Lawn Care Thread
Discussion
BliarOut said:
Discuss 
Depends on how into your lawn you are I suppose.For the ultimate lawn I suppose it's best to tailor treatments for specific issues.
If you want a better than average lawn weed and feed will help.
In PH terms, a mower is a bucket and sponge. Weed and feed is a lick of SRP once a year, what you're suggesting is a machine polish and detail
B17NNS said:
BliarOut said:
Discuss
Depends on how into your lawn you are I suppose.For the ultimate lawn I suppose it's best to tailor treatments for specific issues.
If you want a better than average lawn weed and feed will help.
In PH terms, a mower is a bucket and sponge. Weed and feed is a lick of SRP once a year, what you're suggesting is a machine polish and detail
B17NNS said:
It will kill all broad leaved plants so keep it strictly on the lawn.
Thanks again!I'm going to have a better look at the lawn tonight and see how much moss/weed is there and decide what products I need to get. Do you need a spreader to apply the chemicals? (Garden is about 1/2 a tennis court).
Nice place. Hidden gem anddid not know it was there until last year...
I have carried out some landscaping a bit further along - KPC....
I have carried out some landscaping a bit further along - KPC....
kentmotorcompany said:
Before spending any money on products or services. I always think regular cutting is the first and most important thing to do.
Cut a minimum of once a fortnight, once a week if you can. Also set the height as high as you can. Shorter grass looks smarter when its freshly cut in the short term, but longer grass wears better and dries out slower.
If you do this you will be have a lawn about 90% as good as it will ever be. After this water during long dry periods. Then if you want to spend money an EVEN application (maybe a contractor might be better for this) of a good weed and feed a few times during the growing season will be about all you need to do.
Old house.
New house when we moved in.
New house about 6 months later.
The most recent photo was from just simple regular cutting, before any watering or fertiliser went on. It was and still is quite full of weeds, but it is all thick and bright green, and therefore the weeds just don't matter as much
If you want to spend money, a decent mower will make life a lot easier. £200-400 on a second hand Hayter or Honda petrol mower (I use a petrol rotary mower, with a driven roller on the back for the stripes) will be much better than the same money spent on something brand new from the likes of B&Q.
Like someone above said, your lawn will be as good as the work you are prepared to put into it, so if you enjoy doing it rather than see it as a chore you are always more likely to succeed.
Cut a minimum of once a fortnight, once a week if you can. Also set the height as high as you can. Shorter grass looks smarter when its freshly cut in the short term, but longer grass wears better and dries out slower.
If you do this you will be have a lawn about 90% as good as it will ever be. After this water during long dry periods. Then if you want to spend money an EVEN application (maybe a contractor might be better for this) of a good weed and feed a few times during the growing season will be about all you need to do.
Old house.
New house when we moved in.
New house about 6 months later.
The most recent photo was from just simple regular cutting, before any watering or fertiliser went on. It was and still is quite full of weeds, but it is all thick and bright green, and therefore the weeds just don't matter as much
If you want to spend money, a decent mower will make life a lot easier. £200-400 on a second hand Hayter or Honda petrol mower (I use a petrol rotary mower, with a driven roller on the back for the stripes) will be much better than the same money spent on something brand new from the likes of B&Q.
Like someone above said, your lawn will be as good as the work you are prepared to put into it, so if you enjoy doing it rather than see it as a chore you are always more likely to succeed.
Edited by kentmotorcompany on Wednesday 21st March 06:53
There was/is some good advice in this thread too: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I took the advice and bought a drop spreader - first application of fertiliser has had an astonishing effect, instantly greening things up a good bit. Have a load of combined weed/feed lined up for a couple of months time when it all starts growing nicely.
Probably too late to hire a petrol driven aerator, but found a place locally that hires them so that'll get done once summer has gone.
ETA: anyone got any tips about overseeding? E.g. when to do it, how much to sow compared to sowing a new lawn, mixing types of seed (no idea what is down already), etc?
I took the advice and bought a drop spreader - first application of fertiliser has had an astonishing effect, instantly greening things up a good bit. Have a load of combined weed/feed lined up for a couple of months time when it all starts growing nicely.
Probably too late to hire a petrol driven aerator, but found a place locally that hires them so that'll get done once summer has gone.
ETA: anyone got any tips about overseeding? E.g. when to do it, how much to sow compared to sowing a new lawn, mixing types of seed (no idea what is down already), etc?
Edited by LooneyTunes on Tuesday 9th April 07:21
LooneyTunes said:
There was/is some good advice in this thread too: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I took the advice and bought a drop spreader - first application of fertiliser has had an astonishing effect, instantly greening things up a good bit. Have a load of combined weed/feed lined up for a couple of months time when it all starts growing nicely.
Probably too late to hire a petrol driven aerator, but found a place locally that hires them so that'll get done once summer has gone.
ETA: anyone got any tips about overseeding? E.g. when to do it, how much to sow compared to sowing a new lawn, mixing types of seed (no idea what is down already), etc?
That was the thread I was looking for when I found this one! I've bookmarked it now. I took the advice and bought a drop spreader - first application of fertiliser has had an astonishing effect, instantly greening things up a good bit. Have a load of combined weed/feed lined up for a couple of months time when it all starts growing nicely.
Probably too late to hire a petrol driven aerator, but found a place locally that hires them so that'll get done once summer has gone.
ETA: anyone got any tips about overseeding? E.g. when to do it, how much to sow compared to sowing a new lawn, mixing types of seed (no idea what is down already), etc?
Edited by LooneyTunes on Tuesday 9th April 07:21
BliarOut said:
That site is very informative - maybe too much so, I don't want to get too into it! I'm going to purchase some weed & feed and a drop spreader at the weekend. Craikeybaby said:
BliarOut said:
That site is very informative - maybe too much so, I don't want to get too into it! I'm going to purchase some weed & feed and a drop spreader at the weekend. 
I went round the local garden centres and DIY sheds yesterday looking for the Scott's stuff as recommended on here, but nowhere seemed to stock it, so have ordered online. In the mean time I tried out the crappy cylinder lawnmower that came with the house, it has done an OK job, but I really need to sort out the weeds/moss. I've aerated the mossiest bits with a fork, but the bulk of it will be sorted in the autumn.
Lawn by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
Lawn by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
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