Assuming Kentucky bluegrass will grow on your hill, that's what you need. Once it takes hold KBG will spread and fill while most fescues will not. There are some very nice, dark green varieties on the market. The best time to seed is in the late summer after the hottest temps have broken. October is probably a month or so late. Keep an eye on night time high temps. Seeding in the fall gives the seed time to germinate and get growing before the next summer, so you had the right idea.

If you were serious about using weed n feed, please skip that step. It is better to wait until Memorial Day to fertilize. If you can't wait that long, at least wait until after you have mowed the grass at the highest setting twice. When you fertilize just use a regular fertilizer. Wait two full weeks after that and then evaluate whether you need weed control. Quite often the vigorous grass growth will choke out a lot of weeds so you can come by later and spot spray the remaining weeds with weed b gone spray.

Thank you.

I really don't think I can wait until fall to seed though. If I do we'll have no grass at all in that area! It seems most folks around here seed in the spring. We had sod laid in that area about five years ago, but slowly it has just gone away and the mole last year was the last straw. In case you wonder, we don't have grubs. Moles eat worms too and we do have plenty of them. (Darn pests really liked my veggie garden.)

On the issue of weed-control, we have areas (not where the seed needs to go) that are more henbit than grass. But I suppose I can wait on that. Not like the bag will go bad.

So, in short, wait to fertilize until Memorial day? But assuming we do some seeding this spring, when?

If it matters, this hill area is also between houses, with a BIG oak tree smack in the middle. So it gets a lot of shade and, of course, acorns that have to be raked up. Sure makes it hard to keep from tearing up the grass.

Could I use some kind of pre-emergent herbicide in the henbit area? Maybe corn gluten?

> "But assuming we do some seeding this spring"

Monsoon season is soon approaching in the STL area. Those rains will wash away seeds.

Then July and August, when the heat gets turned up along with the humidity, that will cook the roots of any young and tender grass that did manage to germinate given spring monsoons.

Spring sowed seeds in MO just don't stand a fair/decent chance.

In spite of being in San Antonio, DCHall knows what he speaks when he says wait til fall to seed - contrary to what everyone does around there.

Fertilize, water and mow properly, (practices described on this forum many times) what does grow this spring and summer. Control unwanted growth (ergo, weeds). This will go far in making proper seed bed for you to sow seeds on Labor Day in MO.

If it's in the shade, forget about KBG. Since you've had trouble getting fescue to grow, the next thing is to look at is a ground cover. Monkey grass (liriope) looks like grass but stays deep green all year long. It thrives in deep shade, never needs mowing, and spreads slowly.

If you want to try seed again, look at creeping red fescue. You can let it grow without mowing, too. It has a pretty, hairy look with shades of blue and red in it. It spreads slowly but a lot faster than other fescues.

Just because your neighbors seed in the spring doesn't make it right. If they do it every year that's just an indication that it doesn't work well. You had the right idea. Just do it earlier in the year next time.

Henbit is very easy to pull out. Corn gluten meal won't work on existing weeds. Personally I don't think it works at all, but henbit really is easy to get rid of if you keep at it.

Thanks Gary and DCHall. I will do the fertilizer/mowing thing this spring and see what happens, hopefully not needing to re-sod by the time summer is over.

I've been seeing a "blanket" to put over grass seeds at Lowe's. Not too attractive until the grass grows up thru it, but would something like that cut down the erosion until I can seed in the fall? Or would it still be there and make seeding harder come September?