Improving Our Lawn / Grass in Garden

Hi

We moved into our house in dec last year and the last people left the garden in a mess including the lawn and grass.

I am in the middle of cleaning up the borders and raised beds which have weeds but the grass is not in great condition.

The grass was very overgrown so I gave it a first cut at the weekend. Not sure if I cut it to early or to short but it still does not seem in great condition.

How can I improve the lawn and grass without spending loads on fancy products. I don't mind buying the odd product if they work or should I just keep cutting it and see how it takes.

Its not a massive area and is about 5m x 6m and I just thought I would ask for advice first before I do anything else.

Many Thanks
Chris

 

Pictures of the condition it's in at present would help please.

 

Grab a wire rake and give it a good going over to get the thatch out. Apply a feed and weed mix either diluted with water or in granular form. Costs about a fiver tops. Apply it now and keep it well watered in dry spells.

 

Many thanks for the tip.

I just thought I would ask on here before buying any products you see and before jumping ahead of my self.

There is the odd weed in the grass but nothing big and near where the path meets the grass some of the grass is worn to soil in spots where people have walked.

What product do you recommend as I have heard some can mark the grass and make problems worst

Chris

 

Will this be ok as its only £4.40 and free P&P
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scotts-Mira...UTF8&qid=1396534911&sr=8-8&keywords=Evergreen

 

Cheers for the tip. Was planning on just buying the above product and using it once. The lawn has never had any feed on it.

Chris

 

Weed and feed makes are pretty much the same. Westland is the make I use. I get mine from cheap shops like QD or Wilko. Some supermarkets also sell it this time of the year. So if you are keen on collecting your points then you could get it from tescos.

Also if you go for the soluble stuff buy yourself a cheap watering can and mark on it that it is for only that purpose. Don't water your plants with it or anything.

Also maintaining your lawn isn't like maintaining a fence. It's a living thing and will need attention every year so it makes sense to buy the granular stuff over the soluble stuff for longevity. I've found though that if you leave the box in your garage it will quickly degrade and go mouldy so try to store it in an airtight container.

 

Well I have ordered that product so time to sort borders out first. Good tip on water can

 

Well I got some EverGreen 30sqm Complete Soluble but I have yet to put it down due to the rain. One question I have is it does not say about pets on the box. We have a cat and how many days should we wait before the cat can go on the grass as she eats it sometimes

Chris

 

I think your cat will smell the chemicals on the lawn and avoid it, domestic pets have a lot more sense than we think they do using their natural instinct. However, it's best to keep her off the lawn until it has dried out and I wouldn't let her eat it for at least a week.

 

I've had this problem with my cat. The stuff does upset them but no more than eating too much grass would. You can't keep your cat off it forever and at some point they will ingest the chemicals that have gone into the grass blades anyway.

 

Regular weekly mowing at not too short a setting is the cheapest way to establish a good lawn.