2023 Lawn Thread
Discussion
rfsteel said:
Just wish I could get one of these down the side of the house and the lawn was firm enough to stop it from sinking
I can empathise. Previous garden had a similar leaf situation with a lot of mature broad leaf trees. I ended up buying a petrol motorised leaf shredder. Similar size to a supermarket shopping trolly with a large vacuum inlet across the front and big collection bag at the rear. 4 wheels and you walked behind it and steered. It produced what looked like large tea leaves. Made great leaf mold.Edited by rfsteel on Sunday 5th February 19:04
Still quite hard work and having a Stiga ride on with front decks with mulching blades I would use that as well to shred them directly onto the lawn.
Minimised the work by only doing leaf shredding when the air is dry and crisp. Trouble is without shredding, leaves take a long time to rot down!
Condi said:
AAD44H said:
Where do I start, it was fantastic a year or two ago. Now appears to be dead....
Looks like it gets very little sunlight over winter and heavy ground. Rather than just overseeding with any old grass seed you want a shade tolerant mix. If it's clay soil you can get varieties which put down deeper roots and help them stay heathy in summer when it's hot. Last year was terrible for grass, the hot summer killed a lot off and if it didn't recover before winter will have been in poor shape for the darker times. With the right seed mix it's not lost.
Feed it up when it warms up and it should go again…
Edited by Turn7 on Sunday 26th February 19:48
First time posting in a lawn thread....
We had turf laid in October (I think) just before the wet weather hit and it hasn't really been touched since.
First mow was done yesterday but it's a bit lumpy and there is discoloration where the dogs have been doing their stuff.
I'm thinking just get a local Green thumb out to have a look and sort it out, or is there easy things I can do myself?
Pic for reference.
We had turf laid in October (I think) just before the wet weather hit and it hasn't really been touched since.
First mow was done yesterday but it's a bit lumpy and there is discoloration where the dogs have been doing their stuff.
I'm thinking just get a local Green thumb out to have a look and sort it out, or is there easy things I can do myself?
Pic for reference.
Edited by Its Just Adz on Sunday 26th February 18:53
C4ME said:
<clip> ended up buying a petrol motorised leaf shredder. Similar size to a supermarket shopping trolly with a large vacuum inlet across the front and big collection bag at the rear. 4 wheels and you walked behind it and steered. It produced what looked like large tea leaves. Made great leaf mold...
Was that a Billy Goat? I keep thinking I'll get one of those but then winter comes and goes and I drop the idea.
RichB said:
C4ME said:
<clip> ended up buying a petrol motorised leaf shredder. Similar size to a supermarket shopping trolly with a large vacuum inlet across the front and big collection bag at the rear. 4 wheels and you walked behind it and steered. It produced what looked like large tea leaves. Made great leaf mold...
Was that a Billy Goat? I keep thinking I'll get one of those but then winter comes and goes and I drop the idea.
Similar principle but less of a mower design. Looked like this (quick google of images). Could also be used as a wood chipper using the upright feed.
It's that time of year for in-lawn spring bulbs to start doing their thing!
More to come, as the mauve Pickwick and Jeanne D'Arc white crocuses, white and dwarf daffodils are still to come. I've just deadheaded the first crop of Early Sensation daffs, which gave colour through January.
Photos don't do it justice. It's very cheering! It's a lovely intro to things really kicking off in the garden I'm spring.
More to come, as the mauve Pickwick and Jeanne D'Arc white crocuses, white and dwarf daffodils are still to come. I've just deadheaded the first crop of Early Sensation daffs, which gave colour through January.
Photos don't do it justice. It's very cheering! It's a lovely intro to things really kicking off in the garden I'm spring.
Turn7 said:
Condi said:
AAD44H said:
Where do I start, it was fantastic a year or two ago. Now appears to be dead....
Looks like it gets very little sunlight over winter and heavy ground. Rather than just overseeding with any old grass seed you want a shade tolerant mix. If it's clay soil you can get varieties which put down deeper roots and help them stay heathy in summer when it's hot. Last year was terrible for grass, the hot summer killed a lot off and if it didn't recover before winter will have been in poor shape for the darker times. With the right seed mix it's not lost.
Feed it up when it warms up and it should go again…
Edited by Turn7 on Sunday 26th February 19:48
Btw, has anyone got experience of Green Thumb? If you sign up to a monthly contract what do they actually do for that? My lawn has a lot of moss and it needs a longer term solution than killing it once. If Green Thumb were to visit monthly for their subscription fee, and apply repeat applications then they would be worth having, but if you pay the direct debit yet they only come once every 3 months to apply a different thing then it wouldn't stay on top of the problem.
Condi said:
Btw, has anyone got experience of Green Thumb? If you sign up to a monthly contract what do they actually do for that? My lawn has a lot of moss and it needs a longer term solution than killing it once. If Green Thumb were to visit monthly for their subscription fee, and apply repeat applications then they would be worth having, but if you pay the direct debit yet they only come once every 3 months to apply a different thing then it wouldn't stay on top of the problem.
Very much depends on the franchisee ( i know that doesn't help). I have friends in Warwick/Northants that sing their praises, but three in Nottinghamshire that no longer bother with their service. (with some saying they paid their fee, but didn't really get the service provided/expected and cancelled)If you have the time (and coupled with the vast experience on here) you can certainly tackle it yourself + it is rewarding.
Condi said:
Btw, has anyone got experience of Green Thumb? If you sign up to a monthly contract what do they actually do for that? My lawn has a lot of moss and it needs a longer term solution than killing it once. If Green Thumb were to visit monthly for their subscription fee, and apply repeat applications then they would be worth having, but if you pay the direct debit yet they only come once every 3 months to apply a different thing then it wouldn't stay on top of the problem.
I've had them round today to evaluate and quote, seems very reasonable so I will report back.Condi said:
The Count said:
If you have the time (and coupled with the vast experience on here) you can certainly tackle it yourself + it is rewarding.
Yes, but I'm lazy and it's not a fun job to do! For £13 a month Green Thumb can do it, unless it's £13/m and they come 4 times a year! i gave up with them as didn't see the benefit and bought the kit off Lawnsmith for a bit of DIY
Anybody else absolutely itching to get out and do the first cut? This mild winter has the grass at an ideal cutting length but the forecasted frosts are keeping me from going and doing it. This summers heat followed by the very wet autumn has caused havoc with the grass leading to tons of moss that has managed to survive 2 feed & kill treatments so will be hand racked out!!
Then in April/May this years dig out of the back garden begins to build on the job started last year, taking up the clay and fixing it with compost and sand to turn it to loam. This winter its been much drier underfoot thanks to the french drains I put in and the fixed soil around it, leading to a nice lush T shape in the grass. Hoping for similar results with the whole lawn for next year!
Then in April/May this years dig out of the back garden begins to build on the job started last year, taking up the clay and fixing it with compost and sand to turn it to loam. This winter its been much drier underfoot thanks to the french drains I put in and the fixed soil around it, leading to a nice lush T shape in the grass. Hoping for similar results with the whole lawn for next year!
Get it cut.
Did mine on Sunday, looks much nicer.
I also gave it a dose of moss killer, looks less lovely now - part because it was mainly moss, and part because I just chucked it about by hand without a spreader. It’s not quite uniformly browning, more lines of mega death interspersed with missy defiance!
Next weekend is scarify, I’m hoping to borrow my mate’s electric job but if not it’s me power and the spring rake. Then copious cheap seed, and hope for the best…
Did mine on Sunday, looks much nicer.
I also gave it a dose of moss killer, looks less lovely now - part because it was mainly moss, and part because I just chucked it about by hand without a spreader. It’s not quite uniformly browning, more lines of mega death interspersed with missy defiance!
Next weekend is scarify, I’m hoping to borrow my mate’s electric job but if not it’s me power and the spring rake. Then copious cheap seed, and hope for the best…
Some Gump said:
Get it cut.
Did mine on Sunday, looks much nicer.
I also gave it a dose of moss killer, looks less lovely now - part because it was mainly moss, and part because I just chucked it about by hand without a spreader. It’s not quite uniformly browning, more lines of mega death interspersed with missy defiance!
Next weekend is scarify, I’m hoping to borrow my mate’s electric job but if not it’s me power and the spring rake. Then copious cheap seed, and hope for the best…
Where in the country are you?Did mine on Sunday, looks much nicer.
I also gave it a dose of moss killer, looks less lovely now - part because it was mainly moss, and part because I just chucked it about by hand without a spreader. It’s not quite uniformly browning, more lines of mega death interspersed with missy defiance!
Next weekend is scarify, I’m hoping to borrow my mate’s electric job but if not it’s me power and the spring rake. Then copious cheap seed, and hope for the best…
Ground temperatures are way too low to be scarifying and putting seed down. You'll just be damaging the grass and feeding the pigeons.
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