Lawn & Garden: What can be done with a lawn gone bad?

Question: After years of neglect, my "lawn" is a complete wreck. It is green, all right, consisting of every green weed known to man. Should I get my soil tested? Should I chemically treat and kill the lawn and start over?

Answer: The answer to your first question is easy: Yes. Getting your soil in good shape is the first step toward growing a healthy lawn, whether you decide to try to save the one you have or start over. A soil test will tell you which nutrients your soil is lacking, so you can feed it accordingly. It will also tell you the soil's pH level, which determines whether the grass plants can use the nutrients in the soil.

There are other things you can do to improve your lawn, including giving it a core aeration and top-dressing it with compost. Mowing properly is important, too, because it helps the grass stay healthy so it can out-compete the weeds.

From your description, however, it sounds like you're going to have to renovate the lawn, either by over-seeding or replacing it. Over-seeding involves dethatching and aerating or slitting the lawn, and then spreading seed over the existing grass. Replacing the lawn is what you referred to: killing the existing grass and planting new.

-- McClatchy-Tribune News

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Lawn & Garden: What can be done with a lawn gone bad?