Yard divits and low spots and such

[Jibs]

I had sod put down a couple years ago. I am kind of unhappy with how "not smooth" my yard has become. I have a lot of low spots and such which I am noticing is causing (somewhat) my grass to not get cut at a constant height. Overall my lot is completely flat. I read somewhere about "sanding" as in top dressing with 1/4" of sand to even out the yard. Is that a good option for a homeowner? The sod is bluegrass. I don't need an instant fix. I would prefer to handle it gradually so I dont have a million bare spots with seed on them all over the place. Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks

[T Edwards]

I don't know how deep or wide the depressions are in your yard, but you can shovel some topsoil in each and the grass will grow through it. Bags of it are available at any garden center.

[Jibs]

My yard was graded and that was followed by 2 weeks of rain, then the sprinkler guy came out when the ground was still pretty soft and drove all over. Then the sod went down after another week of rain. So my depressions are small, numerous, and wide spread throughout. They are actually hard to see until you get out and walk around barefoot.

[Green Care]

I did this the other day concrete people tore the yard up.

[F6Hawk]

Well, if you are not in a hurry..... I have been filling in low spots for over a year now. A little topsoil in a bucket when you mow makes it handy, that is when I usually notice the spots the most. Sand can be used, too, but my soil is already sandy, so I prefer topsoil.

My yard was graded and that was followed by 2 weeks of rain, then the sprinkler guy came out when the ground was still pretty soft and drove all over. Then the sod went down after another week of rain. So my depressions are small, numerous, and wide spread throughout. They are actually hard to see until you get out and walk around barefoot.

[kakuenzli]

I have the same problem in my yard when the guy installed my bermuda sod. Right now I am paying a landscaper to bury my downspouts because of the huge amounts of rain the roof collects. Next summer I am looking at the landscaper doing a process called terra-seeding....or something like that. In essence, he aerates the lawn and then sprays a mixture of sand, premium top soil, peat moss, etc. all over the yard to level out the low points and high points. According to the landscaper, it will take about two applications to throughly do the job well. Unfortunately, only one application per year and it costs approximately $2300 per application for equipment, labor, etc.

[Ben UK]

I have a similar problem with my lawn. I will be top dressing to fill in depressions next weekend. I have done some research into this and thought i would share it with you as it may help. I got this formula from the RHS website (Royal Horticultural Society) which is the foremost organisation of its kind in the UK. So i figured that what's good for them is fine for me.

I found that to buy bagged topsoil and pre-mixed top dressing is expensive so i considered making my own as i have spare topsoil available.

for Sandy Soil (mine)
Peat : 2 parts
Soil : 4 parts
Sand :1 part

dress to depth of 1/2" - 1" each time then use a tine rake lightly to bring the grass through.


Ben

[FIRESCOOBY]

Is there anyway to topdress Fescue? I have been told that fescue won't grow up through sand or topsoil.

If I can, how deep should I make it so the grass won't die?