I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide. Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of
having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread
top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the
lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in
a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw
for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide.
Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

In my opinion, the most important decision to make in getting a quality
lawn installed is to choose the best type of grass for your area. If you
leave the decision up to the contracter/landscaper, they may choose an
appropriate variety, or (like so many hydroseeders I know) they may just
pick whatever will germinate the most quickly, giving you near-instant
gratification.

If it were me, here's what I'd do:

1. Hire someone to bring in the rock hound and clean it up.
2. Either install a sprinkling system yourself, or have one installed.
3. Figure out which kind of grass you really want to use. There will be
plenty of people to help you make a good choice.
4. Buy a spreader and some seed, and throw it down yourself. It's not
hard, and it's not rocket science.
5. Water.

Of course, that's just me.

steve

Steve Wolfe wrote:

In my opinion, the most important decision to make in getting a
quality
lawn installed is to choose the best type of grass for your area. If
you
leave the decision up to the contracter/landscaper, they may choose an
appropriate variety, or (like so many hydroseeders I know) they may
just
pick whatever will germinate the most quickly, giving you near-instant
gratification.

If it were me, here's what I'd do:

1. Hire someone to bring in the rock hound and clean it up.
2. Either install a sprinkling system yourself, or have one
installed.
3. Figure out which kind of grass you really want to use. There will
be
plenty of people to help you make a good choice.
4. Buy a spreader and some seed, and throw it down yourself. It's
not
hard, and it's not rocket science.
5. Water.

Of course, that's just me.


I'd say that's a pretty good plan, too.

What I'd add to it is it may be desirable to add some screened soil
and/or some compost, depending on just how bad it looks after clearing
the big stone. (Make sure the compost is completely composted.)

Throwing straw on top will help keep some of the seed from disappearing
to birds and wind, and help slow-down the progress of weed seeds in the
wind, too. It can also help keep the soil from drying out. That may be
important if you opt not to put in a sprinkler system on a timer.
Manually keeping the soil wet but not too wet for germination can be
time-consuming. Once germination is done, water less frequently, but
deeper, working gradually to 1" a week all at once.

Get some starter fertilizer, too. A really healthy established lawn will
do fine with mulched clippings, but your new lawn will do better with a
little helping hand to get it's roots established.

Also, when you buy seed, get some extra. There will be bare spots, and
that seed that's loading the shelves now may not be so easy to find in a
month. You may even want to get enough to do a complete over-seeding
when the heat of summer is gone, the fall rains have started, and
overnight freezes are not likely for a month or more. (Have fun timing
that right!)

Don't mow until the grass gets over 3", but hasn't reached 5". Take no
more than 1/2" off. Each grass is a little different, but generally
you'll have a lusher lawn with better resistance to disease and drought
if you err on the long side. Short, closely cropped grass is suitable
only to putting greens at clubs that can afford to put in new sod every
year. And unless it's so long that it's waving in the wind, long grass
doesn't look as shaggy to people passing by as it does to someone
standing in the middle of it.

Keep the dogs and kids off of it this year. If you find yourself taking
shortcuts across the lawn, consider putting in a path.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.
Blatant Plug: Spend your Amazon gift certificates he
http://www.holzemville.com/mall/associateshop.html

On Sat, 22 May 2004 20:02:00 GMT, wrote:

I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide. Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

I'm sure you could do the job better than a service, and for a lot
less money. First, take the time and remove the stones by hand using
buckets. Get several people to help you or hire individuals to
collect stones. I'm sure kids out of school will gladly take $8 an
hour. Then buy the best quality seed you can find ($150) and several
bales of straw ($45). Do not use hay. Use any brand Starter
fertilizer ($40). Keep moist, watering every other day, being careful
not to flood any area. The water might cost you a couple hundred
bucks. Apply (slow release) fertilizer again around Labor Day. It is
better to use a little more seed than not enough. Do not be concerned
about weeds until next spring.

wrote in message
...
I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of
having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread
top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the
lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in
a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw
for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide.
Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

Is turfing not an option? With turf you can not only get an instant lawn
but you can purchase exactly the type of grass needed and see it before
laying. Turf is also able to be placed over stones, that are not too large.
The only criteria is that the base must be level, but then this would be the
same for seed. Turf is also more readily watered without damage and gives a
weed free start, if bought from a reliable source.
Best Wishes Brian

Xref: kermit rec.gardens:279895


wrote in message
...
I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of
having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread
top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the
lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in
a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw
for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide.
Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

Is turfing not an option? With turf you can not only get an instant lawn
but you can purchase exactly the type of grass needed and see it before
laying. Turf is also able to be placed over stones, that are not too large.
The only criteria is that the base must be level, but then this would be the
same for seed. Turf is also more readily watered without damage and gives a
weed free start, if bought from a reliable source.
Best Wishes Brian

Nowhere did you mention the installation of a sprinkler system. When
installing a new lawn it is easy to put in a sprinkler system. It is
more difficult to ad the sprinkler later after the lawn becomes
established.

Dick

On Sun, 23 May 2004 07:43:40 -0700, Richard Cline
wrote:


Nowhere did you mention the installation of a sprinkler system. When
installing a new lawn it is easy to put in a sprinkler system. It is
more difficult to ad the sprinkler later after the lawn becomes
established.



And a new lawn, existing ones also, need lots and lots of water.

John

wrote in message
...
I just completed building new house in Ohio and is in the process of having
a lawn installed by a lawn service. Now the lot has a lot of stone in it.
One service said the will bring in a rock hound to work the dirt, put in
60lbs of grass seed and straw for a $1050. The next said they would bring
in a rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, deliver and spread top
soil, 100 lbs of grass seed, spread biodegradable straw, fertilize the lawn
for the rest of the year for $3000. The last one said the would bring in a
rock hound, rake the dirt after the rock hound, and grass seed and straw for
$895. Quite a difference in price and what service they will provide. Can
any one give me some good advice in what to look for in having a good
quality lawn installed? Thank you in advance.

First, check how deep your topsoil is in several test spots. New home sites
are notorious for leaving a poor soil base for installing a lawn. You will want
a few inches of topsoil or more. Is your surface area graded so that water will
drain away from your house? Get references from your lawn service companies
and talk to those homeowners (hopefully go see their lawns).

Have you compared the relative cost of installing sod to seeding a lawn?
After the initial soil prep, laying sod goes pretty fast, is weed free, and easy
to
get the excellent results you are looking for.