All yards have rocks. But some yards have many, many rocks. Depending on the region in which you live, instead of removing all the rocks, which could take the better part of your lifetime, you could use these boulders to your advantage and create decorative ornaments. Some popular uses for large rocks include:

Rock gardens
Rock fences
Randomly placed rocks on property
Rocks used as planter shelves
Rocks used with other lawn ornaments.

Be creative! Use your imagination! This is your chance to take an annoying problem and turn it into something wonderful. Many homeowners are forced to use their lawn?s natural landscape in order to create a functional lawn that looks great. If you have large boulders that cannot be moved, plant vines and flowers around them. If you have drainage issues, use medium and large rocks to line your dry creek bed or French drain.

Many times, these rocks will help reduce the amount of erosion that could harm the grass and other plants. Erosion occurs when too much rain saturates the lawn and then quickly moves down a natural slope and off of your lawn. While this is great for drainage purposes, you may be left with soil that is nutrient poor. Having rocks will keep some of the water on your lawn.

Now that you know how to deal with very large rocks, let?s talk about smaller rocks. If you have rocky soil, you may have difficulty keeping some plants alive due to the fact that their roots cannot reach as far down in the ground as they need to. This soil can be tricky to deal with. These tips will help you prep and plant in rocky soil:

For this type of soil, it is important that you till it first before planting in order to remove some of the larger rocks. Remove as many rocks as you can. You will find this to be an impossible mission after a while, but at least try to remove those larger ones.

If you are concerned with weeds, you should then prep you soil with landscape fabric and mulch.

You can prep the soil by watering or adding fertilizer if you feel the soil needs it. Rocky soil has a tendency to be dry.

Choose plants that are more vine-like and have smaller roots that can weave in and out around rocks in the soil. These plants seem to last longer than others. Common vine plants include:

o English Ivy
o Morning Glory
o Trumpet Vine
o Passion flower
o Dogwood

You can buy these plants as seedlings or plant seeds into the ground. If you starting out later in the growing season, you should buy seedlings as they are easy to transplant and should take to your soil right away.

Planting your new plants is easy even if you already put down landscape fabric and mulch. Simply move the mulch aside and cut a small ?x? shape into the fabric. Plant your seedlings and then pack the mulch around them.

These vines grow pretty quickly and should flower for most of the season.

If you want to plant trees, you should complete the same soil preparation procedures. Trees that can survive in rocky soil include:

o Evergreen
o Pine
o Spruce
o Juniper

Rocks do not have to ruin your lawn as long as you try to accommodate them and make them part of the landscape.

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IT?S LIKE WATCHING THE GRASS GROW

All right, now you are ready to make the grass on your lawn grow. The best part about a lawn is its green grass. As you have learned in previous chapters, there are many types of grass seed that you can use depending on your location and what is available. Most people use mixed grass in order to have a nice green lawn all year long. While this may be your best option, you should look into other seeding possibilities as well.

SEEDING THE LAWN

Seeding your lawn is a very simple process that should be done in the fall or in the spring depending on the type of grass you are using. Obliviously, cooler grasses should be planted in cooler weather, while warmer grasses should be planted in warmer weather. But in reality, you should choose a time that is neither hot nor cold because you will avoid crabgrass, burning the seeds in the hot sun, and dry soil.

The tools and materials you will need when you are seeding your lawn include:

Rake
Shovel
Rototiller
Seeder
Lawn roller
Grass seed
Fertilizer that contains phosphorus
Herbicide

You may not need the herbicide depending on your existing weed problems.

The following are the step you should take when preparing the soil:

If you want to seed over an existing lawn, you will have to remove all of the existing grass. This can be exhausting work, but it has to be done so that the new grass will have room to grow.

If you are starting with bare soil, you should still rake the soil to dig up any weeds that might be hiding underneath. If you are ambitious enough, try Soil Solarization over the entire area. This will give you a clean slate when it comes to weeds.

After you have cleared the area, you should aerate, add water in case you are seeing signs of compaction, and rent a rototiller that will help you break up compacted soil. You should also have your soil tested at this point. Grass will grow at pH levels of 6.5-7.0. Do not proceed until your soil is at these levels.

Your next step will be to apply fertilizer to the soil. This will lay the foundation for strong growth. Apply compost if you have any on hand. This will provide nutrients for the soil which will in turn feed the grass seeds.

You should turn the soil again using a rake or a tiller. This will allow for even distribution of nutrients and fertilizer.

At this point, you should consider your drainage situation since it is easier to create one now then when you have a lawn full of grass. If possible create your trenches at this point. Also, remove rocks from the soil.

The next step is the make the soil level to the ground. Use a lawn roller for this step.

You are now ready to plant your grass seed. Using a seeder spread the seeds over the soil avoiding the area where you built the trench. You can go back later and distribute seeds by hand.

Rake the soil to cover the seeds. Use the roller for more soil coverage.

Once you have planted your lawn, you will have to make sure that it receives enough water each day. Try to keep the soil moist, but do not use too much water.

When you start seeing grass, you will need to continue to water the lawn a few times a day. Many people buy an automatic irrigation system to make sure the lawn is watered on a regular basis.

In a few weeks, your lawn will start to come in. This is a critical time for your lawn. If you planted in the fall, you may have to deal with wind and rain. Laying hay may help keep the seed in place.

If you planted grass in the spring, you may also have to deal with rain. If you notice bald areas, you will have to overseed in order to create a lush, even lawn.

Seeding your lawn may have its challenges, but in the end, the lawn should look good after it grows in. Monitor the soil, watch for flooding and weeds. Maintain you new lawn by creating a drainage system that works, and by weeding at least twice a week. This will help reduce the spreading of weeds and will help your lawn look its best.

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