Probably would help to know where you’re at, pics and all that. But just for reference I have 3 dogs and have 85/15 TTTF/KBG (GCI Cool Blue). My dogs may not wrestle as much as yours but the lawn in general holds up well. One my dogs always kicks the grass after she does her business and I don’t really worry about big bare spots. I leave the lawn pretty tall so that may help as well.
Grass type for very high traffic aka dogs 365ss
My back yard is around 4k sq full sun with irrigation. About 1k of that is going to be renovated with sod as it was ruined with tree work last year. This is the spot between the back door and pool, and its my dogs wrestling arena. As such grass has had difficulty in this area. Pee spots are not the problem, its the wrestling that does it.
My current lawn is a salad, with a lot of K31. The goal is to renovate the entire lawn in sections with whatever seed/sod that I use for this project(or something close). I want dark green but mostly something tough.
I'm liening an aggressive KBG, like 365ss which is used in the Rose Bowl among other stadiums for it's abilty to repair. I've also not had a full KBG stand before and want to evaluate it for my front yard(show piece) I'm also considering Superturf II which is a Tall Fescue with a little KBG. The Tall Fescue does seem to wear well, but I always end up with bare spots.
Thoughts on the best way to go?
My current lawn is a salad, with a lot of K31. The goal is to renovate the entire lawn in sections with whatever seed/sod that I use for this project(or something close). I want dark green but mostly something tough.
I'm liening an aggressive KBG, like 365ss which is used in the Rose Bowl among other stadiums for it's abilty to repair. I've also not had a full KBG stand before and want to evaluate it for my front yard(show piece) I'm also considering Superturf II which is a Tall Fescue with a little KBG. The Tall Fescue does seem to wear well, but I always end up with bare spots.
Thoughts on the best way to go?
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
In my opinion: both plus some Ryegrass...
Northern mix with 85% TTTF, 10% KBG, and 5% TTPR seed by weight. Ryegrass and Tall Fescue are very wear tolerant, so don't omit either. Best of all worlds. Big upgrade over KY-31, but nothing will likely be tougher than KY-31.
Allows for quick and easy repairs via seed, and is super tough once established for several years. Repairability via KBG rhizomes as well.
FYI, this is also roughly the same mix that Pete from GCI has in much of his home lawn.
That 5% (by weight) ryegrass often makes a huge difference in durability and repair ease versus just TTTF/KBG, believe it or not, due to fast germination and its density. The only reason to omit one species is for looks instead of durability (if uniformity is more critical).
No lawn will tolerate digging or urine, though.
Northern mix with 85% TTTF, 10% KBG, and 5% TTPR seed by weight. Ryegrass and Tall Fescue are very wear tolerant, so don't omit either. Best of all worlds. Big upgrade over KY-31, but nothing will likely be tougher than KY-31.
Allows for quick and easy repairs via seed, and is super tough once established for several years. Repairability via KBG rhizomes as well.
FYI, this is also roughly the same mix that Pete from GCI has in much of his home lawn.
That 5% (by weight) ryegrass often makes a huge difference in durability and repair ease versus just TTTF/KBG, believe it or not, due to fast germination and its density. The only reason to omit one species is for looks instead of durability (if uniformity is more critical).
No lawn will tolerate digging or urine, though.
I'm going to reno my back yard with Super Turf II (93% TTTF/7% KBG), so if my huge oaf of a black lab tears some up, hopefully the KBG does it's thing. The dog pee in the summer/fall doesn't matter since my irrigation runs every or every other day to wash it out. But yeah, in the winter when we don't have rain, it definitely kills off spots.
That 5% (by weight) ryegrass often makes a huge difference in durability and repair ease versus just TTTF/KBG, believe it or not, due to fast germination and its density. The only reason to omit one species is for looks instead of durability (if uniformity is more critical).
That is kind of like the approach for sports fields, where they just keep overseeing rye heavily around the high traffic areas like the soccer goals all year long. Germinates fast, and gives coverage for at least long enough.
Yeah. With the lawn mix I referenced above, you can keep seeding damaged spots easily using 90% TTTF and up to 10% Ryegrass as needed, and push the ~30-50% of the lawn that is KBG to fill in those same spots at the same time. That's the reason for having that bit of Ryegrass in the mix. A little goes a long way!That is kind of like the approach for sports fields, where they just keep overseeing rye heavily around the high traffic areas like the soccer goals all year long. Germinates fast, and gives coverage for at least long enough.
Im running Jacklin seed KBG award, A midnight blend of KBG blueberry, and PRG Tetradark which stripes really hard , I have Black labrador Retrievers and they cant tear this turf up easy. Have to remember to establish deep roots so that the turf can withstand wear/tear
The more I research, the more I like the idea of ryegrass in the mix. Will allow me to make quick repairs as needed.In my opinion: both plus some Ryegrass...
Northern mix with 85% TTTF, 10% KBG, and 5% TTPR seed by weight. Ryegrass and Tall Fescue are very wear tolerant, so don't omit either. Best of all worlds. Big upgrade over KY-31, but nothing will likely be tougher than KY-31.
Allows for quick and easy repairs via seed, and is super tough once established for several years. Repairability via KBG rhizomes as well.
FYI, this is also roughly the same mix that Pete from GCI has in much of his home lawn.
That 5% (by weight) ryegrass often makes a huge difference in durability and repair ease versus just TTTF/KBG, believe it or not, due to fast germination and its density. The only reason to omit one species is for looks instead of durability (if uniformity is more critical).
No lawn will tolerate digging or urine, though.
I have it in some of my mixes. Really makes a difference in speed when reseeding. Definitely faster to come up than Fescues are. 5-15% Ryegrass by weight is typically sufficient.The more I research, the more I like the idea of ryegrass in the mix. Will allow me to make quick repairs as needed.
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
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