Question
My yard is mostly weeds or weedy type grass.  It's not a very large yard, but I'm not very young anymore.  I want to start over and have a nice yard.  How should I get rid of the old "grass"?  Someone suggested I spray with roundup and then till the ground, is this the correct approach?

I live in Winchester VA, the soil looks fine, but I don't think it has very many nutrients.  I live near downtown, could polution cause the soil to wear out?

I would appreciate it if you could please tell me what steps to take, nutrients, soil additives, the proper grass seed, when to plant, etc.?

The back yard sunny to partly shady.

I am also wondering about a large elm tree in the back part of the yard.  It's located next to a fence I want to remove and replace with a privacy fence.  It's right behind a shed and a couple of years ago it lost quite a few branches to a heavy ice storm.  Should I have it cut down before putting up a new fence, or should I leave it since it doesn't have any signs of Dutch Elm disease and we might need healthy, disease resistant elms.  I wonder if we wouldn't have been better off letting the chestnuts alone and that they may have had some disease resistant ones if the government had not cut them all down.  On the other hand if there are plenty elms without diseases, I maybe should have it down in the interest of sparing my shed and fence.  What is your advice?

Thank you very much for any help you can give me.

Answer
Dottie, Roundup would be the fastest process.  After the lawn dies off in a few days, I would wait one week and then begin sowing a new lawn.  Before you do, I would have some organic soil brought in.  Organic soil consists of peat moss, compost, and other organic matter such as shredded leaves and dried grass clippings.  It is sold by the yard and should be enough to add 1" over the existing soil.  If you give the landscaping company the dimensions of your yard, they will know how much to deliver.

After amending your soil, sow a blended mixture of grass seed over the entire area.  Roll the lawn to ensure good contact between the soil and seed, and then water deeply.  Cover the entire lawn with straw or peat moss to retain the moisture needed for germination.  Within 21 days, you should start seeding grass seedlings.

In regard to the elm tree, I would leave it there as long as it is healthy.  If you need it trimmed, many landscaping companies or tree specialists can do that at a reasonable price.  I never recommend removing a tree unless the root system is interfering with water or gas lines, or the tree is dying.

Good luck, and please write again if I can ever be of assistance.

Regards,

Mike