2015 Lawn thread
Discussion
wjwren said:
Anybody had experience of ants on the lawn? Ive just cut mine and there are about 10 nests! There were 3 there a few months ago so i dug them out, by about half a foot, which I thought had removed them but they have come back even worse now! Do people just leave them or use the ant killer?
I haven't had the need to use them myself, but ant bait stations are supposed to be effective. I would avoid using their liquid 'instant death on contact' soluble sachets unless you really really have to as cypermethrin is a general insecticide and it'll affect all insects that it comes into contact with as well as other creatures. Personally I tend to leave the ants be unless it's causing the lawn problems, which so far hasn't happened to me thankfully. I think a lot of that comes down to some soil types being less ant-friendly than others amongst other reasons, so I'd perhaps get a few of the bait stations and keep an eye on the situation.
R8VXF said:
Looks a bit better this evening now I have managed to bring the grass height down some more after it got crazy long really quickly recently!
Still working on perfecting the mowing path, but practice makes perfect....
Make sure that you do alternate the direction of cut by going crossways as well as up and down to avoid problems with washboarding and the grass laying down, even if it's one week across for every two lengthways.Still working on perfecting the mowing path, but practice makes perfect....
illmonkey said:
Battling with moles and a dog using it as a bathroom.spooky garden!
Moles, dog patches and sinister overtones aside, that grass is looking really healthy for a shaded town lawn 
I'd spend a little time edging around the stepping stones to tidy those up. Little things like that really make a difference to the overall look.
jagnet said:
Moles, dog patches and sinister overtones aside, that grass is looking really healthy for a shaded town lawn
I'd spend a little time edging around the stepping stones to tidy those up. Little things like that really make a difference to the overall look.
Thanks, I do water it every evening, keeps it in check and dilutes dog waste!I'd spend a little time edging around the stepping stones to tidy those up. Little things like that really make a difference to the overall look.
Not a bad idea, a border with those metal 'holders' and some stones would look great. I'll test some stones on the dog, if he plays with them, no chance!
jagnet said:
Make sure that you do alternate the direction of cut by going crossways as well as up and down to avoid problems with washboarding and the grass laying down, even if it's one week across for every two lengthways.
I cross cut once a week, tis a pain in the ass due to the short run but still do it, I also try to make the normal cuts in opposite directions each time 
I have also not used the grass box once since reseeding, saves so much time!
moles said:
Here's mine before it gets ripped up and rotivated early next week.
That's looking good and healthy; there's many that would be envious of that lawn as it stands R8VXF said:
I cross cut once a week, tis a pain in the ass due to the short run but still do it, I also try to make the normal cuts in opposite directions each time
I have also not used the grass box once since reseeding, saves so much time!
Doesn't it just, and it makes it much easier in awkward corners, although for some reason I find it easier to keep a straight line when the box is on. Perhaps I'm keeping more of an eye on the overlap at the blades rather than looking ahead than I realise without the box.I have also not used the grass box once since reseeding, saves so much time!
jagnet said:
Doesn't it just, and it makes it much easier in awkward corners, although for some reason I find it easier to keep a straight line when the box is on. Perhaps I'm keeping more of an eye on the overlap at the blades rather than looking ahead than I realise without the box.
One of the reasons for the new shape of lawn was to eliminate hard to cut corners, as per the bible! A little bit annoyed to find the BBQ patio is not straight with the rest of the garden though. Straight edge to lawn next to the patio, or parallel with the preceding edge...Gonna be laying gravel between the grass and the beds, so need to work out which tactic to take before plastic edging the lawn!
jagnet said:
R8VXF said:
Straight edge to lawn next to the patio, or parallel with the preceding edge...
Problem solved
My instinct would be to continue the line parallel to the previous edge to smoothly lead the eye down the lawn, especially when your stripes are matched up to it as well.
That was my thinking as well. f
king ocd!Barny why you putting shingle down and plastic edging?, I did it on my path to keep gravel back but when I redo mine I'm just cutting back the lawn and having the bare mud edge and a lower than lawn flower bed all around the perimeter. Shingle is a bit of a nightmare when it gets grass all over it and tends to flick up all over the grass. Mine will look like yours does now with flowers in the border, is there a reason you not leaving it like this?.
moles said:
Barny why you putting shingle down and plastic edging?, I did it on my path to keep gravel back but when I redo mine I'm just cutting back the lawn and having the bare mud edge and a lower than lawn flower bed all around the perimeter. Shingle is a bit of a nightmare when it gets grass all over it and tends to flick up all over the grass. Mine will look like yours does now with flowers in the border, is there a reason you not leaving it like this?.
A couple of reasons really.Plants tend to overhang the edge of the flower bed making it hard to get a decent cut right to the edge and also ends up killing off the grass.
I think it should look quite nice
We have a raised bed at the back so needed to separate the lawn from the bed to again be able to get a good edge without having to use a strimmer.
Here's ours. It's been quite a lot of work in the last few months as we're still surrounded by a large building site with plenty of seeding weeds, Dandelions, etc.
However, earlier this year my wife & I set about scarifying, using plenty of weed & feed and fertiliser. We had a VERY hot dry spell in the Bourg recently (>40C), but we religiously used the sprinkler in the evenings and then didn't cut the grass too short or too often.
After 10 days away in the UK recently, during which the weather at home was cooler and wetter, I cut the grass on Sunday, leaving the blade a bit higher than it had been, and we're very happy with the results, so far.
Side of the house (corner plot):
Rear:
(What looks like a hole in the near left of the image is actually for the washing line: it's covered)
(I hope the images work as I can't always view them when uploading from work
)
However, earlier this year my wife & I set about scarifying, using plenty of weed & feed and fertiliser. We had a VERY hot dry spell in the Bourg recently (>40C), but we religiously used the sprinkler in the evenings and then didn't cut the grass too short or too often.
After 10 days away in the UK recently, during which the weather at home was cooler and wetter, I cut the grass on Sunday, leaving the blade a bit higher than it had been, and we're very happy with the results, so far.
Side of the house (corner plot):
Rear:
(What looks like a hole in the near left of the image is actually for the washing line: it's covered)
(I hope the images work as I can't always view them when uploading from work
)
Barny are you using the smart edge plastic?, if so it works better if you cut 15mm of soil away all around hammer/place the pins in the soil then add soil and seed over the top of the triangles so that they are buried from day one. If you just hammer the triangles straight on top they work as supposed to eventually but you get random ones popping up above the grass if you cut it short and they don't sit right so have to cut them off.
I did 2 lots, one as the instructions said and the second lot as above and they have turned out loads better and are much tighter in the soil compared to the first lot.
I did 2 lots, one as the instructions said and the second lot as above and they have turned out loads better and are much tighter in the soil compared to the first lot.
I've now stockpiled the materials for this year's lawn renovation, which is going to involve a complete killing of the whole lawn and reseeding from scratch. This is horticultural ethnic cleansing: I am determined to eliminate the coarse weed grasses and replace with a pure population of fescues and bents.
So I have my glyphosate to kill it, drain tracing dye so I can see where I've sprayed, starter fertiliser to give the emerging seedlings some extra 'oomph', and the seed itself. I'll also be using some cheapo compost as a light top-dressing on top of the seed.
Can't wait to get started!
So I have my glyphosate to kill it, drain tracing dye so I can see where I've sprayed, starter fertiliser to give the emerging seedlings some extra 'oomph', and the seed itself. I'll also be using some cheapo compost as a light top-dressing on top of the seed.
Can't wait to get started!
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