Any Lawn experts: Need advice for last time I tried to renovate my lawn in Spring?

Question

Last Spring I killed my mostly broadleaf weed lawn with Round up weed killer . And waited for 10 days for it to completely brown. Afterwards I put down fescue grass seed and starter fertilizer and lucky for me it rained every other day for atleast 2 weeks afterwards.
but to my disappointment half of the stuff that came up was it looked like crab or dallas grass (maybe dallas grass is a type of crab grass) . But anyway, I stupid me realized that i killed the existing weeds in my yard but not the crabgrass which was to come up in May and June. So , I was debating if I should have appled MSMA to kill the crabgrass in August. I did not because I thought that it was getting close to fall by then and it would go away soon enough
So I will try again this year. Can anybody telll me what I did wrong last year. Maybe I should not have done this project in the Spring and made sure I had put down crab grass preventer instead. But I did not know about that then. and done in fall

Answer 1

This was the right thing to do. However, you failed to take care of the seeds that had been lying dormant, waiting to germinate with a good watering. You should have, after the original weeds were dead and gone, watered the area just as if there was a lawn there. By doing this, you will cause the dormant crabgrass or dallas grass to germinate. Then you can respray with roundup and take care of the new sprouts. It may take a couple of these watering scenarios to get all the seeds to germinate, but you will eventually rid the lawn area of the problem, and be able to put down a nice yard.

Answer 2

Go to Scott's.com and signup They send you an email reminder quarterly to use a particular fertilizer etc.. They have a great crabgrass killer.. Depending on where you live.. In California, you could put in on in a week or so.. With the weather we've had this year. .It seems like spring already.. but anyway.. Scott's.com is a great website for all beginners etc.. I call it my yardcare for dummies.. ps.. My lawn looks like a golf course even in Feb.. Good luck

Answer 3

Kentucky blue grass should be your goal.
Fescues, & Ryes are just a instant green until the Kblue gets established can take 2-3 years.

Forget about the crab, and focus on a healthy enviroment for your spec'd grass.

Grass is grass putting down a preventer will only damage your nurse crop.

Answer 4

You need to dig up your entire lawn and start over with marathon seed and manure, do it now as its close to spring. I know this because i just went thru this myself. My grass was i don't know , but to mow it was like taking a hay ride., no matter how much i watered or furtilized nothing really helped. So out with the old and in with the new. Good Luck!!

Answer 5

Go to the garden supply store, not wal-mart. they can give you good information--every area is different. Start with a small area , then do another area...then you have various sizes of baby grass, but not a lot of crappy grass or weeds and not a lot of dirt..I like bermuda, it always grows and fescue takes too much water for my budget.

Answer 6

the picture is poor yet your weed ought to probably be celandine which would not oftentimes invade lawns. ignore about weedkillers ---- there is a few thing very healing about eliminating weeds with a small fork or per chance a screwdriver. do not imagine of the interest in its entirety -do basically a squareyard at a time ---its staggering how rapidly you get through Cheers

Answer 7

sorry I don't know what crab grass is - all I know in the UK is you should only sow grass seed in a month with an R in it.

Answer 8

I put weed and feed down and burnt it all away, so I am hopeless, really. My advice to you is pay a professional to come and cut and look after it - mine has never looked so good.