Grass in My Backyard
Is it all all possible to have grass in my North facing Brooklyn backyard? We have a very large tree that shades the yard in the morning, the afternoon gets some full sun. If I can grow grass, any suggestions on how to prep the yard and what type of grass I could get? Thanks!
Is it all all possible to have grass in my North facing Brooklyn backyard? We have a very large tree that shades the yard in the morning, the afternoon gets some full sun.
If I can grow grass, any suggestions on how to prep the yard and what type of grass I could get?
Thanks!
I’ve done it – but you won’t be able to do much more than just stroll across it. The grass that does best in part-shade is mostly fescue (if I remember), which is very very fine grass.
I spent a whole summer growing an awesome fescue lawn — and three 8 year-olds tore it to shreds in one afternoon.
If you have heavy traffic planned for the area, stick to woodchips.
It is easy to grow grass but not easy to maintain it in most Brooklyn yards. Mopar, I wish you luck, but report back in September or so and let us know if your lawn is healthy.
Yes! You can grow grass. I am growing it right now in a north facing area that gets sun only for a few hours (15 minutes?) a day.
Question is: Is ANYTHING growing there now? Then you can definitely grow grass.
How to do it: Buy chicken manure and top soil and good quality grass seed. Mix it all up, spread it around, water a lot. Hopefully it will come up in three days. Gotta kinda cover the seeds so birds don’t eat them. See the directions on the grass seed bag.
You can grow grass almost anywhere, but it certainly depends on the type of grass seed you purchase. For a yard that gets on limited sun in the afternoon, you would need to use a part shade or full shade grass which is readily available in most big box home stores. The problem is that most people buy full sun grass seed and expect it to grow everywhere. Ground covers also work. Large borders with perennial plantings will also bring summer long color and minimal effort once they are planted, enjoy your Brooklyn garden.
Yeah – you’re never going to have “lounging” grass in your back yard. But if you are after just the appearance of a carpet, there are plenty of low-light ground covers. You will probably want to enrich the soil before you plant…. think a dozen bags of peat and manure and a pitch fork. Though, renting a rototiller from the Home Depot for the weekend will be a god send. Ground cover doesn’t need the enrichment that a vegetable garden needs, but the typical dirt in the back yards of brooklyn brownstones is total crap.
They will probably steer you towards low ground cover type plants which can look very nice and easy to maintain.
the thing about gardens is that one should not ask will it grow? but rather will it grow well? Scraggly grass may survive with little sun and part shade, but for a beautiful thick carpet of grass you need a lot of sun. The more the better. The good news is that there are many other beautiful options for shady gardens. I agree that you should consult with a knowledgeable nursery man or landscaper.
There might be grasses that would work – go to the research center at BBG: the people there are very knowledgeable & helpful.
Go see the people at kings county nursery, very nice couple and they can answer all your questions, family business been around for a long time. I think it’s on New York south of Empire blvd, easy to find on google maps.