@ultravista Soil temp for fescue germination is 60 to 65 degrees. Mid October is good.https://www.greencastonline.com/tools/soil-temperature

 

with 1,000 square feet I would 100% go to NG Turf and get sod. Let the roots establish over the fall & spring.

 

Where can I get Fescue sod here in North GA? How much should I expect to pay per piece? I will lay it myself.

 

NG Turf is were I'd look. With that small order you might have to rent a truck or drive there for a good price. Because you're doing TTTF I'm assuming you have shade. If that's the case El Toro Zoysia may be option as well. You'll find TTTF is sort of a pain in the A.

https://www.walterreeves.com/lawn-care/zoysiagrass-for-shade/

 

Your last attempt struggling likely had less to do with the straw and more to do with spring seedings not having enough time to establish deep roots before summer heat hit it. That's why later summer/fall seedings are more successful; the grass has the fall and the spring to establish it's root system.

Do you have irrigation, either in ground or above ground?
I'd also skip tilling.

 

Why skip tilling? The dirt has compacted a bit and there are a lot of weeds. The tiller depth is a few inches and will make a fine crumbled bed for the seeds. Very smooth, no ruts or clods.

 

If you tilled it back in May, it likely isn't actually compacted now, but just dry. And tilling doesn't necessarily kill weeds. In fact it can actually just bring more weed seeds to the surface. And typically when you till, the ground eventually settles unevenly and gives you a bumpy yard.

 

@ultravista

I live in Woodstock (not far from Alpharetta) and overseeded my lawn 2 weeks ago and it's doing great.

The soil temps don't have to be 60-65 degrees for fescue to germinate as suggested above.

Go ahead and get your seed down now that way you will have time to come back in October and overseed any bare spots that don't fill in the first time.

 

I seeded 3 weeks ago in charlotte and TTTF germinated very well. You should be good to seed now.

 

I'm glad this question came up because it's interesting to see what other people do. I've always heard that 60 to 65 is when fescue germinates. Maybe that's not true? The Greencast site is good because it gives you the 5 year average but if you have a heavily shaded yard and a cooler than average air temps you're going to have lower soil temps. I guess the only way to get the straight answer would be to stick a thermometer in the soil. I did some digging on the UGA site and ran across "Cool-season grasses are best established in the fall four to six weeks before the first killing frost date". Farmer's almanac is showing the first frost date (estimate) for Alpharetta as October 27. Six weeks before would be September 29 and 4 weeks would be September 15. WIth air temps being lower this year It looks like this may be a good year for early overseeding if that frost date is accurate because you'll get a longer establish period. Charlotte, Woodstock & Alpharetta all have frost dates as Oct 27/28. Our area is a little weird because we're right on the USDA Hardiness Zones for first frost, in Marietta my first frost date is Nov 4. I personally go out later with seed because I try to avoid the hurricane weather. By doing that I'm not going to have the picture perfect lawn by Thanksgiving but I'm also less likely to get washout from heavy rains. It's all personal preference. You guys forced me to give the long answer. That being said if you've got what you need then throw her down.

 

@Grass Clippins

Well said,

I can second that all the rain I've gotten over the past 4 weeks did cause some bare spots from washout.

If you have a limited amount of seed I would probably hold off until October due to this reason.

If you have extra seed and cash I would seed in September to give time to identify any trouble spots that the first attempt didn't cover.

 

I'm in Marietta, threw seed down on Thursday and it's Sunday, already have germination. The rain is definitely helping and the cool temps next week should help too. I'm about to put down some GCI fescue and kbg this week as well...temps are looking perfect this coming week.

 

@cyrjm Got pictures? You may have set a record with three day germination.

 

I am up the road in Gville. Throwing out TTTF this week. Im 80% shaded and some sun, but I have irrigation.

 

You can wait as long as mid-October but don't. In your area, Super-Sod Store can provide everything you need including a TTTF sod, seed, soil, fert.

 

@cyrjm Got pictures? You may have set a record with three day germination.

No pics for this patch of grass, I'll see if I have as quick germination for the KBG/TTTF I'm about to plant. Everytime I've used GCI Turf seed and 16-21-2 GreenePop I have insanely quick germination. 3-5 days on average.

 

I seeded last week, a mix of Pennington and Scotts, both fescue mixes. I added the Scotts since it is white coated and easier to see during distribution and on the ground. I have a heck of a time seeing the dark green Pennington seed on the ground.

There is already a blanket of sprouted seed everywhere. Tomorrow is 7 days.