Zola's Season 2

Hello folks!

I hope you are all well... I am back again for another season of lawn fixing in my back garden. Last year was the first summer in our first house, taking over a back lawn which was losing a battle with moss. I made good progress, scarifying twice and removing insane amounts of dead grass and moss out. I then top dressed with soil and sand, and over-seeded. It looked good at the end of the season, but after such a long spell of rain for months on end through winter, it has brought a fair bit of moss back again.

Now I am back doing it again. Season 2. There's been so much rain here in N.Ireland that I have only get got dry enough weather to face scarifying last monday. I did a very light hand rake in Feb, but a few days ago I let the machine at it.



I got an awful lot out again, but didn't go as hard on the first go as last time. I went up and down, and then side to side.

This time I scarified it first, and then put down Evergreen 4in1.

This is the lawn as of last night, 2 days since scarifying and feeding.



Starting to blacken up a bit on places that need raked out.

When the black stuff forms, should I let the machine at it again, or hand rake it out and be more delicate?

 

A lot depends on the condition of the lawn. With a bladed machine it's very hard to remove all the moss but if the blades can be set to just touch the soil surface then a pass or two should be fine.
Common mistake is to set blades a bit to low and then run multiple times in an attempt to remove all the moss which in turn then creates areas that need seeding.

I would let the fert and iron work it's wonders for about 2 weeks then see how it is.
As the fert you used is a straight fert it has around 6 weeks depending on weather where it will continue to work before it shallows off.

Hand raking can also be used if you prefer to tackle the areas by hand.

 

I agree with liz on most everything there .
Two of the most important factors in growing good grass are to raise the height of mower cut and to cut regularly. At least once a week in summer but preferably twice a week.
Impressive work there Zola. Now though ease up on the heavy lawn work......a liquid lawn feed once a month will also help the lawn keep its good looks

 

Thanks all!

Since my last update the lawn has blackened a little more solidly in the worst affected areas. Should I wait another week and then do a quick pass with the scarifying machine to lift the rest out?

I also bought a tub of Iron Sulphate which I can mix in a watering can for watering in to the lawn. I may end up needing some seed for patches once the black stuff is taken out.

Or should I use some other fetisiliser at this stage?

 

You need to let the weed and feed do it's stuff for another week. Most weed and feeds have a high N which will increase growth which in turn helps to thicken up the lawn.
Don't forget that if the machine you scarify with is a basic fixed blade machine and is not variable height adjustable and it's set a tad too deep you will end up doing more damage to the turf as you try to remove all the dead moss on multiple passes.
Iron is great for turf, it's capable of deterring moss but it's really aimed at the turf for its properties. Don't go over the top though as too much iron is not good either.
Personally if you can gently rake the dead moss out you would find the lawn recovers faster than using a machine that may be a tad harsh.

 

Cheers!

Yeah I think I will definitely do it by hand and be a bit more gentle, My gut instinct was saying the machine may be too harsh again for so soon, glad to have confirmation!

I do plan to do it again with the machine at the end of the summer perhaps, maybe in August if required.

Do you reckon I should consider top dressing and a little overseeing after ?

 

I think you might be surprised how much the grass recovers from the weed and feed so I would wait a few weeks to see what the outcome is like. I've done many a lawn that looked bad with moss and the grass has recovered well so no over seeding was required.
It's also worth double checking to see when seed can be applied after application as it varies depending on fertiliser.
Weed and feeds are quite aggressive in the way of N so you will see a spurt of growth which helps to thicken up the turf.
When you do the last scarification allow a week and then apply a good Autumn feed with Fe content. Also monitor the moss over winter and if need be apply this or liquid iron to deter the moss, fine if no frosts are due.

 

Thanks Liz

I will post a pic in the next few days to show its changed!

 

Update on the lawn. Yesterday it was due a mow, so I did that and had a good look at the grass. Before hand I gave it a very gentle raking over the blackest areas and the moss just fell out, basically. There were some brown and very dry bare patches, so I got a large single pack of compost (40L) and spread it all over the lawn and worked it in, it was a very small amount throughout really as it was spread so thin, but hopefully that will put some beneficial natural nutrients into the soil. I also over seeded the bare areas and then watered it in. The ground is quite firm in places, so I may have to hire a core aerator at some stage this summer? At least its not spongy from moss anymore..





As you can see it has looked better, but hopefully in a few weeks it will come back stronger soon.

 

I put some iron down a few days after I posted my last message, I felt the lawn needed it.

Just under a month on or so, this is how it looks now:



There are some very bare bits on the side with no grass, should I dig those patches out and turf them?

Also have some strange tufts of grass at the very front. Overall, I think its improving though

 

No, dont dig anything out zola.....wrong time of year for a start. I think the bare areas are where the moss was worse and therefore the iron treatment was more "effective" there

I would raise the cut now and keep it higher throughout the summer. And mow once a week at least. I would avoid further heavy "maintenance" work too until the autumn. Finally, I would give it a straight granular feed and water in well

Oh! Those tufts of grass......use a pair of scissors to trim them back. Do this once or twice a week and this should weaken them

 

Cheers Verdun, by feed do you mean something with a high nitrogen content?

Any particular suggestions?

I wont be scarifying again this year........well maybe once more with a tine rake before winter if it needs it. ! Hard to resist sometimes. We get a lot of rain in Ireland :(

 

Yes ...a summer high nitrogen feed. Liquid is ok but a granular one, in any diy store, would be better
Fine to treat in autumn but give it a few weeks off for now :rasp: