[rad]

I was wondering if anyone here would have any recommendations for a good strong lawn grass that can hold up to a pair of playful beagles. Since we got Monty the part of our yard where the grass was weaker has turned to dirt from him and Chica playing and chasing each other. We're going to turn that whole section over with a tiller this spring and replant it so I would like to plant something that will stand up to the abuse these beags will dish out.

Any thoughts?

 

[Murphys Dad]

Zoysia is a nice thick grass. The drawbacks are that, unless you get sod, it's a pain to plant (literally) and it takes a long time to get established. Once it takes hold, though, it's tough and beautiful.

 

[HeyWife]

I second the Zoysia grass. It's like a carpet when it's fully grown. Also spreads nicely.

 

[rad]

Thanks. I forgot to add some climate info that would probably be helpful. This would be for the upper Mid-Atlantic region. South central Pennsylvania to be precise.

I found this article on zoysia:

http://www.allaboutlawns.com/grass-types/some-thoughts-on-zoysia-grass.php

I wonder if winters in my area would be too hard on it. We don't typically get anything like Minnesota gets, but we can get the harsh winter every so often. Is the problem just that it turns brown early, but still survives the winters well? I would hate to spend the bucks for the sod only to have some unusually strong winter roll in and wipe the stuff out.

 

[rad]

In case anyone is interested, I found what appears to be a very good article on lawn problems as related to dogs:

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/turf/dog_lawn_problems.html

This might be helpful as well:

http://www.lawngrasses.com/dog-traffic/

Anyone here have any experience with Kentucky Bluegrass?

 

[Java]

In your research, were you able to find any dog urine resistant grass?

 

[Brien]

We have fescue grass for our lawn. But your options are going to be dictate by your location/climate. I'd just ask someone at your local garden center what would be durable for your area.

 

[weed30]

Re: Need help choosing a strong grass for the yard

Zoysia will hold up against a lot of dog running abuse. The downside of zoysia, and it's a big one, is that in colder climates, it is brown from about September to March. So your choice is to have a yard with areas of zero grass, (fescue, Kentucky Bluegrass, which are often too tender for romping dogs), or Zoysia, an entire yard of grass that looks dead half of the year. I live in St. Louis, which is zone 5/6. Definitely not as cold as Minnesota, but we get a good 4 - 5 months of winter. The zoysia survives just fine, just looks like h*ll during the cold months.

Photo of dormant Zoysia in a cold climate


Scroll down for info about Zoysia and alternatives in cold climates

 

[beaglechaser]

Re: Need help choosing a strong grass for the yard

Originally Posted By: rad's zooAnyone here have any experience with Kentucky Bluegrass?

My in-laws had kentucky blue grass, it tends to brown out in the winter.

 

[randyc]

Re: Need help choosing a strong grass for the yard

My grass in the front of the condo is DESTROYED. It's a big brown circle that's been trampled to death. And when it rains, it's mud city. I plan on reseeding and putting them in the back when not going for walks in the next few weeks. Give the front lawn a break. It was nice having them in the front yard last year while working on the bike, cleaning the garage, etc. But it took it's toll!

 

[rad]

Originally Posted By: Java & Lilo!In your research, were you able to find any dog urine resistant grass?

Read the article that I first linked to. It has a lot to say about that.

 

[rad]

Brown doesn't bother me. The only place we have grass is the back yard. The front of the house is right up against the sidewalk. I found another adaptation map for zoysia:

http://www.zoysias.com/adaptation/adapt-map.html

According to it, we would be right in the middle of yellow zone.

For those of you with zoysia, how durable is it when it browns? If I decide to go with it then it is likely that it would be brown for much of the year and be taking a beating from the dogs. Also, how well does it tolerate dog urine, particularly from females as they tend to squat?

 

[Murphys Dad]

We don't have zoysia now, but did at our previous house. It held up well when it was brown, and we had three dogs then. At one time during that period we had two female dogs, and I don't remember their urine affecting the grass.

 

[rad]

Thanks, Sandy. That's good to know.

I think at this point we will probably try seeding with Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass. I will look into the price of zoysia sod in my area as well, but due to available funds I will have to go with something in seed form that I can have established in a short time. If I tried zoysia from seed it seems that I would have half the yard fenced off for the summer. Mrs Rad would not be happy about losing half of what little yard we have when she has three kids and two dogs going stir-crazy. Once established I will probably overseed it.

Thanks for the help everyone.