Question
Hi,
I have a question about who to call to level/grade our backyard.  My husband and I are have problems with water pooling in our yard.  We also have problems with not being able to grow grass.  We have two big dogs and they are destroying our grass.  We have lived in this house for one year and the backyard was a mess when we moved in.  The grass was dead but our dogs have made it worse.  I think we need to first have the yard leveled and drains put in.  Once this is done, I need to know what grass to plant that will be resistant to high traffic.  I know we cant' plant grass seed until fall.  I read tall fescue was a good grass when you have animals.  Any suggestions would be very helpful.  Thank you very much for your time.

Answer
Lisa, you sound like a candidate for one of those old Excedrin Headache commercials.  You must be one of those people who is able to stay calm while everyone else is "losing it" around you.  Someone who should be working in a Triage Center -- ambulances arriving out of the blue with emergencies, crisis after crisis, and there you are calm and collected.  

Having said that, I think you can break things down very simply.  

I am not a contractor so I cannot help you with your water pooling -- but there is an excellent article (imho) on this very common homeowner challenge at the Reader's Digest website, "Better Yard Drainage" (www.rd.com/content/openContent.do?contentId=17944), reprinted from the March 2000 issue of The Family Handyman.  

They point out that your water issues are VERY common, and having one puts you in a club with 60% of all homeowners.  
If a slope leading to your house is the source of the problem, or a depression in the yard, or water from the roof, the authors note, figure out where in your property you want to drain the water.  Then build one of their little projects.  

I can fax or email it to you if you cannot access it yourself but I really think it is reading for basic guidance and steps on how to solve this simply and effectively.  

At least you will understand the problem when you finally speak with a professional.

You did not mention where you live.  If you live on Long Island I can recommend some services.  Outside of Long Island, you might ask professional landscapers who handle this kind of project.

Now, let's talk about your dogs.  

I have dogs, too.  We tried adopting a third one recently to make it an even bigger big happy family.  Unlike my other dogs, this new dog loved to dig up a lawn, chew up Dahlia tubers, run around the neighborhood with orchids in its jaws, and roll in mud before coming into the house.  (At which point the REAL fun began which is why I am sad to say we don't have Scooby anymore.  But I digress...)

Have you seen the book "Dog Friendly Gardens: Garden Friendly Dogs" (Dogwise Publishing, $12.97 from Amazon.com)? This book has real answers to all kinds of doggone problems.  

Since you are beginning with a blank slate, you can do anything.  The sky's the limit.  You don't even have to wreck anything -- that's already been taken care of.

Since you have dogs, you want them to be able to rock and roll out there without worrying about pesticide-laced blades of grass.  So stick religiously to an organic program, whatever you do.  Just wanted to mention that.  

Purdue University did some research on dog urine and grass types (aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/turf/dog_lawn_problems.html).  Tested strains of Ryegrass and Fescue were proved more resilient when it comes to dog urine.  

Dr. Steve Thompson, a veterinarian who ran the study, posted the results.  

He notes: "Female dogs, being less likely to urine mark and more likely to squat, are the primary culprits of lawn damage since they will urinate anywhere on a lawn and usually all at once. This results in a single nitrogen dump confined to a small patch of grass."  However, he notes, the idea that female dogs produce more toxic urine is a myth.

When a dog does mark a place in the grass, he notes, "The brown spot that results will often have a green ring around the outside. The Nitrogen overload at the center causes the burn, but as the urine is diluted toward the periphery, it has a fertilizer effect."  

In fact, that brown spot with a green ring is sometimes called "female dog spot disease".  Recently fertilized lawns are most easily damaged by dog urine since they are already maxed out on Nitrogen.

Scientists are planning to do more work on this subject.  "Speculation on the actual cause of the lawn burn has resulted in numerous theories on what else in the urine may be contributing to the damage."

In another study, a vet in Colorado compared samples of dog urine and the effects on 4 kinds of grass. As expected, the study found it was the quantity of urine, and the concentration of Nitrogen, that lead to lawn damage.  

Urine acidity (measured by pH) and use of "common additives" (presumably things like baking soda and other ideas people have tried to solve this problem) made no difference whatsoever. Kentucky 31 Fescue was the winner in this test.  Perennial Ryegrass came in second.

"Urine routinely produced a fertilizer effect on these grasses at diluted concentrations," the study noted.  

Losers in this test of strength were Kentucky bluegrass and Bermudagrass.  

Note however that "concentrated urine with volumes as little as 30cc (one ounce) caused lawn burn even on fescue grasses."

Which is why I think you might consider some less traditional approaches to your yard design.  The Grass Family may not be the simple answer at your house.  Still, banishing grass is not the answer either -- dogs love to play in the grass!  After all, what could be more fun than a game of catch or Frisbee on the front lawn with man's best friend?

The "Drs Foster and Smith" website (www.drsfostersmith.com) has some products you might consider in your plans, including an in-ground dog waste disposal system and a lawn repair kit.  

That website posts a short article that is short and sensible, "Solutions for Urine Burns on Lawns", repeating some of the findings of the Purdue study.  They have a line of several products that they are claiming will alter chemical properties in the urine and render it at least slightly less caustic to your grass.  I have not tried this so for me, the jury is out on this method.

While we're on the subject, I'd like to recommend another book, "Barkitecture" by Fred Albert (Fido-friendly dog houses by Architects) and "Dogs in their Gardens" by garden writer Page Dickey (world class gardens that any dog would love to call home).

These are absolutely darling ideas that are fun to read even if you don't seize on one of the projects.  They are all available discounted at Amazon.  

Please keep in touch.  I'd like to follow your progress.  

Personally, I think there's a Reality TV producer out there just waiting to hear all about your backyard.  I'd watch!