Lawn trouble please help

[robbo83]

Hi,

I reseeded my lawn September last year and the results were really disappointing and I am not sure what steps to take next. I have attached some photos of part of it and a close up.

We spent absolutely ages digging up 100sqm of the old grass, removing stones and then spread 7 tonnes of topsoil, raked it all out and sowed the seed. But the lawn just came out really patchy and thin. I really don't know what went wrong.

I had seed leftover so tried overseeding 3 weeks ago but none of it took. I didn't want to harm the existing grass so the seed wasn't raked in very well which is probably why.

I am not sure what to do now. Whether to persevere with overseeding and maybe try a different variety + compost on top or to start from scratch and rotavate it all and then turf it instead.

Any advice on what to do would be appreciated.

Cheers

Lawn__05

• robbo83
• 11 Apr 2017

Lawn__07

• robbo83
• 11 Apr 2017

Lawn__06

• robbo83
• 11 Apr 2017

 

[big-all]

grass doesnt tend to grow below 9 degrees or very well in the shade

 

[endecotp]

September is an odd time of year to sow seed as it is not going to do much over winter. Though Berkshire is warmer than some places!
Maybe what's there will eventually get well established. Your challenge would be to keep weeds down while that happens.
If you decide to re-seed (or turf) now, all your preparation is not wasted.
The photos give the impression it might be a shady area - if so, don't expect miracles.

 

[lostinthelight]

September is an odd time of year to sow seed as it is not going to do much over winter. Though Berkshire is warmer than some places!
Maybe what's there will eventually get well established. Your challenge would be to keep weeds down while that happens.
If you decide to re-seed (or turf) now, all your preparation is not wasted.
The photos give the impression it might be a shady area - if so, don't expect miracles.

In my experience sowing in September while the soil is still warm has always produced excellent results and thats domestic lawns and new lays on agricultural land.
litl

 

[Doggit]

Looking at the number of stone still in the soil, I think you've got poor quality topsoil. I'm afraid to say this, but it looks like you need to rotovate it agin, adding some well rotted manure, and then reseed it. How much seed did you use per sqm, and how did you keep the birds off when you did it. You could have added a fine layer of sand the last time you seeded it, and that would have helped it take better, but I'm still inclined to sort out the soil.

Failing all that, consider turfing it.

 

[r896neo]

Did you buy a new bag of seed? It wasn't an old lot lying around or anything?

It didn't take because it wasn't viable seed or it wasn't watered correctly. Most likely incorrect watering.

 

[Doggit]

As long as the seeds havn't got wet, then they tend to store well, so poor watering is more likely, and looking at the pictures, they do suggest that it hasn't been watered enough.

 

[robbo83]

Thanks for the help everyone.

The seed was new a bag, sowed within a couple of weeks of purchase. As this area is fairly shady as my house is on one side and fence and trees on the other I went for seed suitable for shady lawns. The varietys it contained were...

SHADY LAWN 50% Maxima Festuca Stron Creeping Red Fescue 20% Herald Festuca Slender Creeping Red Fescue 30% Wagner Festuca Chewings Fescue

I notice it doesn't have any rye grass in it so wonder if I should try a variety that does?

Regarding the watering - agreed that it looks very dry in the photos but that's because I gave up on it a couple of days ago and stopped watering as I couldn't see any grass growing and the seed is just sitting on top.

During the first 3 weeks I watered it every day religiously. I was actually worried I was overwatering it because it doesn't drain too well and does puddle in some areas, so I was worried the seed might drown.

How much time should I spend watering it per day?

If I were to have a go at seeding it again do you think it would be worth adding some sand and compost this time? Would this help with the drainage and stop it becoming so dry and compacted? Currently as soon as it dries out it becomes rock solid and difficult to penetrate the surface.

Thanks again.

 

[endecotp]

I agree with Doggit about the stones. Where did the new topsoil come from? Was it full of stones?
If those stones were not in the new topsoil, why are so many visible in the photo? Have you watered it so much tht the soil has washed away to leave just the stones?

 

[robbo83]

The topsoil was from a local builders merchant. It had a few stones in it but not particularly big ones. It was 10mm screened.

The existing soil had some stones in it. We tried to pick up as many as possible but it was never ending.

When the soil was spread out there were not too many visible stones, but over time more appeared as the soil settled.

Is the watering just meant to be a fine mist for a couple of minutes on each area or a good soaking?

 

[endecotp]

I think the theory with watering is to ensure the dampness goes an inch or two into the ground so that the roots go downwards, rather than just sitting on the surface. But on the other hand you don't want to wash away the seeds or form puddles.

 

[robbo83]

OK thanks. I gave it a good watering today with the sprinkler and the attached photos show what it looks like 5-10 mins after. When walking on it, it is quite squidgy.

I also turned over a section with a fork and underneath was it was dampish but not that moist (shown in the last photo) so maybe the water isn't draining down too well.

I think I am going to fork it all over and try seeding again. I will add some manure and/or compost this time though.

Do you think it is worth adding some sharp sand too?

Lawn__09

• robbo83
• 13 Apr 2017

Lawn__10

• robbo83
• 13 Apr 2017

Lawn__08

• robbo83
• 13 Apr 2017

 

[endecotp]

it doesn't look too bad where you've dug it up, but some compost / manure / would certainly help. i don't think you want sand.

 

[robbo83]

Thanks appreciate your help.

Yeah where I dug it up is what it looked like when we first seeded so we were pretty happy with it. It didn't look too stoney and was quite crumbly. However after a while it became compacted on the surface when dry and many stones appeared.

I'll try some compost/manure this time, hopefully that will help retain the moisture and prevent it becoming too compacted.

Thanks again.

 

[lostinthelight]

Did you apply any fertilizer before seeding? when we seed or turf, we rake in a general purpose fertilizer to the prepared ground first to get things of to a good start.
litl