Hi there....personally...I would keep a small section for play for the kids and the pup. It does make for a nice area (but not 3500 sq ft). You do not need tons of room either. Though I have KBG, I have small sections of grass. I use Revive to keep it going....and other natural things...manure etc. For the most part, I usually only water once a week. Then again, I am a conservation freak...I have a 5 gal bucket in the shower to catch the water as the shower warms up.

You should explore other grasses. I do not know enough about it but I heard that Buffalo Grass is a good water saver (but needs sun). Check out High Country Gardens online. Maybe you can get a few plugs of it and test it out.

I agree that a small section of lawn (~1000 square feet) ought to be preserved for your kid and puppy. If your soil is like my parents' in Monument, it is seriously sandy... buffalo grass won't work on the sand - it has evolved on fine textured soils. Lots and lots of topdressing with compost and occasional treatments with alfalfa meal (I use Senior horse food - cheap [$11 per 50 lb bag at PetsMart] and easy to find) should help your KBG be a little less thirsty (due to greater water holding capacity) and look a whole lot better. Good for you for finding your dream property and for conserving!

I think kids benefit from a lawn. Bare feet on the cool grass, running through the sprinkler, all that summer vacation jazz.

The aforementioned High Country Gardens web site also offers information on Dwarf Fescue grass, a relatively new alternative to KBG.
(See http://www.highcountrygardens.com/52000.html)

But you can probably also buy this type of turf seed locally. IMO, Buffalo Grass is more of a meadow-type grass than a lawn grass intended for regular foot traffic and play.

Thanks for the input, I appreciate it.

I think you're all right, a 1000 sq ft lawn would be less wasteful. 3500 sqft is a really big space to hardscape & plant esp. right off the back of the house.

There's one part of the lawn that gets some speckled shade from a large tree so it's the one slightly green patch. So maybe we'll try to save that section and put in a patio on the other half surrounded by xeriscape plants? That area is off the master bedroom which makes me excited to possibly have a garden right off my bedroom...My wheels are turning now!

I bought some Revive organic fertilizer. Should I have the lawn aerated first or lightly rake it (I read about that last night & I can do that on my own). Do you topdress after Revive?

Love the cheap horsefeed idea!

Thanks again,
Charlene

I never aerate til late summer/early fall. The holes open space for weed seeds now. Not being an expert, I would assume you can topdress and Revive at the same time. On the Revive bag there are instructions for an initial dose schedule if you feel you need it.

Your idea of xeric plants by the patio sounds nice. There are many to choose from.

Not to get off the subject but:

ROBINCO...is that your lawn routine? How often do you topdress? Is the alfalfa meal once a year?

I usually put a compost/ steer manure blend on in the spring, followed by Revive. I was thinking about finding chicken poop as I heard it was a good lawn fertilizer but would prefer something less smelly (as would my neighbors). Have you ever tried cornmeal? I heard it supplied some nutrients and was a good anti-fungal/pre-emergent.