UK gardening - Rejuvinate a lawn

Author

Rejuvinate a lawn

Peter Noone

2005-08-30, 6:21 pm

After having an extension built three years ago my enclosed back garden was
turfed and everything seemed perfect until about a year ago when the grass
became very patchy and seemed to recede to be replaced by large areas of
clay. It's even more galling that prior to the turfing the lawn had always
been fine.

The open plan west facing front lawn was also done slightly later but is not
suffering the same conditions.

Can anyone please suggest simple straightforward steps to return the lawn to
the grassy area it once was that my children can play on. A local small
bedding plant seller has suggested Canadian Grass Seed & sprinkling top soil
on it but the national chain round here doesn't stock it the grass seed and
has not proved to be very helpful.

Any suggestions please would be kindly received

Mike Lyle

2005-08-30, 7:21 pm

Peter Noone wrote:
> After having an extension built three years ago my enclosed back
> garden was turfed and everything seemed perfect until about a year
> ago when the grass became very patchy and seemed to recede to be
> replaced by large areas of clay. It's even more galling that prior
> to the turfing the lawn had always been fine.
>
> The open plan west facing front lawn was also done slightly later
but
> is not suffering the same conditions.
>
> Can anyone please suggest simple straightforward steps to return
the
> lawn to the grassy area it once was that my children can play on. A
> local small bedding plant seller has suggested Canadian Grass Seed
&
> sprinkling top soil on it but the national chain round here doesn't
> stock it the grass seed and has not proved to be very helpful.
>
> Any suggestions please would be kindly received

I don't know how soon after the turfing you started getting the bare
patches; but if the turf went on top of the old lawn it may have died
because it didn't have properly prepared soil to root into. I suggest
scratching up the bare patches to see what's underneath: if you find
a serious layer of dead plant matter, tell the turfing contractor to
come round and do it properly this time, or at least go round and
smash his windows.

Otherwise, the clay you mention suggests the soil may be difficult to
keep moist in dry weather. You could fork and rake in some organic
material and sow some more seed, and nurture the result rather
carefully for a year or so. For a play lawn, the cheapest seed is
usually the best, as it's likely to contain the tougher grasses.
Don't listen to anybody trying to flog the Canadian stuff: it's a
great country, but this isn't Canada.

--
Mike.

Peter Noone

2005-08-30, 8:21 pm

I know that the company used machinery to take the top layer of grass off
and then churn up the soil underneath cos I saw the ploughed garden & cos my
wife reported what they had been doing - so I have started to wonder whether
they took the top soil layer off & brought the clay from below.

This effect has only started in the past year before that we were perfectly
happy with the turfed lawn. It has always been really sodden in the winter
and was supposed to have been improved by the use of a soakaway that they
out in underneath the edge of the loan nearest the house. Now it has a
strange spongey feel to the ground when you walk on it even though it is
bone dry at the moment and large cracks have appeared cos of the weather
this summer.

I take your point re the turfers but surely its too late to go back to them
now & they were not the prettiest bunch of knuckle trailers.

"Mike Lyle" <mike_lyle_uk@REMOVETHISyahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3nk1kkF1tl61U1@individual.net...
> Peter Noone wrote:
> but
> the
> &
>
> I don't know how soon after the turfing you started getting the bare
> patches; but if the turf went on top of the old lawn it may have died
> because it didn't have properly prepared soil to root into. I suggest
> scratching up the bare patches to see what's underneath: if you find
> a serious layer of dead plant matter, tell the turfing contractor to
> come round and do it properly this time, or at least go round and
> smash his windows.
>
> Otherwise, the clay you mention suggests the soil may be difficult to
> keep moist in dry weather. You could fork and rake in some organic
> material and sow some more seed, and nurture the result rather
> carefully for a year or so. For a play lawn, the cheapest seed is
> usually the best, as it's likely to contain the tougher grasses.
> Don't listen to anybody trying to flog the Canadian stuff: it's a
> great country, but this isn't Canada.
>
> --
> Mike.
>
>

Janet Baraclough

2005-08-30, 8:21 pm

The message <1P3Re.37194$5m3.22787@fe1.news.blueyonder.co.uk>
from "Peter Noone" <pnbr29681@blueyonder.co.uk> contains these words:

> After having an extension built three years ago my enclosed back garden was
> turfed and everything seemed perfect until about a year ago when the grass
> became very patchy and seemed to recede to be replaced by large areas of
> clay. It's even more galling that prior to the turfing the lawn had always
> been fine.

> The open plan west facing front lawn was also done slightly later but
> is not
> suffering the same conditions.

> Can anyone please suggest simple straightforward steps to return the
> lawn to
> the grassy area it once was that my children can play on.

If your ever-growing children have spent the summer playing on the
reduced lawn space in the back garden, they have probably worn it out.
It won't regrow unless you keep them off it, then they will wear it out
again.

Just accept, well-used family play lawns are often bald and patchy.
It's a passing phase. In a couple of years you'll be looking back fondly
on the days when the children willingly went outdoors in the fresh air,
you knew exactly where they were, and your worries about grass related
to lawns.

Janet.

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