just replying so this one will drop away. I replied to your other message.

You may as well leave the St Aug under the trees since it did well. The rest you can convert to bermuda. It will blend at the edge of the shady areas. Both will try to invade the other, so I hope your not a stickler for perfection. You can seed bermuda. Wait until late May to get started. Bermuda seed needs hot soil to germinate. TexasWeed will be along to help you pick a seed. You'll probably want to rent a verticutter (also known as a power rake, slit seeder, or ). They have vertically cutting blades that can be lowered to below the soil level. I'd take it to the soil level. Rip through everything and blow it into a compost pile. Then seed and roll it down. Water it 3x per day, every day, for 2-3 weeks until you think you have 80% germination. A month later you'll have a bermuda lawn. But wait until late May to even think about it. I know all you can find in the stores right now is bermuda seed, but it is waaaay to early. Zoysia needs as much water as St Aug to look good. If you let it languish, it will go dormant on you and only come back the following spring. Bermuda, on the other hand, will spring back at the first hint of rain or fog. Find the Bermuda Bible on the Internet. Read and heed.

Wow...what a beautiful house! Well, esh and bullthistle both have great suggestions...I don't know if I can add much to them. I do, however, think that $150/month is kind of a lot for a mow/blow company. You didn't mention what all services were included, but I'm guessing they are just the standard mowing/edging. I agree that you would probably do well to get some more prices. Especially if they have not contacted you in two months. Dethatching is a good call and you can do that yourself, if you don't mind a little elbow grease. Aerating is another good call; however, the equipment is pretty hefty and a little awkward to use if you have never done it before. Anytime when it is not too hot is usually OK, I think. Spring or fall. (BTW, I just LOVE the pretty mailbox and gaslight and they go perfectly with the style of your home.) I think your porch just screams for some pretty hanging baskets (ferns maybe?) or pots of color or low window boxes for the bottoms of those front windows. Something that would peek up over or around the nice boxwood "frame". It's also a good way to indulge your inner gardener without having to water a whole lawn right now. (I know it's probably a little frustrating wanting to get out there and garden, with a water ban on.) Heuchera would be a nice choice for the shaded porch...and there are lots of great colors. Caladiums, begonias, etc. Those traditional shade plants would be just beautiful with your traditional house. I like the already mentioned ideas about top dressing and ocllecting rainwater. Also planning your beds. There is a LOT you can do right now, on paper, even during the drought (easy for me to say, right? I'm not there!) :) There are lots of great shrubs you could try if you are really ready to get rid of the boxwoods. Frankly, I like them with the house, but I can understand you wanting to do YOUR thing...not necessarily the thing of the previous owners! :) Just beware of anything that will grow up too high...you have those low windows and you don't want to cover them up. I know junipers seem sort of ho-hum to some folks, but you can't beat the variety and the drought-tolerant-ness (tolerant-ness?). Or, like esh...I agree...just try replacing the ends only with something a little taller. Maybe a mid-height conifer...maybe in a lime-ier (lime-ier?), brighter green...maybe...arbovitae? False cypress? Something not too, too tall. Then plan a curvy bed. (Make them the same on both sides since you have a symmetrical structure) out around those end shrubs. Maybe...add one other different shrub just to the inside of both conifers...to sort of bridge the height between the conifer and the remaining boxwood. Then some drought-tolerant flowers in front of the whole thing inside the matching curvy beds. Put the same flowers maybe out by your mailbox. How exciting to have just moved into your new home! Congratulations and welcome to Georgia! My husband and I are transplants also (he from Lousiana, me from Mississippi).

Seed needs to remain moist to germinate and a little soluble N and K in the soil can help the emerged plant get a head start. And...Spring isn't the best of times for planting. And... it's not likely you are going to match seed. This definitely shouldn't become a habit for me, but what I would normally suggest might be a bit expensive for that small an area. Try a bottle or bag of Scotts EZseed. I believe it comes in a shade mix. With attention to watering, it is fool proof. If it wont grow, you have a major problem (like insufficient light). Calculate the sq footage you want to plant and get a container of EZ that states that it will cover that area. It's a bit expensive until you calculate the cost of seed, fertilizer and topdressing. One of the nice attributes is that it comes with its own topdressing that acts for moisture retention and as moisture indicator. (I, and others use peat moss). When the seed needs moistened, the topdressing (actually ground newsprint I believe) turns tan and turns brown when sufficient water is present.