After doing a bunch of research, I'm finally in the process of buying the supplies I'll need so I can plant my lawn when the weather finally cooperates. Here's a run down of what I've been working on in this stage:


Rough Grading Services

As mentioned in my previous post, rough grading is currently in progress. This will be the most expensive part of the whole project. However, some money was set aside for this by our contractor thus reducing the current financial impact to us. The excavator has informed me that we have about one day of grading left to go. A little more manicuring and replacing the top-soil is about all that's left. Unfortunately, this has been a very wet and, until lately, cool Spring. We can't seem to get more than a couple days of dry weather before getting a storm, and it just isn't letting the ground dry out enough for grading. Hopefully, this stage will be done son, and I'll get some updated pictures up as soon as it is.

Finish Grading Services

After talking with the excavator, I realized I would need some way to finish off the grading. The dirt will be pretty compacted from the heavy machinery, and there will be lots of large clumps and bulldozer tracks to deal with. Since the yard will be the area of 1-2 acres, raking by hand is not an ideal solution. Luckily, I have found a couple people locally that have tractors and are looking for small jobs like this. Both are planning to come give me an estimate as soon as rough grading is done.

I expect they will have to use a Gill (soil pulverizer) and possibly a box scraper to get the soil bed prepared. There is also a possibility that they will want to disc it.

Soil Amendments

I have not had a full soil test completed due to all the grading, but I estimate my soil to have a somewhat high level of clay in it. However, the top layers of the soil do seem to be quite workable and obviously support plant life. Because of this, and the massive costs of brining in black dirt, compost, sand, gypsum, etc, I have decided to attempt seeding in the soil that was naturally on the lot.

I have also not tested for PH or other nutrients, again because of the grading. However, even if my PH is off, the cost of brining in enough lime to correct it is prohibitive. Not to mention the fact that it will take months to correct. So my conclusion has been to just use what I have and make the best of it. It's the only way I can possibly stay close to budget.

Starter Fertilizer

At my local Menards, I found a 12-24-6 starter fertilizer by Forever Green. It's a 32lb bag (covers 10,000 sq ft) for $12. That was the best deal I've found in the area. I will require 6-8 bags to cover my lawn.

It has been suggested that you should use a pre-emergent weed/crabgrass preventer when seeding in the Spring. However, most crabgrass preventers will also inhibit seed germination. The only pre-emergents that can be used during seeding contain Siduron. I actually did find this at a local garden shop, but a bag to cover 5,000 sq ft ran $40. Since that alone would cost me over $600, I decided to try my luck without it.

Straw For Mulch

My first problem was trying to figure out how much straw I needed. Several sources have told me that one standard (15"x18"x30") bale of straw should cover between 1000 and 2000 sq ft. For my yard, roughly 1.5 acres, I estimated I would need about 50 bales.

I had some difficulties in finding straw at a good price. Apparently, not many farmers around here grow straw to sell. I saw many online ads for farmers in Nebraska with 20,000+ bales of straw, but virtually nothing locally. Too bad the corn we grow here in Iowa doesn't produce any straw.

None of the local stores had straw except Earl May garden center which sold it for $7 a bale. Not only would that have been expensive, but they don't deliver and I would have had to make several trips since I do not have a trailer. Finally, I found a local person who would sell me the bales for $2 each with delivery included. I quickly signed up for my 50 bales. They are scheduled to be delivered this weekend.

The Seed (Finally!)

I will write a separate post on my choice of mix and choice of stores, but here's what I've purchased so far:

50 lb Kentucky Blue Grass (KBG) from Theisen's
100 lb KBG from Orscheln (they were cheapest at $1.99/lb)
20 lb Perennial Rye Grass from Theisen's

I plant to get another 30 lb of KBG from a third source (most likely Menards) and possibly some more rye grass.



So I have most of the necessary products and services purchased or already lined up. I'm still looking to borrow a lawn roller for a day to roll the seed into the dirt. I don't really want to buy one because this will likely be the only time I use it. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate and I'll be planting soon!