Where to start?

Hi all, I'm new to the board and allready picked up quite a bit browsing through the messages, thanks.
I was hoping that perhaps you'd be willing to help me decide on the best course of action for one of my lawns please? The lawn at the rear is very 'heavy'. It's frequently waterlogged - I even get what I believe are reeds growing in the summer.
I think the soil is a heavy and compacted clay - and it's condition isn't helped by numerous leylandi in adjoining gardens, plus the fact that these gardens are a little higher than my own.
Just to add a little interest the ground is far from even - when I first moved in I had to clear it of all sorts of half buried rubbish - from lino to road signs! :eek:
Do you think that just aerating it with a fork and filling these with sand (as I read in another post) would be sufficient for such a bad case? If so, how do I then go about levelling the ground? :confused:
Would removing the turf, digging in sand to the existing soil and then resowing work/be a better idea? If so, do I use builders sand or sharp sand?
As you can probably tell I am totally clueless on this subject, but I'm keen to learn so all advice gratefully received
Kaz

 

Hi, I am also a novice but I do remember reading somewhere that aerating and filling with sand is no use on clay soil. I may be wrong but i think it has to be a mixture of loam and sand though I dont know what loam is but I think its something like john innes compost. I am sure someonelse will put me straight!

 

its difficult to give general advice here as there are so many degrees of clay soils, and types of clay, ie both ACID and ALKALINE [less common]
there are several treatments, which will all take some time to work
1) chemical ........ lime on acid clays, also gypsum, we are talking large amounts
2} physical . adding humus ie a few tonnes of farm yard manure or spent mushroom compost and forking in to top 10"
4) aeration, very often there is some sort of "pan" which builds up, this can prevent natural drainage, this is where you are required to put in a lot of effort, it is the only reason for double digging imo, you dig out a trench of soil to one spades depth, then you get a fork and loosen the spadeful below ..with a really heavy clay you will need to use a good border fork and spade and work in ideal conditions, ie not after rain, before filling in your "trench" add some course humous, when finished, leave for a month then add lime to top layer, then leave it for a few months....
5) co_rse sand/grit, as co_rse as possible, but i think that improving the organic content and introducing "air" will be the best approach
6)never work or walk on clay soil when it is wet
Finally...... most of these solutions require time to work, it may be best to live with it for now, then remove tuff and start digging in October
First thing we need to know is , is it acid clay [ do neighbours grow heathers, conifers, and other acid loving plants]

[ 11. April 2006, 01:48 PM: Message edited by: Lady Gardener ]

 

to answer one bit - not builders sand!! The rest I think is being very comprehensively answered!!

 

Hi all, thanks for your replies. I've not noticed anyone growing any heather at the back of our houses - The only successes I'm aware of are these leylandi type trees.
At the front I have a couple of rosebushes and lavender that are doing well - but I think that's mainly because I created the raised bed mostly with new soil.
Because of the ammount of shade at the back (and having three boys &dog!) I don't think I'll ever have a fantastic lawn, but it would be nice if it could be used (preferably without wellies/hiking gear).
Perhaps I should look for a 'quick fix' of trying to level it until October? Any ideas on the best way to smooth it out a little until then? My boys would really like a trampoline, but the ground is so bumpy it wouldn't be stable.
One thing for sure - if this rain carries on I'll need diving gear to get to the soil

 

you can dig the legs of the trampoline in to the lawn, it will be sacrificial anyway if there is a lot of play activity . other than that it is possible to level the surface, but it means lifting turves and either removing soil or adding soil underneath, if you simply throw soil on low areas, you will probably end up in a mess if the area is used a lot
when and if you re seed make sure you go for a modern hard wearing mix

 

Just read your query Kazonline, can't help feeling that the reason why there are numerous Leylandii in other gardens is to soak the water up. Why do you say they are not helping? My short lived experience of them is that they really drink the water up and dry up everything else. How far away are their trees, and any chance of raising the level of your garden so that their Leylandii could be helping with your drainage? Just a thought!

 

willow sucks water up like a sponge, willow hedge (just push into the ground) you may know willow shoots easily

 

Wow, thanks again for all the replies. See, told you I was a novice I thought the leylandi were making the situation worse as they shade the garden something terrible and the ground under the soil seems entwined in roots, so I thought it was slowing down the drainage(the trees are planted close together) As for where the trees are, well that's a touchy subject - they are right on the boundary, and according to the house deeds are actually inside my boundary - neighbours think otherwise :rolleyes:
I would be quite keen to raise the level of my garden as the neighbours on the other side have also done the same (lawn area is lower than house so no worries about damp etc)- would the same advice (wait until October, dig it over & add stuff) apply? Until I found this site I was so desperate I was going to buy a load of sand, spread that over the area and hope it sorted itself out! lol

 

you can work on the lawn at this time of year, but you then lose the use of it for a while, re covering with topsoil, i think you must break up the existing lawn in order to allow natural drainage,
ps on a legality no one is allowed to cause run off on to your land eg by altering the levels of their land, your neighbours could have caused run off on to your land
re the boundary issue, this is very tricky if you want to keep on good terms with your neighbours, is there no other indication eg an old fence line etc, even if they planted a hedge on your land, it doesnt make them owners of either the land or the hedge imo
if you start digging very close to the tree stumps and the trees died, another potential problem is created, also you may wish to prune the trees as they must be overhanging your land, all very tricky......

 

Hi Lady gardener, thanks for taking the time to reply again. Yes the trees did overhang - when we moved in they were 4 or 5 feet (at least) into �our� garden. My (now ex) husband trimmed them back, but because of the nature of the trees this left bare branches protruding. We left them for a small while, but no re growth appeared on them. Eventually for safety's sake we had to trim them right back to the trunks. End result is a garden edged on one side with semi bare Leylandi trunks - very attractive
The reason we have this dilemma is someone has built a very low (2/3 breeze block high) wall on our side of the trees. I suspect this was built to stop a rabbit (or similar) escaping into their garden between the trunks (the fence at the bottom of the garden also had a small amount of netting to block the gaps into the other garden)
They are now claiming that this is the boundary wall, even though it is very obviously several feet in from the line where our extensions join. (and there is even evidence to suggest that their extension has overlapped onto our land in the first place! lol)
Iââ?¬â?¢m sure that if I could grow the proverbial money tree to pay for legal advice Iââ?¬â?¢d easily get the land back and the garden would have far more potential - but for now some grafting to make it ââ?¬Ë?presentableââ?¬â?¢ will probably have to suffice!

 

I believe that if someone moves a fence position and there are no objections for 12 years, then they are legally entitled to it!

If this is so, then perhaps a solicitors letter to them stating your objections might prevent them from legally owning it in the future?

But there again you have got to live next to them!

If you don't take any action now then the clock may be ticking!

Presumably there isn't any precise info in the deeds?

 

in spite of your fears of bad relationships, if they have encroached on your land ... and claiming ownership is very extreme imho, i m sure you should consult a solicitor .. make sure you get a specialist one tho ...... this could affect the value of your house/ even lose a sale! .If you ask in advance they will give you a price for advice, often the first consultation is free.
also you could trace back to the previous owner, and ask him who built the wall and planted the trees, even puting this all in a legally recorded document would be satisfactory, i can understand your reluctance of course and i would not suggest you sent a letter without speaking to them first, but you are in grave danger of losing this argument imho [i ve no legal training but it looks like a common law situation that must occur all the time], i mean, suppose my neighbours sold there house and left , i could n t just rush out and move the fence overnight, its gotta be problem needing sorted.
ps did they get planning permission for the extension you mention, the LA will have details as building regs are involved, if not this will give you more ammunition, also as a lone female you could be viewed as a soft target ...... i may be wrong, and i m sure you have loads of problems to deal with, but please dont do nothing.
gl
i hope i havent worried you, but please be careful

[ 15. April 2006, 07:59 PM: Message edited by: Lady Gardener ]

 

If you are worried about cost of fees, then perhaps Citizens Advice may be worth a try? Perhaps just to ask them if its better to go to a solicitor or surveyor first?

Also this may be worth a look, these people are obviously used to dealing with this situation, but I would ask about fees first.

http://www.localsurveyorsdirect.co.uk/web/boundary_dispute_party_wall.html

There is of course no panic here, however I wouldn't leave it too long.

 

I would agree the boundary question needs sorting out now - if it was just a couple of inches, fine, but we are talking about much more than that. I would strongly suggest that you go seek the help of the citizens advise bureau - before even considering going to a solicitor. I would also suggest that you speak to your neighbours, and advise them that you wish the boundary sorted out, to prevent any bad feeling in times to come. It is in both your interests to get it settled.

Boundaries as long as the land is registered, appear on a plan that is usually with the deeds. My memory tells me that the Land Registry can help with boundary disputes - and will advise both parties where the boundary lies - they would be independant, and whilst they may charge a fee, twould be worth it to prevent further agro. Problem would only occur if the land is not registered with the land registry but I'm sure Citizen's Advise will be able to help with that one, if thats the case.

BTW - if an individual moves a fence and it is not challenged, it does not become his property after a period of time. There have been many cases where people have moved boundaries, without consent, and registring it - and they have had to move it back.