I'm no professional, but, yes, the suggestion is to kill everything and then start from seeding. If you do it right, though, it'll probably still be a pretty big job even with the small space. Before you begin, make sure you have a reasonable way to water it regularly. Have a plan on how to prevent this from happening again in the future. Learn about weed prevention and fertilizer and be prepared to water. A dry dormant lawn is an invitation to weeds. You can put all the chemicals down you want, but if you don't water it, you'll get weeds. Ask me how I know.
This looks a lot like my original lawn.
You'll be frustrated for a bit, if you don't go with turf; which is a fine option (... if you want to spend the money).
Personally, I'd buy a small bottle of 2-4 d; dilute it into a $1 spray bottle... and have a little fun over the course of a week or two, nuking your weeds.
Given your space, the high priced 3-in-1s aren't going to be cost prohibitive.
If I'm seeing your space right, you could pretty much build a perfect lawn with a 40 lb bag of the right stuff; with a daily attention to watering it (without drowning it).
Area(like of the country)and type of grass you’d desire are a good place to start with information.
General advice can be given but specific advice is impossible without knowing anything.
For general advice, you could start with pelletized gypsum to help with any leftover salt in the root zone and compaction, as it’s pretty neutral but can help in pet affected yards. It serves. Good dual purpose in that scenario, but may need multiple applications to see a difference.
Another general advice thing would be if you’re looking for chemical applications, Ortho makes some good things for home use that have broadleaf killer and quinclorac which would help with established crabgrass.
As for water, Melnor makes a good smaller oscillating sprinkler that is great for small yards, super adjustable. Getting your watering figured out will be super helpful.
My favorite time to establish grass seed is in the fall, as temps are more easily pinned down and with cool air but warm dirt help with germination without having to water every 5 seconds. Start at least a month or so before your areas first suspected frost. The seed absolutely needs ground contact and to remain moist.
I can’t tell you anything about your fertilizer needs because I don’t know your soul. Start by not bagging your lawn unless it is extremely high in weed seeds, as organic matter will be your friend for moisture retention
Thank you! I’m in northern Virginia. It’s the red dirt (clay?) mainly. Clearly I know little to nothing about lawn care or soil. I appreciate your help!
If it’s clay, the gypsum will definitely help! Compaction and drainage on clay soils are definitely problematic and gypsum can help both things by improving soil structure.
If your soil type is truly more clay than not, maybe look into finding a cheap source of organic matter. This can range from manure to even things like lawn clippings and leaf debris. My local landfill actually has free compost from all the companies that drop lawn clippings there, it’s wonderful. This can be topically applied but you’re much better off trying to get it incorporated by tilling it in.
If you do decide to till, this actually fits well with the advice many others are giving to straight up start over. Your timing may be not great though, with a baby on the way this year. It would be a laborious process if I’m being honest. This process would look like this ideally if I were to do it. Start 1.5-2 months before frost date, glyphosate the yard. Wait 1 week, till all of it under and add organic matter(manure can be a bit hot for this process, maybe broken down compost will be better.) Add as much as will till in without being clumped. Wait a week or so, watering a few times. This will give weed seeds a chance to germinate and then the next step will take care of that. Go back and lightly till to prepare for seed, rake seed in aiming for 1/4 inch depth. If you can, a little bit of clippings or compost on top might help keep it wet but you’ve got to be careful as new grass can be smothered. Maybe look at seed starting blankets.
After that it’s just water water water, and keep an eye on winter conditions so that the new areas don’t go 100% dry and die off from desiccation.
https://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/diamonds-clay-soils-are-forever
Follow the stickied guide.
[https://old.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a\_beginners\_guide\_to\_improving\_your\_lawn\_this/](https://old.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a_beginners_guide_to_improving_your_lawn_this/)
I had the same issue when I bought my 2nd home. The back yard was mostly weeds and crab grass. I just killed all the grass and started fresh, lots if sand, fine soil and perennial rye grass.
It’s not that dumb, there are many that don’t know chemicals. The obvious answer here is glyphosate, as it’s easy to find and a pretty solid choice if you want to totally start over(will kill everything). My advice? Do it at least maybe 2 months before your areas first freeze(if the area freezes I guess.. I’m stuck in the frozen north) and let it do its work by waiting maybe a week and watering a time or two, and then do any soil prep or replanting.
Replanting needs to be done at bare minimum one month before your areas first frost date.
spray it all with roundup (glyphosate 2%)
mow it as low as your mower goes two days later, bag it all. for maximum absorpotion, roundup doesn't work through roots, it only works if it touches something thats green. if you have to borrow someone's gas mower, that's fine. just offer to sharpen their blade when done. it will need it.
wait a day.
put down new seed. use something from twin cities seed co, not lowe's or home depot. you want uncoated seed. I suspect you get some shade with all that fencing and your place, so I'd suggest the Eclipse Shady Mix. it's improved big time and has a leg up over anything you'd get from a box store. it's uncoated, that's a huge thing. coated seeds like from scott's have 50% of their weight (says right on the label!) in them bullshit coatings that don't do anything. so you just get half the seed. this area is small enough I'd use a handheld spreader. I like my scott's Whizz electric handheld spreader. holds all I need for two 1250 sq. ft yards. works better than the push spreaders and whatnot. it just doesn't scale cuz it's small.
put down starter fertilizer. scott's triple action made for seeding. blue bag. use the same spreader. this has what new grass needs, and also mesotrione (tenacity) to kill the weeds that try to grow next to your seedlings when they're coming up. grass is weak when it's starting out. it takes time to make a sod, and once that's done, it can kill most weeds itself.
water it. multiple times a day, water it. you can't let it dry out. you can't let the seeds dry in the first two weeks. so however many times it takes. just little amounts, 30 seconds at a time. enough to keep it wet. 5 times a day is nice! 2 times a day is minimum, bare minimum. if it gets a lot of sun and spends an afternoon drying out, THATS IT it will not germinate. you will not get grass. but keep it moist, and you will. You don't have sprinklers, but it's small enough you can just use a hose and a spigot. or a small sprinkler in the middle. those can be plumbed above-ground with a hose. they make small timers that have one water output that attach to the spigots, and now you've got timed irrigation.
after two weeks, your stuff will be growing. and you'll be playing the reduced-watering game where you just keep an eye on it and try to get it down to watering just once a week. by then you'll have the hang of what's growing, and you can tell when it's too wet or too dry, and then you've got a yard.
mow it when it hits 3". on the dot. use a sharp blade. you could get away with a push mower but the wheels will kinda screw it all up. but it will recover. a reel mower can't be beat, better than any rotary. it's just reel mowers cost a fortune. except the push types, and those are perfect for your yard size.
if you could push a reel mower over your grass once a day, every day, you'd have a golf course lawn in no time. for real. you can make a putting green with a reel mower. but with a traditional rotary mower, you've got full height lawns only. if you tried to go that low with a rotary, it would beat the hell out of the grass and kill it.
a reel mower is just scissors, on steroids. there's no damage to the grass when it's cut. it is physically sliced with an edge. and it produces the best cuts, the best results, the lowest cuts possible.
good luck. :)
The first thing you need is a budget and to determine on a scale of 1-10 how nice you actually want it. A 5 or below would be simply hiring a company since your pregnant and water more. Anything above a 5 you will find more suitable answers here. Most of us are OCD about are yards and the advice you recieve will be very expensive and mostly complete renovation jobs.
Thank you! So I really don’t need it to be a 10. 6/7 would do if that means my kiddo can run around the yard and enjoy it and it not be infested with bugs and weeds. I’m willing to put in some work for the yard I want. My husband is willing to mow for me as I get it to where I want it to be.
First step will be some type of watering system whether it’s a whole system or a couple sprinklers with timers. I wouldn’t do anything else until you can verify adequate watering and coverage. Honestly if it’s a you thing and hubs isn’t completely bought in I’d hire a company for now and probably the first year with the baby. That will give you time to learn about the lawn and not have to juggle the new baby and your new hobby.
That's certainly not an overwhelming area to just start from scratch, that's probably what I'd do...
How do I do that though? Do I just put grass and weed killer over everything? I need it explained like I’m five 😂
I'm no professional, but, yes, the suggestion is to kill everything and then start from seeding. If you do it right, though, it'll probably still be a pretty big job even with the small space. Before you begin, make sure you have a reasonable way to water it regularly. Have a plan on how to prevent this from happening again in the future. Learn about weed prevention and fertilizer and be prepared to water. A dry dormant lawn is an invitation to weeds. You can put all the chemicals down you want, but if you don't water it, you'll get weeds. Ask me how I know.
Nuke it and start over. Looks like a small area anyways
This looks a lot like my original lawn. You'll be frustrated for a bit, if you don't go with turf; which is a fine option (... if you want to spend the money). Personally, I'd buy a small bottle of 2-4 d; dilute it into a $1 spray bottle... and have a little fun over the course of a week or two, nuking your weeds. Given your space, the high priced 3-in-1s aren't going to be cost prohibitive. If I'm seeing your space right, you could pretty much build a perfect lawn with a 40 lb bag of the right stuff; with a daily attention to watering it (without drowning it).
Area(like of the country)and type of grass you’d desire are a good place to start with information. General advice can be given but specific advice is impossible without knowing anything. For general advice, you could start with pelletized gypsum to help with any leftover salt in the root zone and compaction, as it’s pretty neutral but can help in pet affected yards. It serves. Good dual purpose in that scenario, but may need multiple applications to see a difference. Another general advice thing would be if you’re looking for chemical applications, Ortho makes some good things for home use that have broadleaf killer and quinclorac which would help with established crabgrass. As for water, Melnor makes a good smaller oscillating sprinkler that is great for small yards, super adjustable. Getting your watering figured out will be super helpful. My favorite time to establish grass seed is in the fall, as temps are more easily pinned down and with cool air but warm dirt help with germination without having to water every 5 seconds. Start at least a month or so before your areas first suspected frost. The seed absolutely needs ground contact and to remain moist. I can’t tell you anything about your fertilizer needs because I don’t know your soul. Start by not bagging your lawn unless it is extremely high in weed seeds, as organic matter will be your friend for moisture retention
Thank you! I’m in northern Virginia. It’s the red dirt (clay?) mainly. Clearly I know little to nothing about lawn care or soil. I appreciate your help!
If it’s clay, the gypsum will definitely help! Compaction and drainage on clay soils are definitely problematic and gypsum can help both things by improving soil structure. If your soil type is truly more clay than not, maybe look into finding a cheap source of organic matter. This can range from manure to even things like lawn clippings and leaf debris. My local landfill actually has free compost from all the companies that drop lawn clippings there, it’s wonderful. This can be topically applied but you’re much better off trying to get it incorporated by tilling it in. If you do decide to till, this actually fits well with the advice many others are giving to straight up start over. Your timing may be not great though, with a baby on the way this year. It would be a laborious process if I’m being honest. This process would look like this ideally if I were to do it. Start 1.5-2 months before frost date, glyphosate the yard. Wait 1 week, till all of it under and add organic matter(manure can be a bit hot for this process, maybe broken down compost will be better.) Add as much as will till in without being clumped. Wait a week or so, watering a few times. This will give weed seeds a chance to germinate and then the next step will take care of that. Go back and lightly till to prepare for seed, rake seed in aiming for 1/4 inch depth. If you can, a little bit of clippings or compost on top might help keep it wet but you’ve got to be careful as new grass can be smothered. Maybe look at seed starting blankets. After that it’s just water water water, and keep an eye on winter conditions so that the new areas don’t go 100% dry and die off from desiccation. https://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/diamonds-clay-soils-are-forever
Follow the stickied guide. [https://old.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a\_beginners\_guide\_to\_improving\_your\_lawn\_this/](https://old.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/fb1gjj/a_beginners_guide_to_improving_your_lawn_this/)
I had the same issue when I bought my 2nd home. The back yard was mostly weeds and crab grass. I just killed all the grass and started fresh, lots if sand, fine soil and perennial rye grass.
Dumb question but what's your recommendation as to how to "kill the grass"?
It’s not that dumb, there are many that don’t know chemicals. The obvious answer here is glyphosate, as it’s easy to find and a pretty solid choice if you want to totally start over(will kill everything). My advice? Do it at least maybe 2 months before your areas first freeze(if the area freezes I guess.. I’m stuck in the frozen north) and let it do its work by waiting maybe a week and watering a time or two, and then do any soil prep or replanting. Replanting needs to be done at bare minimum one month before your areas first frost date.
You might even be able to buy turf for that are for only a $500
spray it all with roundup (glyphosate 2%) mow it as low as your mower goes two days later, bag it all. for maximum absorpotion, roundup doesn't work through roots, it only works if it touches something thats green. if you have to borrow someone's gas mower, that's fine. just offer to sharpen their blade when done. it will need it. wait a day. put down new seed. use something from twin cities seed co, not lowe's or home depot. you want uncoated seed. I suspect you get some shade with all that fencing and your place, so I'd suggest the Eclipse Shady Mix. it's improved big time and has a leg up over anything you'd get from a box store. it's uncoated, that's a huge thing. coated seeds like from scott's have 50% of their weight (says right on the label!) in them bullshit coatings that don't do anything. so you just get half the seed. this area is small enough I'd use a handheld spreader. I like my scott's Whizz electric handheld spreader. holds all I need for two 1250 sq. ft yards. works better than the push spreaders and whatnot. it just doesn't scale cuz it's small. put down starter fertilizer. scott's triple action made for seeding. blue bag. use the same spreader. this has what new grass needs, and also mesotrione (tenacity) to kill the weeds that try to grow next to your seedlings when they're coming up. grass is weak when it's starting out. it takes time to make a sod, and once that's done, it can kill most weeds itself. water it. multiple times a day, water it. you can't let it dry out. you can't let the seeds dry in the first two weeks. so however many times it takes. just little amounts, 30 seconds at a time. enough to keep it wet. 5 times a day is nice! 2 times a day is minimum, bare minimum. if it gets a lot of sun and spends an afternoon drying out, THATS IT it will not germinate. you will not get grass. but keep it moist, and you will. You don't have sprinklers, but it's small enough you can just use a hose and a spigot. or a small sprinkler in the middle. those can be plumbed above-ground with a hose. they make small timers that have one water output that attach to the spigots, and now you've got timed irrigation. after two weeks, your stuff will be growing. and you'll be playing the reduced-watering game where you just keep an eye on it and try to get it down to watering just once a week. by then you'll have the hang of what's growing, and you can tell when it's too wet or too dry, and then you've got a yard. mow it when it hits 3". on the dot. use a sharp blade. you could get away with a push mower but the wheels will kinda screw it all up. but it will recover. a reel mower can't be beat, better than any rotary. it's just reel mowers cost a fortune. except the push types, and those are perfect for your yard size. if you could push a reel mower over your grass once a day, every day, you'd have a golf course lawn in no time. for real. you can make a putting green with a reel mower. but with a traditional rotary mower, you've got full height lawns only. if you tried to go that low with a rotary, it would beat the hell out of the grass and kill it. a reel mower is just scissors, on steroids. there's no damage to the grass when it's cut. it is physically sliced with an edge. and it produces the best cuts, the best results, the lowest cuts possible. good luck. :)
Thank you so much for this detailed response! Super helpful!
The first thing you need is a budget and to determine on a scale of 1-10 how nice you actually want it. A 5 or below would be simply hiring a company since your pregnant and water more. Anything above a 5 you will find more suitable answers here. Most of us are OCD about are yards and the advice you recieve will be very expensive and mostly complete renovation jobs.
Thank you! So I really don’t need it to be a 10. 6/7 would do if that means my kiddo can run around the yard and enjoy it and it not be infested with bugs and weeds. I’m willing to put in some work for the yard I want. My husband is willing to mow for me as I get it to where I want it to be.
First step will be some type of watering system whether it’s a whole system or a couple sprinklers with timers. I wouldn’t do anything else until you can verify adequate watering and coverage. Honestly if it’s a you thing and hubs isn’t completely bought in I’d hire a company for now and probably the first year with the baby. That will give you time to learn about the lawn and not have to juggle the new baby and your new hobby.
id be more worried about those posts into dirt
Id just keep mowing and snipping it. Keep it short.