Kentucky Blue Grass (KBG) is probably the dominant grass used in lawns in the Salt Lake Valley, so that is probably the grass you have now. It can deal with drought by going dormant, but as hot and dry as it has been lately, if it didn't get any water for three weeks, it may have died (part of my lawn died when a sprinkler head stopped rotating right after I did my monthly inspection). You could try to water it and see if it comes back, but you might be better off reseeding. If you want a lawn that will stay green without any additional water, you have pretty limited choices. Buffalo grass or a mixture of buffalo grass and blue grama will stay green without additional water (you may need to water once or twice in a year like this year). They're a little different color than what you're used to seeing. Buffalo grass is sort of gray green and grama is sort of blue green. The grama is a bunch grass and the buffalo grass spreads (and fills in) by stolons (above ground runners like a strawberry plant has). If you want a really soft lawn, you'll want to get a buffalo grass like legacy, that you can plant from plugs (no seeds that way--buffalo grass has prickly seeds). Buffalo grass isn't cheap, though, especially not from sod. Blue grama is pretty easy to get started, but it's tough to spread the seeds (they're like dust and often have a lot of chaff with them). In Orem, a buffalo grass lawn will probably not start to turn green until sometime in May and will probably start to turn brown in September. You might get a week or two more of green on either end than I would, so maybe early May to late September/early October. But it will definitely turn brown earlier in the fall than your current lawn and will definitely stay brown later in the spring. The grama will be green a little earlier in the spring and a little later in the fall than the buffalo grass. Two cool season grasses that will stay green with no water (may need a little in a year like this) are western wheatgrass and sheep fescue. I think Arizona fescue and Idaho Fescue will also stay green. western wheatgrass can be difficult to get started initially, but it spreads aggressively once it gets started. The fescues are all bunch grasses. Streambank wheatgrass and crested wheatgrass will stay alive with no additional water, but they'll go dormant once the rains stop and will green up again in the fall. Streambank wheatgrass spreads via rhizomes like western wheatgrass. Older varieties of Crested wheatgrass are bunch grasses but newer varieties like Roadcrest and Ephraim are mildly rhizomatous. Crested wheatgrass was introduced from Russia, and the others are all native. For buffalo grass and grama, you're probably too late to seed. Those should be seeded in late spring or early summer. I seeded a little grama a couple of weeks ago, but I was already cutting it close. The other grasses can be planted in the fall. If you haven't planted by September 15, I think I'd wait until early winter and dormant seed (seed when it's too cold for them to sprout and they'll germinate in the spring as soon as conditions are right). You'll have best results with any of these if you kill your existing lawn first. For the buffalo grass and grama, it's probably necessary. I'm assuming the water in the spot that died from too much water is from your watering, right? The reason I ask is that none of these grasses deal very well with too much water. They can generally deal with spring flooding, but if you water them like a KBG lawn, they'll die. The wheatgrasses and sheep fescue are less expensive than buffalo grass, but they're still a little pricy (although maybe not compared with the elite KBG seeds many people here buy). I can provide links to some places that sell the various seeds if you're interested.

Cool, Worth. I like to make peace between our native Lepidoptera and gardeners. I asked a while back if planting cilantro really did work. I think if it does, it will be the best way to build that bridge between us and insects. if hornworms only stayed on their side of the fence, no one would ever have incentive to kill them. they are large, high-profil insects which have big appetites. If you think a hornworm is voracious, try feeding out some Cecropia or Polyphemus cats! Sheesh! Cecropias get nearly 5" and a Poly is only 4' at the longest, but thicker and heavier than a tobacco worm. Well, Carolyn posted how cilantro does not always work. Maybe even mere coincidence. I have NO cilantro and still NO hornworms at all! Last year, I regularly combed my neighbor's tomato plants and found only 6 or 7 larvae--all of which were parasitized by the dreaded tachinid fly. This fly [an introduced species, has not only taken a huge toll on sphingids, but has been responsible for the extinction of a few saturniids and is still taking a huge toll on existing species! My neighbor told me just 30 years ago, hornworms were everywhere. I can believe it. Nature is out of whack and the virtual local extinction of the beautiful Io moth only proves it! I used to find Io's like you find hornworms--30 some years ago. I always reared Io's every summer. Now, I haven't even seen a wild Io in 15 years! Yes, hornworms are quite pretty. Not as ornate as our sat cats, but remarkably designed and strategically camouflaged. Green, the color of most plants, caterpillars and even some birds--is also my favorite color. Another hornworm and non-pest, is the ash sphinx, also found in Austin, and the ofen colorful white-lined sphinx. Unfortunately, disease, not insects, has destroyed much of my crop and if I don't get hornworms soon, I'm just going to abort about half of my plants!

Hi Joyfulguy ( and all of you). I've been too busy to check in. The house closes Nov. 19 and Mayflower (Wheaton VanLine) clearing out the house next Monday. I have so much stuff and am "up to here" with boxes, packing etc. I've accepted the offer I'd spoken of earlier and will be living at a friend's dad's home near a smalltown in Missouri. He's 92 and they don't think he should live alone anymore. Longevity runs in the family and they tend to be healthy the whole time. I will be living about 5 miles (as the crow flies) from the farm home where I lived 18 yrs. and where both my dau.'s were born and raised. I am looking forward to it and have emotionally left the house in austin which I have loved the past 12 yrs. The home here is within 1 mile of everything from hospital, docters, banks. grocery, library, target, and my alltime favorite thrift stores so I will have alot of change. There I'll be 5 miles from the main things but the nearest wallmart, large grocery stores, and shopping will be in St. Joseph, Mo. or Maryville, Mo. which are 15 and 30 mile away. One of my two dau.'s is in St. Joe, a sister in Maryville, and two brothers are just a few miles from the place I will be. I am ready for this as I worked so many yrs. in pain that just wore me out. It is sooooo good not to do that anymore. My household will be stored on the farm and I'm bringing my Yorkie and 12 yr. old cat with me. A new life for them also. The friend says when Dad gets where he needs more help they will find a retirement home for him and I can stay in the house or at that point I will shop for a house for myself. It seems like a good way to transition from one state to another. The gentleman needs no help now..cook a little, clean, watch over him on a daily basis in case he has any problems. I'm thinking of myself as a New York Stockbroker who bought a goat farm in Vermont and changing her life. Just a thought! You'll hear from me again but it will be awhile.

Sounds to me like you have a handle on the situation as it is now. I personally would never have tried to discipline my steps, not my job.