moss in the grass

[Antimus]

I'm aware I've probably left this too late, just gave my grass the last cut of the year and, as usual, moss everywhere underneath.
Every spring I have moss problems, spend days mosskiller-ing, then raking it up, then having to re-seed the grass.

Is there anything I can do now to minimise the problem when spring comes? can I use some combination lawn feed/weedkiller, or will it do more damage than good now the weather's turned cold?

Thanks!

[Simpo Two]

Moss is a symptom of something else rather than a problem. It's a symptom of several factors:

Poor drainage
Excessive shade
Compaction
Acidity
Weak grass (usually caused by the above).

Fix those and you'll be in a much better position to start.

[Antimus]

Problem: the way my house faces means the grass gets a lot of shade.
problem 2: whoever made this housing estate did a rubbish job of the gardens, hardly any drainage.

Basically I've been given a rough deal on the lawn and I'm wanting to make the most of it.

If I'm going to have to spend ages removing moss and reseeding the grass next year whatever I do now, just tell me and I'll resign myself to my fate...

[HereBeMonsters]

Get some chickens. They'll dig it all up from the roots and eat it, leaving the grass.

[FasterFreddy]

I've got the same problem, but I'm beginning to warm to the idea of a moss lawn. it's nice and soft to lay on and I wouldn't have to use the lawn mower any more.

Is there a downside?

[sherman]

You want to rake all of the moss out of the grass.

Then aerate the lawn by pushing a fork and wiggling it into the grass once every 30cm or so.

Once you have aerated the lawn apply a light covering of sharp sand so that it fills the holes and if you want also some for of lawn food or fertilizer and leave the lawn until it starts growing again in the spring.

When you first cut the lawn in the spring dont cut it too short straight away. Gradually reduce the height that you are cutting the grass at over the first month or two.

[netherfield]

HereBeMonsters said:

Get some chickens. They'll dig it all up from the roots and eat it, leaving the grass.

You must be joking,they will eat the grass as well.

[HereBeMonsters]

netherfield said:

HereBeMonsters said:

Get some chickens. They'll dig it all up from the roots and eat it, leaving the grass.

You must be joking,they will eat the grass as well.

Only once they've eaten the moss.

[AdeTuono]

I had a real bad moss problem in my back garden. Having bought a fk-off great Irish Wolfhound with a bladder the size of a large spacehopper. I now have no moss left. Nor grass. Just massive patches of dead moss/grass, interspersed with craters.

HTH

[ChrisnChris]

Not sure of the validity of this, but it seemed to work for me. I just kept feeding with a lawn feed, every 4-6 weeks I think, ours was about 50% moss, gradually the grass has became stronger than the moss & is killing it.
It took a whole season (this year) to get the moss to 25% but I think that if I start again early enough next year the moss will have completely gone by mid summer.
I confess to watering quite a lot as well...all from water butts of course.

Always worth a try

Edited by ChrisnChris on Monday 25th October 22:18

[Simpo Two]

ChrisnChris said:

Not sure of the validity of this, but it seemed to work for me. I just kept feeding with a lawn feed, every 4-6 weeks I think, ours was about 50% moss, gradually the grass has became stronger than the moss & is killed it.

Well done That fits my last category, 'weak grass'. A lawn is a competitive place - whatever likes the conditions best will thrive at the expense of the others.