growing a lawn on dry bare hard dirt..

Question

In my back yard.my yard is dry..dusty..all dirt..the dirt gets so hard its like walking on cement in most spots..help..can i grow a back lawn with top soil..i live in north west arkansas and the dirt here is hard to work with..got some shade in spots..

Answer 1

Your best bet is to send a soil sample to your state’s cooperative extension service. Let them know you want to grow grass and they will recommend amendments. It’s likely you’ll need to till in several inches of compost if you have compacted clay. Alternately, you can collect your neighbors’ leaves and till them in this fall after shredding or going over them with a mower. Water the area the day prior to tilling. Just spreading several inches of topsoil on top of your ground is not the solution.