I need lawn care help

So here it is almost May and i still have some big dead spots in my yard. I know we had a harsh winter but my yard looks like shiz. I have already raked and mowed/bagged the dead grass. Couple of questions, can i lay new sod over the dead spots or should i till it then lay it down? I also have spots that are just bare but have good green runners and was wondering if there is anything i can put down to thicken it up like cow man. or some good fertilizer? Oh yeah, i have St. augustine grass. Thanks

 

till it and mix in some good compost. then you can resod. don't use straight cow manure unless it's composted. black kow makes a good compost for that type of application. i'd also spread some compost over your thin spots. the runners will grow quick and fill in quick. you can also use a soil activator to help with quality of the soil. not sure what they have out in florida, but i used medina soil activator here in texas. and... if possible, do a core aeration before the compost and soil activator. i'm having the same issues from our crazy winter.

 

try lime to the bare spots, I've done that with sucess, prior to using plugs

www.saintaugustinegrass.com

 

I don't think aeration would be beneficial in FL soil. Their soil is pretty sandy and doesn't compact like clay soil does which requires aeration. if you are going to lay some new sod down make sure you bring the grade down so the new sod sits level with the old grass. I would mix up a topsoil mix with some sand & compost to give it a good base. Fortunately St. Augustine is a pretty resiliant grass just like the bermuda I have and you could even get away with plugging the bare spots so when the soils temps get back up the grass should take off. St Augustine spreads like a weed bc it basically is a weed just like bermuda.

 

Send a PM to jasonslawncare, he is in Florida and will likely be able to help you out.

 

Alright. I read this and got answers to my questions. So no need to write back you could just reply here.

A potential reason yo may be having this problem is often times sprinklers get knocked off a bit and have to be turned to spray everything. There is often a key and you can just twist it. I would check your sprinklers to make sure you're getting full coverage.

If you know that this isn't a case and feel that your grass is a lost cause then check to see if you can get compost from your city. Most of the time it's free. They'll probably have it at your local lawn waste dumping facility. One thing you can do is rake out the old grass and put some of the compost down then lay the sod down and water with the hose to make sure everything is getting watered.

Another way to basically obtain the same results cheaper but with more time and effort is suggested here. I think that this is a great idea and you can even supplement it with the free compost.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070411174214AAeosdk

There is so many things that it could be. Do you have bugs fly up when you walk over the lawn? If so you have cinch bugs in which case laying over new sod can't help.

 

What's a lawn?

 

how's the yard looking now?