Question
QUESTION: Hi - what would you say is the "perfect" grass type for a house with total sun on the East End of Long Island? Figure the soil is very sandy. Can you still grow Kentucky Blue Grass?  Thanks. Douglas

ANSWER: Too many homeowners can't think outside the box when it comes to groundcovers and ways to frame the outside of your house.  Sure, you can grow a Plain Vanilla Lawn.  That Lawn may even be 'perfect'.   But what about those wild and crazy groundcovers?  This is the 21st Century.  Why limit yourself to Plain Vanilla when you can have Heathbar Crunch?

The East End of Long Island is the Mecca of artist-retreat landscapings.  How it looks in front of your house depends largely on the architecture of the house you are writing about.  Modern buildings call for artsy creative placements of trees and grass.  A traditional split level or Cape on the other hand would probably not be suited for an environment that was missing a stretch of cool season Grass.

Please give me a better idea of the lay of the land and the kind of structures in the immediate area.  Thanks for writing, and rsvp.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: As I said the soil is very sandy. The house is a sort of updated ranch. Nothing too modern but spread out and low lieing single story.  There is the perfunctory built in pool in the back and I think we need to have a lawn there.  Lots of shrubs around the perimeter of the property.  It's as you said a "Plain Vanilla House".  At the same time I don't want the yard to be boring but it would be great for friends to come over and look at the grass and go wow!  No kids, no pets, just a lot of Manhattanites out for a weekend visit.  I don't know what type grass is there but it has brown patches and is nowhere close to beautiful. I would really appreciate any thoughts you have on this situation.  Thanks.  Douglas.

Answer
You've probably never heard of Mondo Grass.  There's a nice pitch for this at the Classy Groundcovers website:

http://classygroundcovers.com/item--Ophiopogon-j-Nana-%7BClassy-Pint%7D-Dwarf-Mo

Mondo is described as 'a foot-tolerant, no-Mow turf substitute.' They post an interactive search based on Zone (you are in Zone 7) and other variables to find your ideal Grass or other flora on their shelves.  Some of their other choices for Sun and Sand: several kinds of Achillea, Daylilies, Echinacea, Phlox and 'Asiatic Jasmine' (Trachelospermum asiaticum), plus others.

Get away from Plain Vanilla in the front.  You have a beachlover's dream come true in your weekend retreat.

Poolside, if you can get it mowed twice a week during the spring and fall when its growth takes off, purchase a state of the art variety of Kentucky Bluegrass as Seedland.com.  For this, you will need a soil test.  Arrange to have your Grass tilled up after Labor Day and have someone put down Seed or Sod.  Good luck.