily, you are going to have a
difficult time trying to establish a lawn in this area - lawn grasses just
need more sun than this, even those tolerant of shadier conditions. Why
not conisder replacing the lawn with a shade tolerant groundcover? Will be
far less maintenance in the long run.

pam - gardengal



cheryl wrote:

hi all,
i am hoping someone has some advice. i live in a condo building in
sunnyvale, CA. (silicon valley) i think it is sunset western zone 15
or 16, if that makes a difference. on the north side of our
four-story building is a struggling lawn. there is a melaluca (sp?)
tree in the middle, and some trees on the north edge; it does get some
sun, but not a lot. probably under 4 hours per day, and less in some
areas. i am guessing the soil is adobe-like. i think now it is a
mixture of bluegrass, bentgrass, fescue, crabgrass and mushrooms.
obviously not all of it on purpose. or any of it. there is a small
muni golf course within 100 yards which may contribute to the variety.
our landscape maint. crew doesn't seem to know how to fix it. we
dont have tons of money to spend, so putting seed and/or soil on top
is probably best. sod is not likely to be funded. they suggested rye
(seed), but from what i have found, it doesnt seem like rye likes
shade. also, the lawn doesn't drain that well. anyone have any
suggestions of what to overseed with to thicken it up? any other
tips?

thanks so much
cheryl

"cheryl" wrote in message
m...

areas. i am guessing the soil is adobe-like. i think now it is a
mixture of bluegrass, bentgrass, fescue, crabgrass and mushrooms.

Your garden store ought to stock grass
seed varieties that thrive in shade, but the
main problem remains the soil. Try to improve
it adding compost, peat moss etc.

Your main decision is between:
(a) Major renovation by tilling in compost
and reseeding overall. You then water daily
until grass sprouts.
(b) Filling in patches with compost, seed
and watering.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada)
2

An alternative ground cover might be your best bet. There are shade
grasses that will grow if the area gets at least 3 hrs. of sun a day,
but all grass comes from grass grown in the sun. I have an area i have
finally gave up on grass in. It is under and between 2 trees. It gets
about 4 hrs of sun a day.




On 24 Feb 2003 23:40:03 -0800, (cheryl) wrote:

hi all,
i am hoping someone has some advice. i live in a condo building in
sunnyvale, CA. (silicon valley) i think it is sunset western zone 15
or 16, if that makes a difference. on the north side of our
four-story building is a struggling lawn. there is a melaluca (sp?)
tree in the middle, and some trees on the north edge; it does get some
sun, but not a lot. probably under 4 hours per day, and less in some
areas. i am guessing the soil is adobe-like. i think now it is a
mixture of bluegrass, bentgrass, fescue, crabgrass and mushrooms.
obviously not all of it on purpose. or any of it. there is a small
muni golf course within 100 yards which may contribute to the variety.
our landscape maint. crew doesn't seem to know how to fix it. we
dont have tons of money to spend, so putting seed and/or soil on top
is probably best. sod is not likely to be funded. they suggested rye
(seed), but from what i have found, it doesnt seem like rye likes
shade. also, the lawn doesn't drain that well. anyone have any
suggestions of what to overseed with to thicken it up? any other
tips?

thanks so much
cheryl

·.·´¨ ¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ .·´¨¨))
jammer
((¸¸.·´ ..·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸

In article , cheryl ruminated:
hi all,
i am hoping someone has some advice. i live in a condo building in
sunnyvale, CA. (silicon valley) i think it is sunset western zone 15
or 16, if that makes a difference. on the north side of our
four-story building is a struggling lawn.

You live in a desert. Why bother with a lawn?

our landscape maint. crew doesn't seem to know how to fix it. we
dont have tons of money to spend, so putting seed and/or soil on top
is probably best.

Okay, here's what you do. Spray the current lawn with Roundup(tm), making
sure not to get any on the leaves of any trees or shrubs you don't want
dead. After a couple of weeks rent a rear-tine tiller and till all the old
grass or soil under. Then go to Home Cheapot and buy enough landscaping cloth
to handle everything, then order a few tons of, hmm, how about golden granite
screened 3/4" rock, that looks pretty good. As finances allow, go back and
plant brittle bush, agave, and other desert plants, and run a drip
system to keep them looking green and beautiful.

Grass in the desert is a constant struggle, and grass that will survive
both desert and shade is pretty much impossible.

Go to http://www.xeriscape.org for more information on xeriscaping
(desert-scaping).

--
Eric Lee Green GnuPG public key at http://badtux.org/eric/eric.gpg
Web: http://www.badtux.org




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