Marianne's Response

Replaced Backyard Grass

I had my lawn guy from my old house replace the grass in my condo’s backyard but one area, on the south side, has shown hardly any new growth in between the squares and in the some of the squares which we laid. It grew like a wild fire except along side the square pieces of sod we laid and in front of the neighboring condo which has a huge tree like Rhody and a fence along that side.
Could I do a fall reseed in the bare spots this fall or would I be wasting my time?
And any ideas why the grass would be so sparce in front of the Rhody when it looked just like the sod we applied in the rest of the lawn?
Thanks,
May Ann Hayes Coty

Posted by Mary Ann Coty on September 28, 2020

Marianne's Response

Yes, you can reseed now over the bare spots and there are many reasons why the sod did not take in that area. Most likely are too much shade, poor drainage or roots below the sod that suck up all the moisture. I would dig down into the dead turf first and see if there are roots or rocks that need to be removed. Add fresh topsoil and reseed. If the grass fails to grow again consider a groundcover such as ajuga or a patch of gravel with some garden art instead of lawn. Keep growing, Marianne Binetti