Every autumn seems to come with a new scramble for us. One year we tried to sell our first house before the leaves wiped out our curb appeal. Last year we were squeezing tasks in before a book tour. This year, the mission became resurrecting the sad excuse for grass in our front yard.
Landscaping might not thrill everyone, and yes, I admit to spending way too much time browsing tree-removal sites. Still, we managed to cram two months of progress into one post so it feels more satisfying than just “we tossed down seed and hope for the best.”
The photo above was taken in summer, right after we paid a landscaper working nearby $60 to level leftover stump piles. That quick fix seemed to create a seed-ready patch — until we realized the rest of the yard wasn’t graded properly. The freshly flattened spots were surrounded by low areas that collected water after every rain. So the yard wasn’t nearly as ready as we’d hoped.
We considered simply adding a few bags of topsoil and calling it a day, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that a quick patch-up would annoy us for years. After some convincing, Sherry agreed to have a proper amount of dirt delivered and to get the yard fully graded — the right way. We worried about cost and timing, and by late September many landscapers and dirt delivery services were already booked. After calling a half dozen companies and striking out, the landscaper who had done the initial leveling finally called back and was able to squeeze us in — with a few weather and scheduling hiccups that pushed the job to mid-October.
Steve, the landscaper, estimated how much topsoil we needed to eliminate the low spots and leave a flat, mower-friendly yard. We ended up with two heaping truckloads — about five car-sized piles of dirt — which is far more than we could have handled with rakes and a wheelbarrow.
So we let Steve do the heavy work.
This part was wildly entertaining for the kids, though Clara spent a lot of the time hiding behind the railing.
Steve recommended marking out future mulch beds before he spread the soil so we wouldn’t waste topsoil where we planned to mulch. A few days before the delivery, Sherry and I used a hose to lay out gentle curves around tree groupings, then traced the hose lines with marking spray. We won’t mulch until spring, so those beds are on hold for now.
By early afternoon the yard looked dramatically better. I know “gorgeous” is a stretch for freshly distributed dirt, but seeing the whole surface smoothed and free of mossy, muddy patches felt like a real transformation. Rain was forecast, so Steve urged us to get grass seed down immediately so it could sink into the soft topsoil before the moisture settled and compacted everything.
We also wanted to fix an area in the backyard we call “The Wetlands,” which turned into an eight-inch swamp after rain thanks to an 12-inch drop from the walkway into that gulley. Filling it in leveled that problem area so it won’t hold water anymore.
After spreading seed and smoothing the soil, we started to see green come up in about three weeks.
And a week later it looked even fuller. We began later in the season than planned and worried we might have missed our chance, but the grass has been slowly filling in. From experience — like when we seeded the front yard of our first house — one season rarely yields perfect coverage, so we’ll overseed next spring (and possibly again in the fall) to build a dense lawn.
Our routine now is to use a broadcast spreader for even coverage, then water about 15 minutes each morning with a sprinkler to keep the seed moist while it germinates.
We also added a few evergreen shrubs in the backyard as a first step toward year-round screening and privacy. We selected deer-resistant evergreens that tolerate partial shade and are expected to grow to roughly 10 ft by 10 ft so they’ll form a privacy barrier over time. The nursery offered a fall sale and a small delivery fee, and the plants came with a one-year warranty, which is reassuring if we need to swap anything that doesn’t take.
For planting, we dig holes about twice as wide as the root ball but only as deep as the root ball itself — planting too deep is a common mistake. The larger evergreens are a workout to set in the ground, but consistent watering has kept them healthy so far.
Comparing the front yard from this summer to now shows a noticeable improvement. It isn’t fully grown in yet, but the grading has removed the mounds and valleys and eliminated the swampy spots after rain. It’s flatter and far easier to mow, which already makes life simpler.
The topsoil and grading cost added up: about $750 for the soil and $250 for grading. It was more than I imagined spending on dirt, but seeing the difference in our home’s exterior made it feel worthwhile. Now if only the trees would stop raining leaves on our baby grass — they clearly don’t appreciate that young blades need sunlight.
Are you tackling big grading or seeding projects this season? It’s so satisfying to watch little green sprouts emerge — it never gets old.
Sherry is sharing more about the pregnancy and bun over on her site.