2016 Lawn thread
Discussion
Jimmyarm said:
Craikeybaby said:
Picked up a scarifier from HSS at lunchtime, so hoping the weather holds out this evening.
The seed packet suggests waiting 4-5 days between scarifying and overseeding, so hoping the temperature will have picked up a bit by then.
Out of curiosity, do they take a deposit for the scarifier ? I was playing around on their website and it doesn't seem to ask for one ?The seed packet suggests waiting 4-5 days between scarifying and overseeding, so hoping the temperature will have picked up a bit by then.
MrGRT said:
Sorry no, the scarifying was with a petrol scarifier, but all of the thatch, moss, etc that it was left behind was collected by raking it. 2 person job but both knackered and likely with permanent damage lol
Better but still hard work and about 52 bin bags full no doubt. Even when you mow to do the collecting it fills the mower in about 30 secondsjagnet said:
Definitely give it a feed. For smaller quantities then Lawnsmith's fertilisers are very good. For larger quantities then Pitchcare have a huge range.
I'd avoid combined weed and feed type products as excessive weedkiller isn't good for the lawn.
Which feed depends a lot on how often you want to be fertilising, whether you're on a sandy or clay soil, and what types of grasses you have. I would suggest a granular feed for ease, and nothing too high in nitrogen unless it's very slow release.
It's also a good idea to aerate the lawn at this stage to relieve any compaction. Air is just as important in the rootzone as water and nutrients.
I would also overseed after scarifying to thicken the sward and help prevent the return of moss as well as reduce the likelihood of opportunist weeds and weed grasses moving in.
Thanks for that advice.I'd avoid combined weed and feed type products as excessive weedkiller isn't good for the lawn.
Which feed depends a lot on how often you want to be fertilising, whether you're on a sandy or clay soil, and what types of grasses you have. I would suggest a granular feed for ease, and nothing too high in nitrogen unless it's very slow release.
It's also a good idea to aerate the lawn at this stage to relieve any compaction. Air is just as important in the rootzone as water and nutrients.
I would also overseed after scarifying to thicken the sward and help prevent the return of moss as well as reduce the likelihood of opportunist weeds and weed grasses moving in.
Okey dokey, so first mow done at our new home with lawn tractor that arrived today 
Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees 
Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong 
Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
So, within 7 months I've gone from this..
..to this.
Feeling depressed, I..well we have been busy over the last few days. First a good scarify, with some great help from a friend who managed to borrow the machine.
The bottom right hand corner was struggling in heavy rain - the slope didn't help and I noticed the patio slabs in the corner had sagged towards the lawn too so I've leveled those. Builder's bag of top soil (sorted the slope) and a mix of Lawnsmith classic and shade seed around the borders. Also properly edged the lawn and fitted some boards while we were at it. Keeping fingers crossed now!
..to this.
Feeling depressed, I..well we have been busy over the last few days. First a good scarify, with some great help from a friend who managed to borrow the machine.
The bottom right hand corner was struggling in heavy rain - the slope didn't help and I noticed the patio slabs in the corner had sagged towards the lawn too so I've leveled those. Builder's bag of top soil (sorted the slope) and a mix of Lawnsmith classic and shade seed around the borders. Also properly edged the lawn and fitted some boards while we were at it. Keeping fingers crossed now!
vladcjelli said:
Just picked up a Webb H18 -
That looks like a very nice push mower. I didn't realise that Webb made one of those as well as their 12 inch rear roller one.MrGRT said:
After first pass:
That's the downside to scarifying - all the raking afterwards. If the grass is relatively dry and you've given it a nice short cut beforehand then you could try using a leaf blower. Alternatively a leaf sweeper like this will collect a lot of the arisings.Craikeybaby said:
The seed packet suggests waiting 4-5 days between scarifying and overseeding, so hoping the temperature will have picked up a bit by then.
I'd normally sow straight afterwards tbh. The score marks in the soil from scarifying make a good bed for the seed and it gives the new seed chance to get started whilst the existing grass recovers. Mario149 said:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
I would, definitely. If the lawn's not been aerated in a long time then there's likely to be areas that are quite compacted and that's not good for the health of the grassMario149 said:
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
Moss is an opportunist so if you can maintain a nice thick healthy sward you're 90% of the way there. Shaded damp patches are the prime place to find moss, but second to that is in lawns that are cut too short with inadequate feeding.Under trees are always hard to maintain as the trees compete with the lawn for water, light and nutrients. You'll certainly benefit from over seeding those areas annually even if you only do the rest of the lawn every two or three years.
The Shadygreen is really quite well priced so I don't think you're going to save much for an equivalent seed by shopping around. You could try the Maxwell LM1 seed which is a mix of fescues so should be ok in many shaded conditions but it's not going to blend so well with the rest of the lawn imho nor is it likely to stand up to wear as well as the Shadygreen.
Nick_MSM said:
Before scarifying, the yellow patches are where I'd killed some weed grasses previously.
Lawn before by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
Just after this photo I discovered the mower was out of petrol, so had to head back out, which was annoying.
After a short cut with the mover, 5 passes with the scarifier and a very full compost bin:
After scarifying by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
The jobs for tomorrow will be fertilising and overseeding.
Lawn before by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
Just after this photo I discovered the mower was out of petrol, so had to head back out, which was annoying.
After a short cut with the mover, 5 passes with the scarifier and a very full compost bin:
After scarifying by Lewis Craik, on Flickr
The jobs for tomorrow will be fertilising and overseeding.
jagnet said:
That looks like a very nice push mower. I didn't realise that Webb made one of those as well as their 12 inch rear roller one.
Yeah, I should probably have gone for the 12", but bigger is better, right?Plus, I convinced myself I would need the 7.5cm max cutting height, though unsure why.
Couldn't quite stretch to the Fiskars staysharp that I've seen recommended on here, struggled to get this one past Mrs Cjelli.
Although, even she was forced to admit it is quite a soothing experience to use compared to the noisy old flymo.
Mario149 said:
Okey dokey, so first mow done at our new home with lawn tractor that arrived today Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong
Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
Loving your work, thats a proper mower and proper garden Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
Nick_MSM said:
So, within 7 months I've gone from this..
..to this.
Feeling depressed, I..well we have been busy over the last few days. First a good scarify, with some great help from a friend who managed to borrow the machine.
The bottom right hand corner was struggling in heavy rain - the slope didn't help and I noticed the patio slabs in the corner had sagged towards the lawn too so I've leveled those. Builder's bag of top soil (sorted the slope) and a mix of Lawnsmith classic and shade seed around the borders. Also properly edged the lawn and fitted some boards while we were at it. Keeping fingers crossed now!
Your lawn did look amazing in pic 1 ! Fingers crossed for its return..to this.
Feeling depressed, I..well we have been busy over the last few days. First a good scarify, with some great help from a friend who managed to borrow the machine.
The bottom right hand corner was struggling in heavy rain - the slope didn't help and I noticed the patio slabs in the corner had sagged towards the lawn too so I've leveled those. Builder's bag of top soil (sorted the slope) and a mix of Lawnsmith classic and shade seed around the borders. Also properly edged the lawn and fitted some boards while we were at it. Keeping fingers crossed now!
8-P said:
Mario149 said:
Okey dokey, so first mow done at our new home with lawn tractor that arrived today Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong
Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
Loving your work, thats a proper mower and proper garden Towed sprayer and ferrous sulphate ordered. Going to kill the moss sometime next week, then looking at buying a towed scarifier to clear out the dead moss a week or so after, followed by an overseed as we've probably got 1/4 of an acre (out of our 3/4 acre of lawn area) that's more moss than grass unfortunately, especially in the third pic below and in the second pic under the blossoming trees Neighbours say it's unavoidable where we are so not to bother but I want to prove them wrong Questions:
1) I'm guessing I should buy/hire an aerator as well before overseeding?
2) a lot of the mossy bits are shaded and under apple trees, but a lot aren't so it may just be that the lawn wasn't previously maintained very well - the previous owner just used to cover it in weed and feed once a year in April and that's about it as far as I can tell from speaking to him. Is there any particular seed I should use? Shady Green has been mentioned a few times, but if there's an alternative that saves a bit of cash I'd be up for that. No point in spending if I don't need to.
We've kinda dropped ourselves in the deep end! I grew up in a similar sized garden/property until I was 11, but have then lived in places with progressively smaller gardens culminating in the last 10 years in London with either no garden, a small garden that I didn't have the time or inclination to do anything in, or a shared garden looked after by other people. Here we basically have no choice 
The neighbours popped round to meet us the other day and asked if I was into gardening, I said "I have to be now don't I!". I don't think I'll ever be like my dad was and super keen on it, but keeping it reasonably tidy with my other half looking after the fruit trees/bushes we've got (she likes that sort of thing) should be quite fun. For any more serious/mundane stuff I think we'll get some gardeners to take a look every now and then. I can probably weed the rose beds but after that I suspect my patience will wear very thin Edited by Mario149 on Friday 22 April 09:40
Craikeybaby said:
Lawn forked, fertilised and overseeded. Had to stop halfway through to rescue a bumble bee on the lawn that looked to be struggling, it seemed to perk up a bit after being given a drop of ribena to drink.
Solitary bees can often be found in longish grass at this time of year just emerging from the winter. When it goes cold they like to find somewhere nice to hide in until it gets warm again. Jagnet help required!
Built a new house 18 months ago. Seeded a new lawn which germinated fairly quickly. We have mixed soil, but mainly clay. Lawn has germinated pretty well but, I have brown patches with straw like growth. I have scarified, spiked and fed both Autumn and Spring feed. Still the straw like grass persists!
I have patches where the grass is a gorgeous blue/green colour but still I have the straw patches.
Have also top dressed where clay is dominant. No pictures at present but if it helps I will upload.
No idea what to do next!
Thanks for any suggestions.
Built a new house 18 months ago. Seeded a new lawn which germinated fairly quickly. We have mixed soil, but mainly clay. Lawn has germinated pretty well but, I have brown patches with straw like growth. I have scarified, spiked and fed both Autumn and Spring feed. Still the straw like grass persists!
I have patches where the grass is a gorgeous blue/green colour but still I have the straw patches.
Have also top dressed where clay is dominant. No pictures at present but if it helps I will upload.
No idea what to do next!
Thanks for any suggestions.
Hi, first time I've popped into this thread, I'll be reading up this year as I want to try and improve my lawn. I also just bought a new petrol lawnmower.
My lawn looks a bit sorry after the winter with lots of moss, a fair few dandilions and some small patches of bare earth. I removed two trees that were at the edge which now leaves a small area I'd like to turf. I have a large box of "aftercut" all-in-one, some sharp sand, as yet unpurchased grass seed and my neighbour has an electric rake thing he will lend to me.
My soil is quite clay in composition, and my lawn seems to hold a bit of water.
My question is what is my best approach, and what order should I use the items I have? You can probably guess I have limited lawn care experience.
Any advice gratefully received.
My lawn looks a bit sorry after the winter with lots of moss, a fair few dandilions and some small patches of bare earth. I removed two trees that were at the edge which now leaves a small area I'd like to turf. I have a large box of "aftercut" all-in-one, some sharp sand, as yet unpurchased grass seed and my neighbour has an electric rake thing he will lend to me.
My soil is quite clay in composition, and my lawn seems to hold a bit of water.
My question is what is my best approach, and what order should I use the items I have? You can probably guess I have limited lawn care experience.
Any advice gratefully received.
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