Do you want the bad news, or the bad news? Starting a new lawn from scratch requires you to water your seed, all of it, a few times a day, for at least a week (more for Kentucky bluegrass), and usually once a day for 2 more weeks. You can accomplish this with hoses, sprinklers and timers, but on an acre of land, it's going to take a lot of hoses and sprinklers. The only possible way around this is with a dormant seeding in the late fall, and hopefully it will all germinate via natural rainfall in the spring, but this is not guaranteed, and you might be left with a thin weedy lawn. I strongly urge you to consider putting in a sprinkler system now when there is no grass, and they are preparing the seed bed. As far as types of seed, that's a little more in depth, but you would be well advised to have at least some of your seed be Kentucky bluegrass.

Thanks for the reply, tiemco. Yes, I am prepared to water the new seed at least twice a day. I actually replanted the backyard at the current house quite a few years ago (didn't do enough research to select a good seed, just bought "whatever" at the local garden store). That was done in the fall, so I realize I will probably need to water more often, depending on weather, doing it in late/spring early summer, but an entire summer with a yard of dirt and mud with dogs and a toddler running around out there isn't really an option for me :-)

One of my friends that recently did his yard himself did it by using snow fence posts and mounting cheap sprinkler heads to them and connecting the sprinkler heads w/ the cheapest Wal-mart 50ft hoses money could buy. He got the cheap sprinkler heads from Menards for 3 for $10. Then, he connected the hoses to 4-into-1 manifolds. He used a combination of a very cheap on/off timer valve connected right off the faucet on the house and cheap digital timer to alert when time was up so he could switch to the next circuit. He usually ran 3 sprinkler heads at once.

I am aware of how it's done with hoses and sprinklers, but how many square feet are we talking? If it's an acre (46K square feet) you will need a lot of hose, and very good water pressure.

I would move the house about 800 miles due south where you can grow warm season grass like Bermuda that holds up to traffic and does not need a lot of water.

Yes, it will be a decent amount of hose. Water pressure will be fine, the sprinklers will be run in stages, not all at once. That is what the manifolds are for, to easily turn on and off the sprinklers a section at a time without having to walk on the freshly planted seed.

Does anyone have any seed selection recommendations for me?? I am open to any kind of TTTF or KBG, whatever would work best and give me the lawn that I am looking for...

Thanks!!

>"Does anyone have any seed selection recommendations for me?? I am open to any kind of TTTF or KBG, whatever would work best and give me the lawn that I am looking for..."

Hmmmmm, what's he looking for, I ask myself? So I read -

>"I am looking for the best looking lawn possible - with somewhat minimal work."
>"I do not anticipate having the time or dedication to water the entire backyard adequately"
>"I am looking for a great looking lawn that will hold up to some abuse with kids and pets running around."

Like tiemco asked, "Do you want the bad news, or the BAD NEWS?"

A lawn without proper care and attention (i.e. "minimal work" & lack of "time and dedicattion") , then kids and pets tearing into it .... sorry, that aint going to happen.

Even if the sod fairy came one night and you woke up to the most beautiful lawn you ever seen ... it won't make it because even mature sod still requires proper care and attention. If you can't maintain a sodded lawn, no way will you be able to grow a seeded lawn - especially during summer.

I'm sorry, but you need to re reconsider things.

I'm sorry, apparently I am doing a very poor job of conveying my question! :-(
What I meant when I said a minimal amount of time, and not putting forth the time and effort to water the entire backyard adequately, I was referring to AFTER the lawn was established. I have redone the entire backyard of the current house from seed, and I am well aware of the time, effort and dedication it will be to get the new lawn established.

However, once the lawn is established, in future summers after this year, I will probably focus most of my watering efforts on the front yard, and the portions of the backyard closest to the house, and let the further areas of the backyard go dormant in times of draught.

So, knowing that, and knowing that the yard will see a decent amount of use (again once established), my question is, what seed selection will give me the best results for my circumstances??

And also, sounds like I need to clear up what I mean about investing a minimal amount of time and effort once it is established. What I am saying is the least amount of time and effort to still have a healthy lawn! I am well aware of things like keeping the lawn as high as my mower allows, cutting no more than a third of its length, adequate fertilizer, and an inch of water a week.
What I am asking for is a seed selection, that will look very nice, be able to hold up to a moderate amount of wear, and ideally if possible, to handle periods of draught with the least amount of watering.

I am well aware of what is necessary to take care of a lawn. I have taken care of the lawn at my current house for many years. What I am asking for is the best seed selection to help me best obtain my goals.

Thanks again for everyone's help!!!

I wish I could tell you seed selection was an easy process, but if you really want the best, then it isn't. Most people go to HD or Lowes and buy a bag that they think will work for them. This is usually the worst way to do so, as most big box mixes are poorly thought out, and contain older mediocre cultivars. There are usually one of two stand outs, but you generally pay more than you should for them anyway. One exception to this is the mixes and blends Lesco/John Deere Landscapes sells. They often contain good cultivars that were picked for your area. Now the best can mean different things to different people. For you it seems that drought tolerance is a big deal. Being in WI means you can grow any of the cool season grasses with no trouble, but if it was my lawn, it would be either all KBG, or a TTTF/KBG blend. PR looks great by itself, and I wouldn't rule it out, but it can be a bit thirstier, requires a bit more frequent mowing, and needs to be periodically overseeded as it has no real spreading ability outside of the new stoloniferous varieties. So once you settle on what you want to grow, then you have to pick the cultivars. Fortunately there is a nationwide trial for turfgrasses called the NTEP. The results are published yearly. One of the testing stations is in Madison. They test many different qualities, color, texture, turf quality, disease resistance, drought tolerance, etc. so you can decide which ones would be right for you (www.ntep.org). Unfortunately the KBG trials in Madison are mowed at fairway heights, so the results aren't ideal. You might want to focus on the Urbana IL site since it is more representative of home lawn conditions, and it's pretty close to where you live. Ames IA might be better too. For TF you can look at the Madison results since they mow at lawn heights. If you decide to go all KBG then there are considerations that must be made since the standard is using three or more "types" of KBG in order to have a genetically diverse lawn. There is a school of thought however that some of the newer varieties are disease tolerant enough that you can plant just one variety (called a monostand) without worrying about it. If you go TTTF or TTTF/KBG you will only need one KBG variety, and one TTTF, although some people choose to blend a few TTTF cultivars. Be forewarned that you might have your grass all picked out only to discover that sourcing it is impossible. You have enough square footage however that you will probably have to buy a large enough amount that you can get it directly from the grower. So poke around the NTEP a bit, and if you need help let us know. If that is a bit too involved for you I recommend seeing what Lesco has to offer in your area.

>"dormant in times of drought"

OK

Turf Type Tall Fescue *withstands* drought better than others, but it will not go dormant. It just dies without water during periods of drought.

Kentucky Bluegrass will go dormant during times of drought, then recover on its own after the stress of summer's heat and drought.

Knowing your intentions for the rear, I certainly would NOT invest in elite KBG for the back. I'd get 50Lbs of common KBG for about $70 for the ability of recovering after stress and its ability to spread and fill any voids. It will be "just grass", but it will be KBG. See link below.

While on the phone with Pawnee Buttes (ask for Dennis) discuss the elite KBG's for your front yards if you would care for KBG.

Blue Velvet
Bewitched
Prosperity
would be beautiful and do well in NTEP.org trials at U of W Madison.

33% of each.

New lawns require 3Lbs of seed per 1000ft2 and do request "sod quality seed" for purity. It's well worth the 20 cents a pound more.

*BUT* seeding with elites during early summer is like trowing money out the window. Prep the area! Fallow the front lawn by watering it regularly and allowing weeds to germinate. Then kill the weeds with Round Up and repeat fallowing and kill as needed during June, July and early August.

No, you will not have a lawn in front for most of the summer, but the pay off is worth that. Just deal with it.

Seed mid August. By labor Day, the nights are cooling off and you'll be caring for new seedlings. (expect and assume 10 to 30 days for KBG germination)

Tiemco - thoughts?

Here is a link that might be useful: Pawnee Buttes

Good points about the back yard, but I would probably steer away from common. There are several cultivars beneath elite that are much improved over the common but not as finicky as the elites. Rush is one cultivar that might be worth looking at due to it's long growing season, quick green up, and aggressive nature, there are others as well. That front yard mix is a winner, but not sure how drought tolerant it is, if that is a concern for the front. I would also wait till August to seed if the OP had an existing yard, but since it is a new construction, and it will be bare dirt, erosion might be a big concern. If you do seed in spring being in WI is a plus, but I know it can get plenty hot there. Just hope for a cool summer with lots of light rainy days, but as we all know you can't bet on the weather.

Rush and the others are an option that I didn't consider because of price.

He has 1.3 acres, so just for conversation, lets assume 30K ft2 in back. That's 90 lbs of seed - make it 100 Lbs to make it two full bags and to have some extra left over.

So add an additional $200 plus to commons price ... for a dog ... (to pi** on)

Sounds to me like he just wants something green , just grass in the back ... for a dog ... (to pi** on)

Please Gary, the guy just built a house, I think he can swing 300 extra bucks for seed. Hell I paid $360 for 10 lbs of poa supina last year! Seriously though, it's the OP's choice, I think we have given him some things to think about. If you think about it, TTTF would be easier to grow out back, and perennial rye would be ready for a mowing at about three weeks, so he would save on water bills there. Of course then you worry about cold kill, and PR and TTTF need periodic overseeding.

Understood.

Let's see what the OP has to say.

Thanks, guys, I really appreciate the feedback!!
The price of the seed shouldn't be an issue. The cost of the seed will be a small portion of the cost with the top soil, landscaping, etc, and a very tiny portion of the cost of the house in general. I am definitely looking at the big picture and don't want to skimp on the seed if it helps me get what I want, which is why I came on here instead of just buying "whatever" from big box stores :-)

I am definitely looking for more than "just grass" for the backyard. In my mind, the front yard is for my neighbors and everyone else to look at, the backyard is where I will spend most of my time outside, and will be looking at everyday from the kitchen and living room windows :-) At the same time, I realize that I have some limitations with the dogs, kids, and the size of the backyard for irrigation (once it is established).

I do have some questions about the seed selections you mentioned. Gary mentioned the Bewitched, Blue Velvet, and Prosperity mix for the front yard. Tiemco suggested Rush "and others" for the backyard. I understand that the seeds Gary mentioned for the front yard are "elite" whereas the seeds Tiemco mentioned for the backyard are a step below elite, but above "common". What are the pro's and cons of the elite blend vs the middle ground blend? Is it the "look" of the elite vs a slightly more robust selection of the "middle grade" with a slight trade off in appearance?

Also, if I were to go with the middle ground for the backyard, what would be good selections to compliment the Rush??

Thanks again for the feedback guys, I greatly appreciate it!!!! Sorry for the delay in my response!

I also have a question regarding the UTEP.org site. I looked at the results for Urbana, IL, Madison, WI, and Ames, IA. I understand that Tiemco mentioned that Madison's KBG results are not as applicable because they are mowed at fairway height vs 2.5-3" heights, I completely believe you, I am just curious where this information is listed.. I didn't see any info regarding height? Just trying to learn :-)

Also, when reading the charts, I understand the "Genetic color" category, the "Spring Greenup", and the "Percent Coverage" categories, but, what exactly is the "Quality Ratings" exactly trying to convey?? Also, how much is the turf at the locations watered? Just the standard 1" per week? Is there any category that would help determine the drought resistance, or wear resistance / regenerative abilities?

Thanks again for all the help, it is MUCH appreciated!!

Technically those are all elite, as is Rush, but when I hear elite, I think the best of the best. Elite cultivars are ones that have been bred to be the best appearing and performing cultivars. Almost all the KBG you buy today is elite, but some are darker than others. The blend Gary mentioned is composed of three of the darkest KBG's you can buy from three of the main groups that blend well together (Compact, Compact America, and Compact Midnight). Here is what Rutgers has to say about elite, improved, and common.
http://www.cpe.rutgers.edu/brochures/pdfs/athletic-field/Kentucky-Bluegrass-for-Sports-Fields.pdf
For your backyard you will be using elites, but you might pick ones that tolerate traffic better, or spread faster, or resist drought better rather than look the best. For complimenting Rush, it might be best not to look at the darkest ones available, although most of the compact midnights are so close gentically that they are all pretty dark. Rush is labeled as an aggressive cultivar, that might be something you like, but it can dominate a stand over time if the others you used have some die off. I like it's longer growing season and early green up, but there are others out there that perform similarly like 4 Seasons. When all is said and done, most elite KBG lawns are going to be nice if they are properly cared for.

The information on the conditions of each trial site are listed in the first few pages of each report. You will also find other data regarding the site including irrigation practices. It's page 8 of the pdf. Quality ratings are a bit subjective, it's basically an overall assessment of turf quality by combining many attributes of the grass, i.e. color, texture, density, etc. It's like if you looked at a house, and you said on a scale of 1-9 (don't ask me why NTEP used 9 not 10) what is the overall score of the house and you said it's a 7. Now if you then pick apart the attributes, say the roof is a 9, but the paint is a 6, and the driveway is a 7.5. It's not the best analogy, but I think it helps explain it. I think somewhere on the NTEP site they tell how the graders rate the grass. In that pdf there are trials for drought, and traffic tolerance that you must have missed. Also, not every cultivar is tested. Sometimes you have to look back to 2000 to see ones that weren't tested in 2005.

Thanks, Tiemco!! As much as I would like a super dark lawn, you are correct, drought tolerance and traffic tolerance is definitely a priority, especially in the back yard, and especially if the color "is still pretty dark"...

I need a little more help with the NTEP.org site... I don't see the reports, I am only finding data, plain text with a few categories, nothing mentioning more info. It's not a PDF..
For example, this is what I see when I click on the 2008 data information for KBG for the Urbana, IL location:
http://www.ntep.org/data/kb05/kb05_09-10/kb05il108t.txt

Any other varieties other than Rush and 4 Seasons I should look into for the backyard, knowing my priorities?

Thanks again for all your help, it is much appreciated!!

You are not looking at the correct report. Instead of just giving you the pdf, I will walk you through how to get to all of them.
Go to www.ntep.org then click on the green "If you agree to the above statement,Click Here to ENTER." Then click on the green "All NTEP Reports/Select A Turfgrass Species" then click on the green "Ky. Bluegrass - High Input" then click on the test you want to look at (always look at the tests with the most years of data or the final report). Then click on the pink "Printable Version". This will open the complete trial, including all the subtrials.

I only recommended Rush and 4 Seasons based on their early green up and long growing seasons. You won't find Rush in the NTEP's, as it just came out and will be included in the new trials that start this year. The NTEP's are mainly a way for the seed growers to compare what they offer to other cultivars on the market without having to do all the legwork themselves. Every new cultivar in the NTEP's has already been tested by the growers to an extent, and they basically know their characteristics in their main growing location(s). Rush's growers obviously have a good cultivar, as they are selling it, but the NTEP data will be used to back up its qualities. There are hundreds of cultivars that ultimately you will need to chose from after going over the NTEP's. Incidentally, most compact midnights have slow spring green ups, so while that front yard blend mentioned earlier will look great in late spring and early fall, it will not be so great in March unless we continue to have Marches like this year. The compact and compact America's however tend to have better SGU, but that's just the nature of the beast. So the yard will consistent get greener and greener as spring progresses until all three cultivars are running at full speed.

Thanks for pointing me in the direction of the correct info, Teimco!! I looked it over, and have some questions...

I looked at the drought, wear, spring greenup, texture, and color rankings at some sites, and also the overall performance at both the IA and IL sites. Initially, it appeared to me that Barvette HGT had very very good wear properties in the study done at East Lansing MI (pg 39 in the PDF viewer, and East Lansing is also a pretty comparable climate to mine). However, when they rank them by all sites for wear resistance (pg 63 in the PDF viewer), it did pretty poorly... Am I reading these results correctly, or is it simply a case of it doing well at one site and poorly at other sites?? Before being confused by this, I THOUGHT I had a pretty good idea of seed selection for the backyard... I was thinking of mixing Rugby II (good drought tolerance, decent leaf texture and spring greenup), Barvette HGT (great wear resistance - so I thought - nice leaf texture, and nice spring greenup ratings), and Bewtiched (good shade performance, relatively speaking - there will be some shade in the yard eventually as the trees mature, and from the shadow of the house - decent texture and great color ratings)

What is your opinion of a mix like that?? Am I trying to mix correctly - picking one seed variety that excels in one area, supplementing with other seeds that excel in other areas so that overall lawn will excel in all areas? What is your opinion of these cultivators? How would they do compared to say "Rush" and "4 Season"? Do you think I will have trouble obtaining these cultivators?

I won't be offended if you tell me that my ideas are garbage and to try something else if that is how you feel :-)

OK, there are a few ways to apply traffic to a stand of grass, and NTEP has three traffic locations (North Brunswick, Madison WI, and East Lansing MI). Here is a summary on what was done at each site:

Traffic tolerance was evaluated at three locations in 2010, using different types of traffic simulators. The North Brunswick, NJ location (Rutgers University) applied traffic in May 2010, nine months after the last traffic �season�, using the "Slapper," which causes leaf abrasions but not soil compaction. The entries that rated 6.0 or higher (scale is 1-9; 9=best) after the May simulation include �Greenteam�, �BAR VV 0709', �Bariris�, �BAR VV 9630�, �Sombrero�, �Emblem� and �Julia�. Canopy fullness, expressed as a percentage, was evaluated after the initial 36 passes of wear on May 6th. All of the above entries plus �CPP 822� and �Barduke� had the highest canopy fullness ratings (51.7 to 71.7%).

Compaction was applied to the Rutgers trial on May 6, and percent ground cover was rated 8, 22 and 49 days after the compaction and wear treatments. �Greenteam� had the highest canopy fullness ratings eight days after traffic, with �BAR VV 0709� having the highest canopy fullness ratings 22 and 49 days after treatment.

Traffic tolerance was also evaluated at East Lansing, MI in 2010. Michigan saw much damage from the traffic, applied in fall 2009 and again in late summer 2010, using the Brinkman simulator, which compacts the soil as well as causing plant shearing. Cultivar separation as shown in overall turf quality ratings was not that large, with just over one-half of the entries performing statistically equivalent to the top entry, �BAR VV 0709�. However, as in the Rutgers trial, �BAR VV 0709� exhibited outstanding traffic tolerance by finishing with the highest percent ground cover in five of seven rating dates. Entries also showing high percent cover ratings on one or more dates include �Skye�, �Washington� and �Washington II�.

The Madison, WI location used a pull-behind cart of water-filled drums with golf cart tires to impose traffic stress. This led to excellent cultivars differences, led by �SW AG 514�, �Harmonie�, �Sombrero�, �Greenteam� and �Dynamo�. Interestingly, most of the traffic tolerant grasses were also the best performers where no traffic was applied."

Most of these tests simulate things like a football or soccer game, although the Madison location is more like golf course traffic, so these trials can be taken with a grain of salt. As long as you are in the top half I think most cultivars will tolerate a dog and a few kids running around, unless you have 18 kids like the Duggars. Rutgers gives a summary of some good traffic tolerant cultivars in this link, but it's from the 2000 trial: http://www.cpe.rutgers.edu/brochures/pdfs/athletic-field/Kentucky-Bluegrass-for-Sports-Fields.pdf

Keep in mind you can't get every cultivar, unless you buy a 50 lb. bag from the grower or a distributor. I have never seen Barvette for sale, and most of Barenbrug's cultivars (names starting with Bar-) aren't available individually unless you buy a lot. Also the 2005 shade trial was a bust, and those numbers represent only one year of data. It was too shady and the test was stopped prematurely. The 2000 shade test is much better as it encompassed all 5 years, but unfortunately it didn't contain some of today's newest cultivars. The number one cultivar was Brilliant, which was discontinued due to its low seed yields. It's unfortunate as it is a really good cultivar. I have found one source if you are interested, but you will want to use a bit more than usual as germination percentage has dropped a bit due to age (70% as compared to 85%). As a rule most compact midnights have poor shade tolerance (Nuglade being an exception, but it's not in the top ten). Compact America's generally have better shade performance. Also cultivar techsheets often tout a cultivar's best qualities, and often shade tolerance is mentioned if it's good.
Mixing cultivars is not about attibutes, but more about picking different groups of KBG to increase genetic diversity. There are many groups (compact, compact midnight, compact america, aggressive, mid-atlantic, shamrock, etc.) Here's a list of many cultivars and what group they fall into, although Prosperity is a compact american: http://www.sroseed.com/IdeasInPlay/PDF_articles/KentBlueClass.pdf

For great lawns in sunny areas, most people do a 33% of the compact cultivars. This was and still is the convention, but some of the newer cultivars have enough disease resistance that some turfgrass scientists are not against planting just one cultivar, which will give a more consistent look (http://buckeyeturf.osu.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1067:kentucky-bluegrass-cultivars&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=170).

As you can see, it can get pretty involved, and I know a few people that went the monostand route with no real issues, but they are a bit more involved with lawn care than most. My advice to you is to pick 4 or 5 cultivars from each of the major groups (compacts, aggressive, and maybe the midatlantics) that meet your number one criteria. Then see where they fall in your number 2 and 3 criteria. This will probably narrow it down so you have a few from each that you will be able to find for sale. Or you can just screw all that and pick one cultivar that performs well across the board and has good disease resistance. Whatever you do, don't buy anything from HD, Lowes or Walmart.

Thanks for all the info, Tiemco, it is greatly appreciated!!!

I did some more research and am curious on your opinion regarding a combination of Rugby II, Bewitched, and Hampton? That is two from the Compact group, and one from Compact Midnight group. They all seemed to do well in the general drought tests, as well as the testing at both the Ames, IA and Urbana, IL sites, which should be pretty representative of my climate and conditions.

Also, I looked into PureSeed (formerly Rose-AgriSeed) and Seed Research of Oregon. PureSeed has a "Jump Start" and a "PST 102 158" mix that they claim both do well in drought and traffic tolerance testing.
http://www.fraserseeds.com/upload/doc/TURF_VarietyList.pdf
SRO has a "World Cup" blend that is supposed to be good.
http://www.sroseed.com/find/showproduct.php?id=108

Do you know anything about these varieties or how they compare at all?

Thanks again for all the information, and all your help, it is GREATLY appreciated!!

-Derron

Here are my thoughts. Rugby II seems like a good choice for a compact midnight since what it lacks in color is made up for with drought and traffic tolerance. It doesn't have the greatest spring green up, but almost all compact midnights don't perform well in that category. 4 Seasons has the best of the CM's, and is pretty close to Rugby II in most categories, with better fall color in WI. The only glaring weakness is it's summer patch rating. Bewitched is a great cultivar, can't really go wrong with it. Hampton performs well too, but it's also a compact (I have never seen this for sale as a stand alone by the way). I would rather see you add a compact America instead of another compact. Here you could throw in Jump Start, or Mystere. Prosperity is another great choice as a CA although it is a very dark cultivar, and it's green-up lags Mystere and Jump Start. Those blends you mentioned are mixed by the growers (SRO and Pureseed are not retail seed sellers), and you probably won't find them unless you buy a 50 lb. bag. With regards to the wear tests, they are pretty extreme, I wouldn't base my decision that much on them unless you plan on having weekly soccer games.

Thanks for all your help, tiemco, I really appreciate it!!
Sorry for my long lapse for my response. Between work, moving, family, and trying to get everything with the new house in order and done soon, it's been a little overwhelming...

Anyways, If I were to go with a blend of Rugby II, Bewitched, and Jump Start, where would be good places to look to try and purchase these?
Also, I have been convinced to wait until mid-August to plant - the delay in the house being done helped, this way it will only be a bout a 4-5 week wait from the time we move in until we plant instead of a 2+ month wait from when the house was originally scheduled to be done...
They did the final rough grade two weeks ago. Because of the dry weather, there is zero weed growth so far... I imagine that will probably change though in the next month or two before I plant.
There is a decent amount of rock in the top soil. What is the best way to remove that? I know the most cost effective way is to rake and pick by hand, but that is going to take far too long with over an acre.. The most efficient way would be to pay someone to come out and do it, but that is not in the budget... Any ideas on a decently efficient, and decently cost effective solution?

Lastly (I hope!), after I lay down the seed with a spreader, and put down starter fertilizer, what should I do to help keep the seed moist? Put down straw? How much if so?
Thanks again!!
-Derron

This seller has all three, and I think they will mix it for you, especially if you are buying enough for an acre. Also, pay the extra for sod quality:

http://www.pawneebuttesseed.com/seedlist_turf.htm

The rocks I can't help you with. I'm sure their is some type of equipment or drag that would remove some of the bigger ones, but you're going to have to research that. Maybe a call to a landscaper or sod farm might give you some useful info on that.

Weeds will pop up with rains, you can almost bet on it. Just use round up on them as needed. Round-up can be used any time before seeding. Another herbicide you might consider before seeding is Tenacity. Some recent studies show that Tenacity greatly reduces weed pressure when seeding.

The best way to keep seed moist is watering lightly 3-4 times per day. Topdressing your seed with a very thin layer (no more than 1/4 inch) of either topsoil, compost, peat moss, or a combination will help keep them moist. The only straw I would use is shredded straw, and that can help as well, but you are looking at a lot of shredded straw, and you will have to spread that by hand.

Thanks for all the advice, tiemco!!

Looks like we will be moving into the house at the end of this week. Finally.
I am having a landscaper or two come and quote how much they would charge to remove the rocks and do the final grading of the soil. Also possibly spread and cover the seed that I provide (once I buy it from the site you gave me). I would like to do as much as possible myself, because it really isn't in the budget, but I am a little intimidated on the size of the yard (over an acre including the house, driveway, etc), and especially because the yard is not a simply flat level plot, so it will require some "finesse" to grade it correctly. The rough grade is complete and gives me something to go from, but still... I have found that I can rent a "Rock Hound" to remove the rock I have, but I will also need some additional top soil once the driveway is in I would expect. Once the rock is removed and the yard finish graded, I will water it (if this drought keeps up!) to get the weeds to germinate, then kill them with round up and plant the grass in the middle of August...

Hello,

Any updates on the status? I am in the same boat exactly and my house is being built in Ozaukee Co. It will be completed in August of this year, so I will be doing a lot of what Derron has done.

Derron, would you say it was a successful mix for WI weather/soil?

Thank you,

Max

Max - the jury is still out on the seed selection :-)

Unfortunately, I had some erosion problems. Both with some of the seed washing away, and with some of the top soil washing away and causing erosion tracks... As a result the germination and growth I did get was very thin at best.
I will be doing some re-seeding again early this spring, adding about 10% by weight of some annual rye, and using straw to help eliminate erosion.

d_bone, I hope you still will see this even though it is really old in the posting world. There was LOTS of great info here and I'm also building in Waukesha. We are getting to the seeding point and I was wondering if you can let me know what you ended up doing so maybe I can repeat success or avoid less-than-awesome results. Thanks!