2020 Lawn thread
Discussion
Just treating moss, especially at this time of year is pretty pointless in my eyes, ferrous sulphate will dehydrate it but the sun is starting to do that anyway.
Best is to try and rid the conditions that are allowing it to thrive, some you can help with like removing thatch with scarification, aeration to help with compaction, treating it earlier before it's spread, so whilst it's actually growing like madd over the winter rather than now.
Getting the grass think and healthy and cut at the correct height also makes it much harder for the moss to get a hold.
Went to go see several of the lawns I resseeded from scratch over the last few years and there is barely even a trace of moss still with just basic moss controls, Infact a couple had had nothing and still didnt have any innit which I was gobsmacked by.
Obviously if you have clay soil and lots of shade your going to struggle, things like top dressing and adding some good quality soil to the lawn helps no end aswell for the overall health
Try and find out why you are having such an issue rather than just treating the result
Best is to try and rid the conditions that are allowing it to thrive, some you can help with like removing thatch with scarification, aeration to help with compaction, treating it earlier before it's spread, so whilst it's actually growing like madd over the winter rather than now.
Getting the grass think and healthy and cut at the correct height also makes it much harder for the moss to get a hold.
Went to go see several of the lawns I resseeded from scratch over the last few years and there is barely even a trace of moss still with just basic moss controls, Infact a couple had had nothing and still didnt have any innit which I was gobsmacked by.
Obviously if you have clay soil and lots of shade your going to struggle, things like top dressing and adding some good quality soil to the lawn helps no end aswell for the overall health
Try and find out why you are having such an issue rather than just treating the result
bungle said:
dr_gn said:
I've been through the lawn patching thing a few times over the years. Bought all the feeds etc, and the 'shady area' seeds and all the rest of it. I came to the conclusion that if you've got no direct sunlight, you're stuffed no matter what seed you use..
Yep, been there, done that, last 2 years. Same area is now completely bare, now I've removed the moss that completely took it over. (as I did last year, before reseeding etc).
Reckon I will just give up on that area (it's shaded, down one side of the garden, but the tall trees/ bushes are useful for screening to next door), and have it as (say) a garden path instead, as I'm bored of re-doing it every year.
We don't have too bad moss on the lawn, just areas where the grass was thin going into winter, and I understand Ferrous Sulphate is good in general.
Front lawn is mainly moss, but that's because until we chopped a huge amount out, the front boarder combined with the house kept almost all the light off it. The right is worse, can't think why...
Daniel
Front lawn is mainly moss, but that's because until we chopped a huge amount out, the front boarder combined with the house kept almost all the light off it. The right is worse, can't think why...
Daniel
DonkeyApple said:
Yup. I reckon I have about another two years of futile battling on one small section before doing the blatantly obvious and enlarging the border.
I have, shade, clay and north facing, looks fine in the summer with an over seed, but it really suffers over the winter. I’ve just accepted the fact some lawns need more work than others, and a seed drop in April and September is part of that.People with good lawns are always fiddling with them, but never admit it, they tell you ‘they just mow it once a week’ just the same as people with spotless cars that ‘haven’t been cleaned for months’
Things do appear to now be moving onwards with my plan to kill mine off completely. Having used glyphosate 2 weeks ago and covered the lawn in weed matting (to prevent my cats from going on it)... this seemed to prevent the grass from taking in the glyphosate and there weren't any signs of change after 10 days. I uncovered the grass and gave it a light re-application over the weekend and we're now seeing some decent signs of the lawn dying... hopefully along with all the nasty couchgrass.
I'm giving it another 2 weeks now as the weather warms up before reviewing again and seeing if any areas remain alive. I also need to think about once this is done whether it's better to rent a turf cutter and pull it all up, or just to rake/scarify fully and reseed/topdress.
So here's how it looked yesterday!
Just for context here's how it looked exactly a year ago on 2nd April 2019.
And 30th April 2019, so we've gone from a nice lawn with some minor spots of couch grass and a handful of weeds to something quite different!
I'm giving it another 2 weeks now as the weather warms up before reviewing again and seeing if any areas remain alive. I also need to think about once this is done whether it's better to rent a turf cutter and pull it all up, or just to rake/scarify fully and reseed/topdress.
So here's how it looked yesterday!
Just for context here's how it looked exactly a year ago on 2nd April 2019.
And 30th April 2019, so we've gone from a nice lawn with some minor spots of couch grass and a handful of weeds to something quite different!
Very nice! And a bit depressing as my worst fears about my lawn have been confirmed. When I had it laid, I hadn't really done much research. As we have heavy London clay, the landscapers improved the soil with topsoil and sand. Turns out, they were complete cowboys and had no idea what they were doing (neither did I, to be fair).
Lots of Sand. And instead of doing the sensible thing, which would have been to rotovate the sand into the existing soil, they laid it above the soil like a blanket. And not just any blanket, but one that in places is SIX INCHES DEEP!
So the grass is stunted and in some places has roots no deeper than the original turf. What a monumental waste of money - and it all needs to be dug up and done again.
I'll overseed it this year just because I have the seed and I am a bit depressed and want to do something, but also whils the COVID thing is going on and global recession looms, spending thousands on a lawn would not be a clever financial move.
Pics below:
Hole dug by a fox (whole other story - they are wrecking the garden) shows several inches of sand.
20200403_094222 by baconrashers, on Flickr
Lifting patches shows this:
20200403_094624 by baconrashers, on Flickr
You can see the tiny, short grass roots in this pic. This is two years on. They should be several inches deep by now. This is why the grass never grows more than a couple of inches tall in most places.
[url=https://flic.kr
/p/2iLu9ba]20200403_094015[/url] by baconrashers, on Flickr
Lots of Sand. And instead of doing the sensible thing, which would have been to rotovate the sand into the existing soil, they laid it above the soil like a blanket. And not just any blanket, but one that in places is SIX INCHES DEEP!
So the grass is stunted and in some places has roots no deeper than the original turf. What a monumental waste of money - and it all needs to be dug up and done again.
I'll overseed it this year just because I have the seed and I am a bit depressed and want to do something, but also whils the COVID thing is going on and global recession looms, spending thousands on a lawn would not be a clever financial move.
Pics below:
Hole dug by a fox (whole other story - they are wrecking the garden) shows several inches of sand.
20200403_094222 by baconrashers, on FlickrLifting patches shows this:
20200403_094624 by baconrashers, on FlickrYou can see the tiny, short grass roots in this pic. This is two years on. They should be several inches deep by now. This is why the grass never grows more than a couple of inches tall in most places.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2iLu9ba]20200403_094015[/url] by baconrashers, on Flickr
Hi All
I've just got a quote from a local Horticulture supplier for some lawn fertiliser seeing as B&Q etc are shut. I've been quoted £61 inc £4 delivery for some Sierraform Spring Start (20kg). That seems quite steep compared to the £20 I paid last year for some off the shelf stuff at B&Q?
Anyone know if the the Sierraform spread thinner than the B&Q product and is it that much better to justify the extra cost?
I've just got a quote from a local Horticulture supplier for some lawn fertiliser seeing as B&Q etc are shut. I've been quoted £61 inc £4 delivery for some Sierraform Spring Start (20kg). That seems quite steep compared to the £20 I paid last year for some off the shelf stuff at B&Q?
Anyone know if the the Sierraform spread thinner than the B&Q product and is it that much better to justify the extra cost?
Amazon are selling the mass market stuff at normal prices....
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lawn+weed+and+feed+wi...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lawn+weed+and+feed+wi...
RichB said:
_Hoppers said:
I've been quoted £61 inc £4 delivery for some Sierraform Spring Start (20kg).
Why don't you ask the supplier what area 20kg will cover. That, or use the internet to search for the technical instructions for the product? Edited by _Hoppers on Friday 3rd April 17:00
Johnnytheboy said:
Amazon are selling the mass market stuff at normal prices....
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lawn+weed+and+feed+wi...
Just looking at a different product which is a bit cheaper than the Sierraform. It actually works out cheaper per/m² than the standard stuff on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lawn+weed+and+feed+wi...
_Hoppers said:
RichB said:
_Hoppers said:
I've been quoted £61 inc £4 delivery for some Sierraform Spring Start (20kg).
Why don't you ask the supplier what area 20kg will cover. That, or use the internet to search for the technical instructions for the product? I got a bag of this stuff from my local agricultural shop.
Never tried it before but looks like it should be decent and was only 23 quid for 20kgs
https://www.angus-horticulture.co.uk/products/elit...
They are only taking phone orders but may be worth a try if you have one nearby
Never tried it before but looks like it should be decent and was only 23 quid for 20kgs
https://www.angus-horticulture.co.uk/products/elit...
They are only taking phone orders but may be worth a try if you have one nearby
PositronicRay said:
Anyone else considering getting the sprinkler out?
No, there's rain coming next week so I'll wait until then. I will also get some seed down in advance of the rain, probably Monday morning. I've got a molehill that I have flattened to reseed and some shady areas need overseeding. Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff