MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
How're your lawns getting on?
Mine's doing ok now - I hadn't fed it enough, but I'd been relying on weed and feed, but that always ends up scorching the grass. Weeds aren't really a problem so I'm now using just plain feed and it's much safer.
I also lowered the lawnmower blade and that's really helped. Lots of advice out there saying 'don't cut it too short' but what 'too short' means isn't clear. I was leaving mine much too long apparently which was causing it to get all matted when walked on and not thicken up.
However I have dead patches on the shady side where overhanging plants had killed it, and I hadn't managed to get any seed to germinate on it. Just went to take a look now and it's covered in slugs. Apparently slugs eat grass seed!
Jungly.
Mainly a weed patch. Waiting for it to dry out so I can give a final mow before putting the mower away till spring. Not looking likely to be honest...
Same, back yard is okay but we missed the front as we ran out of time. I mowed our last one too late when it was wet and it all died.
Mine is too long at the moment, a mixture of being away during the nice weather and it raining too much to cut it recently. I will hopefully cut it at the weekend giving it chance to recover before Winter.
Havent mowed mine since end of July due to a long holiday followed by non stop rain. The neighbours will be complaining soon
Having had a dreadful start to the year - mainly due to my leaving a tent set up in the backyard throughout last winter so impromptu backyard camping could be a thing - the lawn is currently fantastic! Gave it its weekly mow today and it was like a lush carpet of springy greenness!
Blooming (natch)lovely thanks f’raskin.
Took a damn long time to get to this wonderment of green and softness, but for once in my lifetime I can say I’m really rather pleased with the effort that’s gone into it..
S’plendid..
I discovered you can draw pictures or sign your name by peeing on it.
All my own handwriting!
Mine will need mowing well into November, last winter I mowed throughout. Only once a month though.
Kids left a bloody blow up pool on it while I was away. Nice rectangle of brown deadishness that refuses to come back to life. Rest isn't half bad though ta.
My lawn has taken bodies...
Following building work, laid turf over a muddy mess that was our garden (albeit only about 30m2 of lawn) and it took very well, too well really as the advice was dont cut for first couple of months but some areas were getting silly long. Now however the areas where the fence shades the lawn, the grass is quite thin so currently trying to re-seed the thinner areas as September is apparently the month to reseed...did it last week, still early days
Mine's going ok only problem is a patch on the front lawn thats gone ballistic, it's good but putting all the rest to shame.
I need to superfeed the rest any recommendations?
Mine looks pretty much the same as when it was laid 4 months ago!
One of the best decisions I've made. It was an eternal battle against rain, dogs, rabbits and children that left it a muddy mess that was unusable.
Now we can use it all the time, the kids can play on it and I don't have to worry about leaving stuff out on it for extended periods like paddling pools.
Photo of the "grass" with a bonus dog just because I can!
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got 23 kgs of seed ready to go when we've (hopefully) finished levelling on Sunday.
that looks really good, pocpoc. like an outdoor carpet.
What's it feel like between the toes?
You're laying seed this late into September? That's just going to rot over the winter is it not? I'll be cutting mine short once it's dry and raking the thatch out soon!
It'll be grand. Still some sun and some warmth, stuff's still growing.
Mines full of thatch, not too many weeds though.
I've got a scarifier, but having never used it I'm wary that I will ruin the lawn..
Bought a scarifier last year. A word of warning, only do it if the Mrs is in a good mood! Mine went mental as the front lawn was a right mess after. Took a good few weeks to recover. I'm thinking I'll leave ours until next spring this year. Front lawn seems quite slow growing. Don't really want to risk such an invasive procedure this late on!
What's it feel like between the toes?
Better than I was expecting.
It can feel a bit plasticky-crunchy at times, and unexpectedly warm when the sun's been on it for a bit, but for a small garden with kids and pets it's a million times better than the bare mud with a few blades of grass in it that was there before.
Patchy, but have fixed some of the worst bits.
Our lady Border Terrier leaves nice yellow patches that I try to keep on top of.
Found leaving it longer than a week before cutting is better than cutting every week.
Not weedy but the odd bit of clover.
Not as good as the neighbours.
Mine's a right bloody state. Always has been. Always will be. It passes for grass here in France, but really it's just all sorts, and is as it was before the house got built when it was a grass field for grazing, probably with lots of walnut trees.
I despair of it, I really do. It's not grass, it's just a random miscellaneous collection of weed on undulating ground that I attack every 2 weeks or so with the mower. I was in awe of my parents grass when I came over to the uk to visit. It's so green, it's so lush, it's so...well grass like.
A local squirrel is wrecking our lawn digging holes all over it....
We went from summer to winter overnight here in Aberdeenshire. So scarifying isn't a possibility.
Front lawn is lush, thick and bouncy. Which doesn't seem to be in fashion up here. All the lawns up here are cut down to the roots. And then turn into moss over the winter.
mugsys_m8 - Member
Mine's a right bloody state. Always has been. Always will be. It passes for grass here in France, but really it's just all sorts, and is as it was before the house got built when it was a grass field for grazing, probably with lots of walnut trees.I despair of it, I really do. It's not grass, it's just a random miscellaneous collection of weed on undulating ground that I attack every 2 weeks or so with the mower. I was in awe of my parents grass when I came over to the uk to visit. It's so green, it's so lush, it's so...well grass like.
I had a lawn in Houston (USA) that looked lovely and thick, despite the 40degC weather. But the grass was like razor blades. You couldn't sit on it. But maybe that sort of grass would partially solve your problem?
I'm not going to do anything about it...I'd be the talk of the village if I did anything to my 'grass' rather than keep it under control provoking comments about 'the english is doing his lawn'. Even as it is, sometimes I feel I am viewed as being obsessive about it the amount I cut it (despite the fact that it often doesn't get cut for 6 weeks when I am away)...
Mines an utter mess. Thinking of paving over it next year.
Our lady Border Terrier leaves nice yellow patches that I try to keep on top of.
Almost snap. Male border terrier and not doing a great job of keeping on top of.
Bit the bullet and decided to give it a scarify today. 3 passes being careful not to go too deep. Filled half a wheelie bin! Actually doesn't look too bad. Think not going too deep straight off is the key. Last time ended up looking like a potato field.
Quick brew then I'll chuck some seed down. Need to start getting some better grass into the lawn. Stuff now is too fine & prone to disease for a north facing front lawn (according to the fella from Law master)...
A local squirrel is wrecking our lawn digging holes all over it....
So just leave it, in 10 years you will have a lovely hazel coppice.
Lawns? I keep mowing patches of green stuff interspersed with dips, holes, mud, concrete, piles of bricks, green mesh for parking on - I would love this building work to finish soon but I think we have another few weeks yet.
Mine is currently a battleground with mo bacter eating the moss and nematodes eating the leather jackets. Not sure what happens if the mo bacter and nematodes decide they don't like each other
Just had to knock mine back with the strimmer as it was so long it was never going to dry out enough to cut.
Just finished raking it and it’s so tufty I’m going to have to do it again.
My lawn is pretty tip top....
I’m no gardener so when we moved in we had all the borders dug up and seeded..
I figured I can’t ‘do’ flowers, but would focus on having nice lawn. I weed+feed it a few times a year, and mow it before it gets too long.
It’s nice a green and thick (bar the newly seeded borders - they’ll need another year or 2 to thicken up).
I actually don’t mind a bit of moss in the lawn - makes it softer!!
DrP
Not too bad - mixture of grass, weeds and moss! It's no bowling green but it's ok. Just paid my son (11) £10 to mow it while I checked my stans Flows for cracks (see other thread) - all fine.
Ours has gotten a bit long as no time/weather to mow it (aiming to do it this evening).
breadcrumb - Member
Mines full of thatch, not too many weeds though.I've got a scarifier, but having never used it I'm wary that I will ruin the lawn..
I took our front lawn back to something that resembled the Somme, kept going over it until no more moss/thatch came out, which was two big trailer loads to the tip! Once it's done properly once though all it needs is a yearly once over which removes barely anything.
Tips:
1) Wait till spring now, it's a 2 month process really.
2) Get a spreader for doing the feed/weeder/seeding, avoids leaving big burnt patches where you overdo it by hand.
3) Leave as long as possible between applying the weedkiller and scarifying, otherwise you kill the seeds you put down afterward. Hence the 2months, if the mosskiller takes 6 weeks to wash out completely it'll be November and you'll not get grass to grow. Better to apply weed/moss killer as soon as you start mowing in the spring and scarify later. The downside is your lawn will look a bit threadbare for the summer rather than the winter while the new seed takes hold.
I've bowed to advice on the lawn. Leaving the seeding till spring. Not worried about the grass growing, but it's the other stuff: If we wait til spring we can weed, rake autumn leaves and regrade the levels after the earth settles. Feel a bit better now we're not racing. Feel a bit worse that the End is further away. Right thing to do, though!
Coming on nicely
[url= https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4368/37071875006_f4fbc4e267_o.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4368/37071875006_f4fbc4e267_o.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/YtV3SJ ]Untitled[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/ ]Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
Very nice, Rich. Where is the stick now? Back in the kindling pile? Or is it a special bike balancing stick, being saved until next time?
bike bags for goalposts
Where is the stick now? Back in the kindling pile? Or is it a special bike balancing stick, being saved until next time?
It probably snapped shortly after the pic was taken, what with all that shit on the poor thing...
Mine is a mess - I have been doing loads of garden redesign which has required a couple of areas of new turf. Where the new turf is, it's lush green and growing quickly. Elsewhere it is patchy with some parts green and long, others grey and getting a weed/moss covering. Further not helped by a scorched patch where I had the fire pit running at 'centre of the sun' intensity at a party back in August.
As others, I am hoping for a dry period so I can cut it one last time and overwinter it.
Quick question. If you throw new seed down over an existing lawn do you need to put top soil over the top of it? Or will the seed naturally fall down to the soil under the existing grass with a good bit of rain/watering.
Aiming to improve the quality of grass rather than cover up bald patches.
The latter.
PS lawnsmith.co.uk
Quick question. If you throw new seed down over an existing lawn do you need to put top soil over the top of it?
You will get better results by covering it up but you don't have to .
A bit of a mess, but less than it was (kind of).
Started the year as a blanket of moss and dead grass, two batches of feed and weed, scarified 3 times, and was left with sort of patchy at both ends, and 10 ft of something resembling a lawn in the middle.
Fast forward a few months, and with NC500 and a month of light rain on a daily basis, the nice bit got too long, and when i finally cut it, it all went yellow.
So a yellow patchy mess, but at least made of grass not moss.
Mossy lawns don't need cutting as often ... just saying.
Quick question. If you throw new seed down over an existing lawn do you need to put top soil over the top of it?
Depend how bad it is, I just overseed it after scarifying. The fresh young grass does grow noticeably quicker than the old stuff.
For patches though definitely put some compost/topsoil down with it or the seeds dry out too quickly between waterings, even if done daily. Doesn't need covering, just enough to stop the seeds washing away or clumping together.
Mines a mess. It's been too wet for ever to mow. Just waiting for a few dry days in a row to give it a final cut before winter.
Just had the chap from Lawnmaster round for its 3 monthly feed/weed. "High potash" this time apparently, off to look on lawnsmith to see what that's about (cheers molgrips!) Only his second visit, certainly impressed so far.
A mish mash of moss, half decent grass and bald patches 🙂
We "reclaimed" a few flowerbeds over the last 12 months so we have some turfed patches that are still bedding in. Looks ok when it's short, but when it grows some bits are much thicker than others. Going to try and improve it next year. Managed to sneak in a cut last night, think it might be the last one now but we'll see.
What's the current STW favourite cordless mower? I hates wires! 🙂
What's with this final cut talk? Mine had monthly cuts last winter as it was so mild
Bloody mower broke yesterday. It owes me nothing. I think it's an old B&Q brand - Omega by Mountfield. Briggs and Stratton engine. I've been nursing it a long for years. The deck is rusting with holes. Then the aluminiumn handle you push it with sheared / snapped yesterday. Can't push or steer it any more.
I got my mum's old Bosch electric mower. Feels like half the width of my old petrol one. Took me forever to finish mowing the lawn, wrestling with the cable etc. I reckon I got a few more cuts before the winter. Do I buy a new mower now or wait?!
final cut talk
If nothing else, it's generally too wet through most of the Yorkshire winter to cut. If it's dry(ish) and mild then it'll get an occasional cut.
Spent pretty much all of Saturday on it (albeit with a toddler to distract at the same time). Short cut, dug up the worst bits of weeds/mushrooms and the like, then scarifying blade on the mower. Could have filled three wheely bins easily. Then fixed all the holes I'd made and chucked a load of seed down.
Looks bloody awful now (and will probably get worse) but hoping for some decent improvements for next summer.
Had perfect growing conditions since the beginning of July, so its all very lush and green in Surrey. Managed to cit it yesterday just before it started to rain and then it rained all night, so that was perfect timing! (for once)
I mowed my lawn in Dec and Jan! Currently it needs a mow, badly, but it's rained again so it'll have to wait.
Looks like carpet. It's care is contracted out to the Queen's Gardener, who tends the lawn in front of her apartment. It started badly, but after removing a tonne of thatch and weeds, two tonnes of top dressing, and some seeds, it came up beautifully. Sadly the dog is doing her worst, but has at least stopped digging now.
Oh and we have one of the old Keep of the Grass signs too 😀
It's the ideal time of year for a deep scarcity so get it done if you're thinking about it.
My front lawn looks nice, with a regular high cut. Aerated it 3 weeks ago so should be nicer next year too.
My garden is bloody clay and stays spongy for ages after rain so I have been taking measures. Sadly, the stuff between the drains still stays damn wet for ages, though there's no puddling now at least. [img] 
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Still, some people are worse. I am still getting calls to new customers with lawns like this, what with hundreds of new houses going up in the area [img] 
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My garden is bloody clay and stays spongy for ages after rain so I have been taking measures. Sadly, the stuff between the drains still stays damn wet for ages, though there's no puddling now at least.
Just embrace the moss, you've moved to somewhere unwinnable.....
I don't mind the moss one bit...i just want the kids to be able to play on it the day after rain without it becoming a mud bath. It's the back garden and I like to let it get a bit overgrown, let things flowers in it as it's a more fun place that way.
I realised why my overseeding never worked - tons and tons of slugs eating the new shoots! So I put slug pellets down and then overseeded last week, and I think shoots are coming up now!