Yeah, too much water. I think we explain that around here so often that we expect everyone to know. The question on watering was posed in this thread. At just about the halfway point. Meleca asked, "So the million dollar question is how much water is considered enough and how many times per week would be infrequent?" It is after that in the answers to the question that you will find some really great information. Sorry to send you searching through another thread, but it's all great to know. I can't account for the first half of the thread because I don't remember it and can't recall if it was about irrigation or not. Really beautiful landscape you have, by the way.

Actually I just found an article where they tested Fine Fescues on a Palo Alto golf course (Z9) in full sun. They stated that all remained green with irrigation. http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/pdf/8391.pdf My PH tested to slightly alkaline so I'll try lowering it a bit. My watering schedule was based on KBG also (about 3" per week) so I have reduced that also. Finally, I noticed that Lustrous did not do too well on the turf trials for mowed quality - just goes to show that you have to do your research if you are going for an above average lawn.

Dear Pretty Petals, Thank you very much for your inquiry. Tall fescue is a great choice in your area, and unless watered judiciously during the summer months, will go dormant and there is not much you can do, as you have learned. The good news is that is comes back (and most likely better than if you over water and it gets diseased and dies instead of just going dormant). I hope that makes sense. As for another grass, I am afraid that the other grass would need to be a warm season grass, most likely bermudagrass. I have seen this done and it can work, but you have to manage the yard for tall fescue, not bermudagrass (which means you will not fertilize the bermudagrass during the summer) otherwise the bermudagrass crowds out the tall fescue and during the fall/winter you will not be as happy. If you do use bermudagrass, go with a common bermudagrass. One word of caution, if you put bermudagrass in your lawn, there is no turning back, as this grass is impossible to eradicate. Perhaps you could describe how you manage the tall fescue and maybe there would be some things to prolong it into the summer months. Again, thanks for the question and let me know if you have more. Respectfully Trey Rogers, The Briggs & Stratton Yard Doctor, YardDoctor.com

Okay so you don't have prefect timing. Had you asked the question last August, timing would have been perfect and you could have done the reno. But if you follow the following guidelines, your weeds will be much nicer than anyone else's weeds. Basics of Lawn Care After reading numerous books and magazines on lawn care, caring for lawns at seven houses in my life, and reading numerous forums where real people write in to discuss their successes and failures, I have decided to side with the real people and dispense with the book and magazine authors. I don't know what star their planet rotates around but it's not mine. With that in mind, here is the collected wisdom of the Internet savvy homeowners and lawn care professionals summarized in a few words. If you follow the advice here you will have conquered at least 50% of all lawn problems. Once you have these three elements mastered, then you can worry about weeds (if you have any), dog spots, and striping your lawn. But if you are not doing these three things, they will be the first three things suggested for you to correct. Watering Water deeply and infrequently. Deeply means at least an inch in every zone, all at once. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. Do not spread this out and water for 10 minutes every day. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. If that does not work, then you might have to water more than once per week during the summer's hottest period. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds. You will have to learn to judge when to water your own lawn. If you live in El Paso your watering will be different than if you live in Vermont. Adjust your watering to your type of grass, temperature, humidity, wind, and soil type. It is worth noting that this technique is used successfully by professionals in Phoenix, so...just sayin.' The other factors make a difference. If you normally water 1 inch per week and you get 1/2 inch of rain, then adjust and water only 1/2 inch that week. Mowing Every week mulch mow at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. However, bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses will become the most dense when they are mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. In fact there are special mowers that can mow these grasses down to 1/16 inch. Dense grass shades out weeds, keeps the soil cooler, and uses less water than thin grass. Tall grass can feed the deep roots you developed in #1 above. Tall grass does not grow faster than short grass nor does it look shaggy sooner. Once all your grass is at the same height, tall grass just looks plush. Fertilizing Fertilize regularly. I fertilize 5 times per year using organic fertilizer. Which fertilizer you use is much less important than numbers 1 and 2 above. Follow the directions on the bag and do not overdo it. Too much is better than too little*. At this point you do not have to worry about weed and feed products - remember at this point you are just trying to grow grass, not perfect it. Besides once you are doing these three things correctly, your weed problems should go away without herbicide. * This used to read, "Too little is better than too much." Recent test results show that you cannot get too much organic fertilizer unless you bury the grass in it.