# Leveling latitude Bermuda yard



## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Here are some pictures from my attempt to top-dress with sand.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)




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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)




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## MrMeaner (Feb 21, 2017)

Wow.. looks great!! Did you rake and drag that all by hand? I would turn on the irrigation which should help settle and work the sand down In. Of to a great start on the leveling job!!


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## Jericho574 (May 24, 2017)

Looks great!


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Thanks guys!
I've got a couple guys helping me, and as the sand dries (from the sun) we are having great success working it in with push brooms. We are going to broom as much as we can, then I'm going to water the hell out of it.


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## Redtenchu (Jan 28, 2017)

Fantastic!


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## Tellycoleman (May 10, 2017)

Very nice how many square feet and how long did it take?

You gotta show update pics after a week.


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## wardconnor (Mar 25, 2017)

Redtenchu said:


> Fantastic!


What he said

That is a dang cool yard with some cool stuff like the old wood barn, windmill, and pool.

I have been looking for years for a windmill like that for my house for decoration.


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## SGrabs33 (Feb 13, 2017)

Leveling threads are the best!

It looks great!!!


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Here are the pictures after we broomed all afternoon. I just started the sprinklers.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Not trying to be super nosey, but can you give us a quick rundown on all the different buildings/structures? Looks like you have an awesome place! :thumbup:


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> Not trying to be super nosey, but can you give us a quick rundown on all the different buildings/structures? Looks like you have an awesome place! :thumbup:


There is an old log cabin from the 1830's, a house from 1899 that I remodeled that my in laws live in, a detached room that serves as a pool house and tv room, and our main house that I built 2 years ago. Then I have a couple outbuildings for feed and equipment. It is a great place, and now I finally have a yard! My whole life I've wanted a nice yard, but never had one. My family loves our place in the Great State of Texas, and the national guard couldn't get us out!


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Cool.

You'll be cussing sand for a few weeks - it gets everywhere, but you'll soon forget and the thirst for a smoother lawn will strike again. It's an addiction - almost as bad as Dr. Pepper. :nod:


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> Cool.
> 
> You'll be cussing sand for a few weeks - it gets everywhere, but you'll soon forget and the thirst for a smoother lawn will strike again. It's an addiction - almost as bad as Dr. Pepper. :nod:


I won't be cussing the sand, but my wife already is. We are having a big end of school party Saturday and she is upset. I'm trying to explain how awesome the July 4th party will be.....she isn't buying it.


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## dfw_pilot (Jan 28, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> There is an old log cabin from the 1830's, a house from 1899 that I remodeled that my in laws live in, a detached room that serves as a pool house and tv room, and our main house that I built 2 years ago. Then I have a couple outbuildings for feed and equipment. It is a great place...


That sounds really great! Glad you found such a nice property. The Independence Day (US, I presume, not Texas's March 2) party will be a hit for sure.


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## Cavan806 (May 2, 2017)

I cant wait to see future update pics on this one! Nice work.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Mowed this morning. Better, but still needs work.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

I'm having trouble uploading photos.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

The postimage plugin is down today. If you have an account with them (or any other photo hosting site), you can post them by using the


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

I bet in another week or two you won't even be able to tell that you even sanded at all. Looking forward to hear how much smoother it is.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Well, it was going great.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

.....and then this happened.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Yikes!


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

Gotta love Texas weather. We don't get sprinkles, we get deluges.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Surprisingly, the sand didn't move much. It might be okay.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

That's good news


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> .....and then this happened.


Looks like you got a few low spots!


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## Cavan806 (May 2, 2017)

Whoa! That is some serious rain. Is it soaking in or drying up yet?

Good luck man!


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Cavan806 said:


> Whoa! That is some serious rain. Is it soaking in or drying up yet?
> 
> Good luck man!


Yes, it is drying. I got another 1/2" yesterday, but it is amazing how well this turf deals with the water. I am going to mow today. I have got to find a way to spray some PGR or I'm going to be in trouble.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Mowed everything today. It is a lot smoother, and I can see how leveling is very addictive.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> ...I can see how leveling is very addictive.


Yes it is... :nod:


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## MrMeaner (Feb 21, 2017)

wow, looks fantastic ConcreteStorm!!


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## Txmx583 (Jun 8, 2017)

I use Photobucket, it lets me post large images in forums.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Update. I think it looks great!


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> Update. I think it looks great!


Me too.

Now the big question is....Are you done or do you still have work to do? Some folks level(or smooth) all the time.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Alan said:


> Concretestorm said:
> 
> 
> > Update. I think it looks great!
> ...


I've got another 22 tons of sand coming next week!


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

This is music to my ears. :nod:


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## dfw_pilot (Jan 28, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> I've got another 22 tons of sand coming next week!


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> This is music to my ears. :nod:


Ware, how long do I have to wait to apply sand again?


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

If the turf isn't stressed, I'd say anytime.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> If the turf isn't stressed, I'd say anytime.


Well, if you (i.e. The internet) say so, I'll start at 6am.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

This isn't mine, but I look at it sometimes when I think I've done too much topdressing...


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Not long since you're near 100% recovered from the first round. The second round shouldn't take as much sand since you got most of the deeper spots with the first round.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> This isn't mine, but I look at it sometimes when I think I've done too much topdressing...


I think that picture is my new background screen.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

Ware said:


> This isn't mine, but I look at it sometimes when I think I've done too much topdressing...


You have me curious at what your soil looks like now 

That is another reason to aerate before topdressing so the sand gets incorporated into the soil profile better.


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## Redtenchu (Jan 28, 2017)

That's very cool, that picture makes me want to eat cake! Just kidding, I always want to eat cake...


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Well, I started again today. Here are a couple pictures.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

I decided to patch some areas.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

And lastly, here is my sample of a low spot 10 days later. I hope this picture helps people understand what the bermuda is capable of doing.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

The second leveling worked wonders. I mowed today and it was very smooth. However, I have decided that I'm going to raise my HOC to 1" because of all the contours in the yard.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

.5 to 1" is quite the jump in the reel mower world. I'd give it a go at 5/8 - 3/4" and see how you like it. It's easy to go up in HOC but a lot more work to go back down. Just my .02


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

That's probably what I would do, too... Give it a couple cuts at those intermediate steps and see how it looks.

I still tell people some of the best looking bermuda I've ever had was cut at 3/4" with a Tru-Cut.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

I'm not going to go all at once, but work my way to around 1". It is really difficult to see everyones flat yards and know that isn't possible for us. There are several flat areas that I will cut short and I think the contrast will be nice for the family.


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> It is really difficult to see everyones flat yards and know that isn't possible for us. There are several flat areas that I will cut short and I think the contrast will be nice for the family.


I forgot what you're cutting with....but i think you can overcome contours w/a flex head reel (golf courses managed to). Hopefully you have a trucut if you are thinking about cutting some areas shorter and others higher?


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

jayhawk said:


> Concretestorm said:
> 
> 
> > It is really difficult to see everyones flat yards and know that isn't possible for us. There are several flat areas that I will cut short and I think the contrast will be nice for the family.
> ...


I am using a trucut.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Concretestorm said:


> I am using a trucut.


How is that L36 doing?


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

Ware said:


> Concretestorm said:
> 
> 
> > I am using a trucut.
> ...


Well, the grass is doing great, but I have failed! My dad has been really sick, and I've been distracted. Once I did mow, the grass is so thick that both the tru cut and cal trimmer just float leaving terrible looking lines.

So, today I ordered a used toro flex 21 that will get here next week. I plan on scalping, verticutting, lightly sanding, and fertilizing in hope that I can salvage some of the mess I've made.

By the way, your yard looks amazing.


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Sorry to hear about your dad I hope he gets better.


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## Concretestorm (May 21, 2017)

J_nick said:


> Sorry to hear about your dad I hope he gets better.


Thank you, I appreciate that.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

J_nick said:


> Sorry to hear about your dad I hope he gets better.


+1

The good news is you've got a great cultivar established, and should be able to whip it back into shape in no time. :thumbup:


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