i don't know how to fix

[BS1190]

Here is the deal-customer has sod that is mostly kentuncy bluegrass. The have couple of dogs. Throughout the years they have patched the brown spots created by the dogs. They used a variety of different patch seeds throughout the year therefore they have clumps of grass that are different then the sod. They now have the dogs confined to just a small area of the yard and would like to get the lawn looking nice again.

I am faced with a couple of problems. First, the areas where there is still the original sod, the grass doesn't' look real good. It is thin and has a lot of brown in it. There is clumps of grass, I think tall fescue, mixed throughout a lot of the lawn.

There is just one area that looks good. It is not the original sod, but I think it is Kentucky bluegrass. It is a small area.

I don't know if I should kill off all the grass and start new. Or I should kill, or rip out the fescue, seed with k. bluegrass and then overseed the existing k. bluegrass with more seed.

The soil in the area is sandy. The yard is fertilized regularly. It has not been aerated in a while but it was dethatched in the spring. Any suggestions?

Pic 1 -the original sod
Pic 2 - fescue clump
Pic 3 - overview of lawn. lower right is the good k. bluegrass. above is the thin sod with the clumps of fescue
Pic 4 - up close of the k. bluegrass that I think looks good. It hasn't't't been mowed yet, so a but long. But this is what I would like the whole yard to look like. It is not the sod, but patch that was just to fix an area the dogs destroyed.

[baddboygeorge]

Kill it all out an powerseed in with a good quality fescue , apply starter fert an water the hell out of it for 3 weeks , good luck

[BS1190]

why fescue? what type?

[baddboygeorge]

cause fescue is a lot more durable than bluegrass, bluegrass is great if you have irrigation it cant handle the heat well without water. Fescue on the other hand is tough, it doesnt require alot of water , it can handle the heat , an also can handle the wear an tear of kids pets etc.I have used a blend for years an it has worked well,,,, rembrant,bonsai an millenium is the blend i use,,,,

[Smallaxe]

Fescue doesn't give the color and the density that people want to see. If the dogs are locked away, the KBG is fine. We always use a mix , including creeping red fescue, and perennial ryegrass.

I would roundup the clumps and overseed the whole thing with a mixture.

[RigglePLC]

Resod. But buy top quality sod. Costs more and its worth it. Inspect the sod in advance for any signs of poa, weeds, disease, grubs uniformity. Better if grown from certified seed. Better if modern disease-resistant, top-scoring varieties. Midnight II, Northstar, Limousine.

[turfcobob]

How many spots are we talking here. It looks like maybe 30 or so. If it was my lawn I would kill the spots. Fescue is tough and if you dig it up the roots will come back so you have to kill it. Be careful on the kill just to get the fescue or whatever. In a week or so once the kill has taken do this. Get a sod cutter and remove the dead / dying turf. See how much sod you need. Go to an out of the way place in the lawn like a back fence line or somewhere less travelled and remove enough sod to do the repairs. I have gone to the back of the orginal lawn and removed sod. Keep the depth setting the same so there is not step. Use this orginal grass / sod to do your repairs. Sprinkle a little fert( I use liquid miriacle grow ) and water it into the soil in the repair holes. This will help the new repair sod to root in faster. When you are done you will have repaired the lawn with the orginal mix. You can then go to the place you got the repair sod from, chop up the dead stuff you removed rake it into this place and reseed.

We have repaired ball fields this way. High traffic areas suffer. We remove it go to the outfield get some sod, replace it with the outfield sod. Put the worn stuff in the outfield and reseed it. Next year it is healthy sod.