Will be moving into our new house in early Jan. Want to seed it pretty well now to get something growing as far as grass. What will come up now? I will be putting St Augustine grass in some spots late winter but I need something in the meantime for the dogs so they don't track in mud everywhere.

We live in the country so there is no restrictions.

Annual Rye will sprout. You can put down sod if you water it plenty.

Maybe restate what I want to accomplish. I am not planning to sod the complete yard with St Augustine grass due to cost. What will complement the St Augustine grass while the it is spreading but sprout in the winter time.?

x2 - 'bout the only thing that will grow NOW (Rye = cool season/WINTER grass)
It will die when temps return to 80-90 degrees (summer)
50# bag of seed for $43 at Tractor Supply

either that, or plant oats or wheat - heh heh heh

You can also check feed stores. The co-op close to me carries #50 for $30. It will easily cover an acre.

Put out rye. It is working like a charm for me. PM if you want some pictures.

Rye grows pretty high. I planted it in my lawn one year and had a mess that could hardly be mowed. I think for a lawn, fescue would be a better choice.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dlawngarden&field-keywords=fescue+grass+seed

You are right. My dad has been over seeding his lawn with rye every fall for 30 years. He also enjoys mowing twice a week.

Fescue = too slow, and will persist in warm weather ; neither which will meet OP's stated needs (he'll have st.augustine for warm-season).
It's nice grass; just doesn't fit his specs.
Rye will be established & 2" tall by the time fescue first starts to poke it's head thru the surface (~2 weeks).

not what you want to hear but.....what your wanting is something to prevent the dogs from getting muddy when they go outside. you want this to happen in less than 30 days. what you are asking is almost impossible for normal people. a 3 inch tall rye grass still has tiny roots 2 lab puppies would turn that into a mudpit in 3 days.dry sod would be my recommendation

I did sod right around house, and rye out past that. The rye has preformed perfectly with one full grown lab and a mini schnuazer. And the lab is a wild sob.

checker board with sod and fill in the empty spots with compost.

san augustine all the way

Rye.........

Planted Rye about 3 weeks ago, good stand of about 1 to 2 inches tall right now. Time will tell will start putting different areas of St Augustine when weather allows. Not solid but checkering.

My rye has turned out awesome. Only have to mow every couple of weeks. I think I'm going to experiment soon with some Zoysia plugs.