I'm in central Va and have an acidic read clay soil (Davidson clay). My
back yard has some sort of spongy soft grass that dies back right about
now and doesnt reappear until April. What can I overseed with to either
fill in during the mud season or eradicate it entirely? I've tried the
fescue that is recommended for this area with very limited success. I
am almost thinking that winter rye would get me by and at least fill it
in with *something*, but this is obviously not a permanent solution.
I do not want to lime my lawn, and I am open to low growing ground
covers that may or may not require mowing. My yard is surrounded by
woods but this part gets good sun. I do not need it to look manicured,
my yard is a semi-wild setting as it is, with me barely succeeding in
beating back the china grass. Any suggestions appreciated. (Oh, I have 2
dogs who will be walking/playing on it as well as a yardful of moles
that the cats are dispatching with admirable frequency)

"Peggy Elliott" wrote in message
...
I'm in central Va and have an acidic read clay soil (Davidson clay). My
back yard has some sort of spongy soft grass that dies back right about
now and doesnt reappear until April. What can I overseed with to either
fill in during the mud season or eradicate it entirely? I've tried the
fescue that is recommended for this area with very limited success. I
am almost thinking that winter rye would get me by and at least fill it
in with *something*, but this is obviously not a permanent solution.
I do not want to lime my lawn, and I am open to low growing ground
covers that may or may not require mowing. My yard is surrounded by
woods but this part gets good sun. I do not need it to look manicured,
my yard is a semi-wild setting as it is, with me barely succeeding in
beating back the china grass. Any suggestions appreciated. (Oh, I have 2
dogs who will be walking/playing on it as well as a yardful of moles
that the cats are dispatching with admirable frequency)

Is there a reason you do not wish to lime your lawn? Few turf grasses will
succeed in very acidic conditions - the mosses usually win out - and liming
is pretty much the solution (temporarily) to that situation.

For groundcovers, you might want to consider Kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos),
Contoneaster damerii, Rubus calcynoides, or St John's Wort. All will
tolerate acidic soil conditions, sun and are pretty darn hardy, although
they will need time to become established before the dogs run rampant :-))
If this is an area you need to walk through regularly, I'd suggest putting
in pavers or stepping stones - these are not exactly low growing "stepable"
types of groundcovers (at least for us clumsy humans).

pam - gardengal

Pam - gardengal wrote:

Is there a reason you do not wish to lime your lawn? Few turf grasses will
****

I'm looking for a low maintenance solution. (Besides being both cheap and
lazy) :^)
The ground cover doesnt need to be grassy.

If this is an area you need to walk through regularly, I'd suggest putting
in pavers or stepping stones - these are not exactly low growing "stepable"
types of groundcovers (at least for us clumsy humans).

I've got about an acre to deal with, and much of it is on a slope (over the
septic field which also needs to be kept relatively accessable), so pavers
won't work for me, but thanks a bunch for the groundcover suggestions!

-Peg

On Mon, 10 Nov 2003 10:33:21 -0500, Peggy Elliott
wrote:

I'm in central Va and have an acidic read clay soil (Davidson clay). My
back yard has some sort of spongy soft grass that dies back right about
now and doesnt reappear until April. What can I overseed with to either
fill in during the mud season or eradicate it entirely? I've tried the
fescue that is recommended for this area with very limited success. I
am almost thinking that winter rye would get me by and at least fill it
in with *something*, but this is obviously not a permanent solution.
I do not want to lime my lawn, and I am open to low growing ground
covers that may or may not require mowing. My yard is surrounded by
woods but this part gets good sun. I do not need it to look manicured,
my yard is a semi-wild setting as it is, with me barely succeeding in
beating back the china grass. Any suggestions appreciated. (Oh, I have 2
dogs who will be walking/playing on it as well as a yardful of moles
that the cats are dispatching with admirable frequency)


Fescue should grow well in the conditions you mentioned. This is the
best time of year to do it. Why are you against applying lime? I do
this every year if the pH is under 6. If there is less than 5 hours
of daily sun, then forget growing grass. Moss grows in my shady
areas, and I never planted it. Actually the moss needs no maintenance
at all. The moles inidcate you may have a grub issue.