Rain Over Me

I've been doing a little research on water tables. Last summer and into the fall, North Carolina began experiencing one of the more extreme droughts in recent memory. Not until just the past month have levels in local reservoirs returned to normal. Jordan Lake (which feeds us in Cary) is now "one foot above full" according to the Raleigh News & Observer. I don't know about you, but "one foot above full" means water is spilling over the edge of the lake! Get the sandbags and water-wings ready, right? Apparently not - I guess "full" is sort of arbitrary. If there are any reservoir experts out there who can clue me in, please do so.

Anyway, like I was saying, I've been reading up on water tables (phreatic surfaces to those who are "in"), because they are still low. Likewise, we continue to run a rainfall deficit of eight inches since January of 2007. We're operating in the red, which explains why my grass isn't green.

I've become a bit of a farmer of sorts in the past couple months. Yes, a grass farmer. When we bought our house, the front yard was basically a wasteland because the seller never took care of it. That sort of thing can play into your favor when negotiating price...

...until you have to revive it.

Fortunately, we've had plenty of regular rain since the beginning of 2008; we're already two inches higher than normal since March 1st. Now I'm contemplating digging some little irrigation channels through the front yard to retain water. It's a vicious cycle, this grass stuff: you need grass roots to absorb rain water, but you can't get grass to grow - and thus develop roots - if you can't retain the water. By now, you're probably wondering why I'm so passionate about this.

It's pretty simple: one of our neighbors has a phenomenal lawn, just like green carpet. Sure, I have great admiration and respect, but I can't stand being outdone! I'm looking for the biggest come-from-behind yard victory our neighborhood has ever seen!

I'd appreciate it if you'd post any grass tips or rescue ideas - call it "fescue rescue". Okay, no, don't call it that - that's a very lame joke...but I bet the grass farmers out there are laughing.