Tall fescue. It does fairly OK in compacted red dirt.
IT's green year round, won't creep into your beds, isn't catagorized as an invasive species, affordable to seed, don't need monthly fertilizer can be on an organic program, doesn't need that much mowing in the summer especially if it goes dormant so you wont have to mow in the hot weather. Just one problem, it needs water in full sun and that's one resource that georgia doesn't seem to have. I would suggest planting tulip poplars and green ash trees around your grassed area to provide shade so that you can have a nice lawn. If you don't want to go through that trouble then p.rye will be a nice lawn for 9 months of the year and you'll have to reseed it each year and have bare dirt during the summer.

I had a lawn that was TTPR (mostly Lesco's "Double Eagle") with some FF and KBG and I loved it. With proper (deep) watering it was dark green all through many 90-100 degree, humid NY summers. I regularly got accused of cheating on water restrictions, but I didn't cheat. The GA summers are longer but I think proper cultural habits will get you through. It was the winter kill that eventually made me give up on TTPR, but you'll never see the subzero temperatures that cause that. Yes, it doesn't spread and you need to touch-it-up every year. I personally think that TTPR is the best lawn that can be had on a budget, I really do. Especially if the other lawns in your neighborhood are lighter-colored, you won't mind mowing - you'll be showing it off.

Athens, GA...one of my favorite places ever. I'm from Augusta originally. Your summer temps are similar to what we experience here.

Anyway, it depends what you can live with and how much you have to invest with time and funds. Warm season grasses like Centipede, Zoysia, St. Augustine would do well there and are more manageable after being established, and the runners can be curtailed with certain efforts.

Cool season grass like TT would be green all year, but you'd have to re-seed every fall like I do but as was said above would not be invasive at all.

Your choice, and there will be more posters giving advice coming along soon.

Go Dawgs!!

Thanks everyone. I have established Zoysia in the front yard from the previous owner and like it, but its not in the budget to sprig the backyard!

I had pretty much decided on TTPR and my brother is trying to talk me out of it, especially since we may not have the ability to water often this summer.

Then, I had decided on the centipede and now my dad is trying to talk me out of that and into using St. Augustine.

See what I mean - I know there is no silver bullet but I wish there was only one answer!!

Do you think it would be any different if you asked everyone what kind of car you should buy? Listen to the input from everyone, and then do what YOU want to do. You're the one that will be taking care of it.

If you can't afford zoysia, how can you afford st. augustine?

Don't even bother seeding prg until october.

I have a solution for you. There is a species of grass used on golf courses that is gaining popularity as a home turf. It's very drought tolerant warm season grass called seashore paspalum. They are growing it at the uga turf sciences lab in newnan. It's a native grass to coastal areas. The seed and plugs are not widely available or cheap but look into into.

Paspalum is considered very aggressive, and the owners of any adjoining lawns may not see your choice in the same light that you do. On a golf course that isn't a problem. Be careful.

sounds silly but cheap and effective:

get a bulb planter, (the long one you use your foot to press into the ground, the hand model is not sufficient for this use) and some dirt.

use the bulb planter to cut little plugs out of your existing zoysia front yard. ten inches apart all over the front yard. toss in a handful of dirt into each hole. the zoysia will spread over them quickly enough and depending on the size of your front yard youve got hundreds of zoysia plugs just waiting to go into your backyard. plant those ten inches apart and with good fert and water your backyard will be filled in for free by the end of summer. ive used this technique on centipede, st. aug, and bermuda with great results and see no reason it wont work with zoysia too.

Zoysia is a pretty grass ... slow growing, but pretty. The idea above is worth some merit, and from a cost perspective couldn't be a better solution for you, or buy some zoysia sod and do the same thing as above for the back, in otherwords sprig it. if you choose this way be sure to Round-Up all the weeds first, roughup the soil.

Also, you might want to check-in with the poster here called texas-weed for added thoughts. He knows a lot about warm-season grasses.

I'll second chad_la's opinion. Create your own Zoysia plugs with the grass in the front yard. At most big box stores for less than $20 you can get a tool made for pulling up 3"x3" plugs of grass. I've used it for St Aug in Birmingham. It'll work for your Zoysia, although depending on the type of Zoysia and how far apart you spread out the plugs, it will take a while to fill in. Based on your post, you want low cost and low maintenance, so I think plugging your Zoysia is your best option.

If your Zoysia is Emerald (very fine leaf blade) it will spread out extremely slowly. If it is Meyer aka Z-52 (coarser leaf blade), then it will spread out faster, but still take a while. As for how long, I think I've read that Zoysia spreads out around 6" per year.

I think it's too hot for TTPR in Athens unless you don't mind watering (more maintenance) and occassional overseeding (more money).

Chad_la . . . that is an absolutely brilliant idea! See - that is why I posted here! You guys are full of good ideas! Not only could I produce free grass plugs, it will give me the opportunity to intruduce some organic matter in the front yard by filling the holes with compost!

I am afraid that I have the slow growing Zoysia since it is a very fine leaf. What do you think about plugging zoysia at 8"x8" grid and overseeding lightly with TTPR? The TTPR could fill in the gaps. Since the TTPR doesn't spread very much, as it sucumbs over time to summer kill and drought . . . the zoysia will fill in. I think this summer would be a good time to do this because we are due for some la nina rain and might not have as many watering restrictions.

Thanks guys!

I wouldn't use compost to fill in holes because they are purely organic matter that will disappear after few months and you end up with lumpy lawn. Stick with topsoil.

If you can clear the soil and prepare the site adequately, why not just seed with zoysia in the summer.

lou is right, who is agreeing with who here? LOLOL stick to topsoil.

site preparation for seed is a hassle, overall results wont be as good as quick, and the cost/time element is great. the last step-style bulb planter i bought i think was maybe??? 15 bucks? add the cost of a 12 pack of beer to drink while you do the work for 30 bucks youve got a new backyard. if you dont like beer and a neighbor has a planter you can borrow...

a total lawn rennovation done right is a lot of work and expensive. seeding the backyard, (btw.. ive never used zoysia seed, never looked for it for that matter either)
first you will want to spray glyphosate over everything where you want to rennovate, wait two weeks and spray again, two weeks after that drag the area clean with a tractor and a box blade. (if u want a sprinkler system now is the time) bring in some topsoil if you need to and drag that out level or you can come in with a tiller and just till existing soil up and then level and plant seed. roll it out and water it twice a day every day for a month. never let it get dry till the grass has been mowed twice.
weeds will be a huge headache. that newly prepped seedbed is a haven for every weed seed to come by and they will compete with your new seedlings. rabbits love baby grass too. if you have a hot dry summer that new grass will take a beating . you can forget pre and post emergent herbicides - turf needs to survive its first winter before applying chemicals. is more susceptible to chem burn otherwise.

(this bulb planter idea is starting to sound even better isnt it?)

Well - now it is almost May and I am actually getting around to starting this project. The bulb planter and 12 pack sound like a brilliant idea . . . however . . . as it turns out, the front yard is not quite the beautiful established zoysia that I advertised. O how my memory was blinded by the winter. Now that it has warmed up, the front is doing okay, but last summer's drought was hard on it and it is full of weeds. I will spend the summer babying the front yard while trying to establish something in the back yard.

I am thinking of sucking it up and getting a pallet of turf and then cutting into smaller squares to sprig the back in lieu of the homemade plugs.

What do I get? I am not interested in bermuda grass.

iforgotitsonevermind said:

If you can clear the soil and prepare the site adequately, why not just seed with zoysia in the summer.

That is mighty QUIRKY of you don't you think?

Not interested in seeding after considering all the work involved.

Katybug said:

Not interested in seeding after considering all the work involved.

Huh?

Laying sod is more work. They both take the same amount of prep work. Spreading a few pounds of seed is a lot easier than laying 2 or more tons of sod. My aching back.