Can I get beautiful grass in six weeks?

Question

I flip houses & normally don't have this problem but.... the house I just purchased has a horrible lawn! Moss, weeds, bare spots, etc. So I have six weeks to turn this lawn around. Now I know I can go out & get sod, but we're talking a 15,000 square foot lot! I don't want to spend that kind of time or money.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do without spending an arm & a leg? Keep in mind...this house is in Seattle (so lots of rain), it will be walked on (due to laborors) and I want it to look decent. Please help!

Answer 1

You can try getting seed, but if you do that you cannot have anyone walking around.

One suggestion is you might want to do some calling around and see if there are any sod farms, the prices you pay will be significantly less than at Home Depot or your local nursery.

I would not try to patch the lawn with seed, I think your better off starting over completely. Get a sod cutter and remove all the old grass, put down some top soil and plant seed.

Im not even sure if you can grow grass in January in Seattle, but I think it would make a heck of a better impression to the new home owner to see nice brown topsoil with brand new seed just starting to come up, than a screwed up lawn that is in the middle of a patch Job.

You might also want to consider installing a sprinkler system and see what that would cost Vs putting down sod. This way you don't have to worry about being there to water the seed, or in the case of sod don't have to worry about watering it.

Nouthing worse than putting down new sod, not selling the house and then watching the sod die because your not there to water the grass a few times per week.

Answer 2

Six weeks? And this is January? Sod would be your only option and even then it would have to be after all laborors are gone. Even then the sod will not knit to the soil until warmer weather.

One option is to work over the lawn closest to the house and let the rest be.

Only grass seed that might work is ryegrass as it germinates quickly, but not in the middle of winter. Still you'd need to prepare a seedbed so the seed would be in good contact with the soil.

Landscaping is expensive, 15,000 sf is too much to work over if you are flipping.

Answer 3

your cost for sod would be about $1500. In six weeks you can fix the weed issue with 24d or the bare spots by over seeding but not both. When i flipped homes i would have the landscaper come in and sod the lawn and then put it on the market. If you have alot of contractors walking through it will just be a battle.

Answer 4

This time of year in Seattle your grass won't grow nor will seed germinate that presents a major problem for you. Naturally sodding is the real solution but not feasible. Otherwise six weeks is too short of a period of time to grow your lawn even in a better climate. Soya Grass plugging is a good way to get a well groomed lawn. This grass grows more abundantly in the south but is drought resistant and needs mowing only about half as often as regular lawns. However it will take at least a year for the grass to fill in the plugged areas. Good luck.

Answer 5

I would advise getting an enzymatic pet cleaner (Simple Solution or Nature's Miracle are good choices) and clean the places your dog has urinated on the rug. This is something new that the dog hasn't accepted in the home if the rug was brought in after she was. You can either remove the rug temporarily and work on her housetraining, or do umbilical leash training and keep her leash attached to her collar and the other end attached to your belt loop when she is near the new rug. If you see signs of elimination, pick her up and take her outside. There is probably an odor of some kind on the rug that is attracting her. You may wish to clean the entire rug with the enzymatic cleaner. Good luck. It can take months for dogs with a bad history to really adjust to a new home.