Lummox

As most of you know when it comes to four wheels and an engine i'm in my comfort zone. If I don't know what to do I can pretty much figure it out. What I am lame at though is things of a green fingered variety. I neither have the spare time or the inclination to maintain a garden. However this time of year Evie loves being out there so for her sake I try and keep it so at least she doesn't get lost in the undergrowth.

One thing I would like to sort is my 'lawn'. This consists of two not particualry big pieces of grass. The grass is pretty thread bare, but more annoyingply the ground under neath is very uneven. This means its diffuclut to mow nice and Evie is always falling over when playing.

Whats the easiest way to level it out? What time of year is best to do it, or now the seasons seem to be pretty messed up does it matter? Am I looking at digging it all up, leveling it out and seeding? Turf maybe? Don't have a lot of spare cash so need either help/volunteer or a cheap solution.







p.s I know the boarders are a bit bare, just got rid of all the dead plants and weeds, tunrs out there ain't alot left..lol


Cheers

Ross

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devonutopia

I would perhaps leave the lawn until early next year, when it starts to re-grow again. However, if you go for the full on dig-up, level out under, and get some sods in to re-lay - It should be fine to do anytime over the summer as the grass itself will be pre-established.

PS: I'm not green fingered, but my Dad is and I try to learn from him.

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gilesk

You could lay turf at the moment as long as you protect it and water it a lot, dig it all up, level it , new earth and then turf, I did this and it worked well.

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westerdam2

Hi

Here's what you need to know - complete with illustrations!

UK Gardening - Garden Projects - Laying a new lawn

Two points I would add:

It's not a large area so I would go for turf rather than seed.

Also, it looks as if it's a fairly recent development. This will probably mean there are large amounts of builders' rubble under a few inches of soil. It's essential to get rid of this rubble otherwise there is poor drainage and it will hinder satisfactory growth.

Sorry, but you're a bit far away for me to volunteer doing it for you

HTH

Lummox

Thanks for the offer though.

House was built 1979 iirc, garden was lanscaped about 8 years ago or so I think from what I was told.

Thanks for the link

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Kandy

You could just cut it all as short as possible, dig out any high points, fill the dips with topsoil, and re-seed the affected areas.

It depends on what's under the grass though - probably rubble etc. - in which case for best results dig it all over removing rubbish (or dig it out and import some top soil). Grass only really needs a few inches of soil, but the deeper the better.

Tread it down well with the heels of your wellies (this 'Injun' dance calls for the assistance of a small child). Do it when the soil isn't too wet. Then rake it even to get a flat crumbly surface and remove the worst of the stones.

Warm & damp is best for establishing a lawn - early Autumn is good as the ground still has plenty of warmth and you won't have to water much.

As you've got a kid and a small area best use turf as it will establish quicker - and get off to an easier start with less use over Autumn/Winter. With turf just butt the edges firmly together and tread down into firm contact with the ground (walk over it with a scaffold plank etc.). Level/slightly proud of path is best for mowing. A bread knife is good for cutting turf to shape. Don't let it dry out or walk on it until established (can't lift it up & edges knitted together!).

You can get different grades of turf/seed (different varieties/mixes of grass) according to your need - i.e. fine bowls lawn or tough kids play area.

Don't forget the sand-pit!

KenONeill

Try looking in your Yellow Pages under "turf merchants".

ap0gee

...as long as you can keep cats out of it!

I take it Evie didn't park the cars up at the front!

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cheezemonkhai

B&Q sell turf and have it delivered one day a week so you collect it on that day.

Best way would to be to lift it all up and then dig down, and break the soil up. Put a thin layer of good quality soil (1") down and level it all out then put the new turf on the top and keep it well watered and fed.

If you want to save money you could always lift your existing grass into turf but I doubt it would last long enough in the current heat.

While you are doing that what about taking out the diagonal path. Probably need a cutting wheel (Can be hired) and then some way of breaking up the concrete to remove it.

You could then place soil there and make for a single larger lawn area


Another option is to apply light amounts of compost to the low areas to even it all up a bit and then apply a rapid grow seed. That would put it out of reach for about 2 weeks, but then it would be good to go.

Canada green is a low maintenance seed which is very hard wearing and should stay green for a long while.

GoneGardening.com - Grass seed - Canada Green grass seed 500g (4 packs)

Won't be quite perfect, but a lot less effort.

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heresmo

Well, I'd cut it short very short once to help see what's what. Fill in the dips with decent topsoil (as suggested by Kandy). Press soil in firmly but gently (i.e. don't compact it). Sprinkle soil over whole area and use a metre of 2 by 4 or a floorboard to level it overall.

The existing grass will probably grow through from the dips (depending how deep), though re-seeding those patches especially (i.e. bury the seed) and the whole lot by scattering a "grass with rye" mix would be better. That is tougher for playing on and will survive better in any hot spells than fine ornamental grass will. Keep it well watered, then allow it to grow longer both to withstand summer sun and because long grass is better for falling onto.

If birds eat the seed, do a bit at a time and cover it with a bin liner weighted down at each corner till the seed sprouts

If you decide to dig it all up, why not just put bark chippings down (zero maintenance)? Buy those suitable for playing areas and later, you could put pots or plant an ornamental tree in the centre?


Mo

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andy2407

I use a company called Lawn Care and Lawn Maintenance | GreenThumb | Lawn Treatment and Advice Service

They operate as franchises, but come and treat your lawn 3 or 4 times a year with the appropriate feeds / weedkiller / mosskiller.

I don't get maximum benefit as mine is very poorly drained, but they do an excellent job.

For a small lawn like yours, it would guess at about £14 per quarterly treatment.

I'm sure they would be able to advise on improving the level too. IIRC one of my neighbours hired a roller from HSS or similar - it did its job by filling it with water once you got it home, and then emptying it again to make it easy to transport. That might be worth looking in to.

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heresmo

Hmm... I worry about chemicals on areas where children or pets will be running around...

As regards the "water-flattener", it might depend on what the lumps are. I asked a gardener why he couldn't just use a rotavator(sp) and he said it was effectively compacted dust and would just break the blades so if that is what Lummox has, then rolling it probably wouldn't help. If he has decent patches of soil that have been just been dislodged and set, then a good watering and flattening might work, though a good watering and raking with a ground rake might have good effect in that case...

Mo

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Lummox

Thanks for the input.

Im not 100% sure why the ground isn't level. I'm guessing I won't find out unless i dig, got a feeling its probably rubble etc from the landscaping.

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KenONeill

It may be, or it just may be lack of mainainance (not necessarily by you).

heresmo

Still thinking As it's a fairly small area, you could perhaps just put out two or three camping bedding rolls (not sure what their proper name is) to prevent ankle turning injuries. Used to have one at the bottom of our slide. Even just plastic kitchen mats 3'x4' (also useful re seeds hatching).

Mo

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KenONeill

You mean the high density foam matting ones Mo?

heresmo

I was thinking of the 1cm thick polysterene(?) ones. The last one we had was flat, which was great as you could also prop up one end and roll cars down it The current one is a "Thermarest" Ridgerest - again lightweight polystyrene (or whatever it is). The ridges are inexplicably perfectly marble sized for making an instant abacus... .

Mo

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andy2407

Mo - I have both kids and pets.

Here is what they say....

Think I can see where they are coming from - although of course the whole environmental / green issues with regard to chemical treatments of any kind could no doubt be debated at length.

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KenONeill

The ones I'm familiar with are about that thickness, but roll up for storage. They're obiously related to foam rubber (at least in appearance), but much denser as in you sink in less.

gilesk

Or you could dig it all up and put a pool in!

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GnatG

Not green fingered, but have done this before! Whatever you do, don't turf it during the hot weather. Turf will die out pretty fast and you'll have to start over (that was advice from a landscape specialist saving me some of my hard earned! ). I filled in most of the dips in my garden with top soil (make a slight mound as the soil will compress over time - and then follow Kandy's advice above, really compact it), then a bit of grass seed, water, lawn feed, a covering net as pigeons love the seed, and a bit of TLC. When I had my patio done, I had a 20cm drop down to the grass level - used about 1.5 tonnes top soil for a 2m square area, seeded it and all was good. Did the top soil in August, sowed the grass seed early September and the lawn was pretty well established by the end of the year. If you can borrow one of those big heavy rollers like they use for keeping cricket pitches flat all the better. Reckon a couple of 10kg bags should be enough for levelling out dips, unless you're digging it out. In which case, you'll need about 1tonne for 2m square area if you dig down about 15cm.

HTH.

Captain Scarlet

Well this is a similar style of job that I do over the winter months at work, just on larger scale. Most of what I've read in this thread is pretty good advice.

I would imagine that the sunken areas are either caused by variations in soil thickness or just high wear areas. Soil settes over time due to wear of feet etc, so if the soil is inconsistent in thickness where it's thicker will setlle more. If you think this is why roads are built in layers which are uniform in thickness.

If you plan on returfing them then it is possible during the summer months, but will need a large ammount of watering. Because of this I would recommend doing the work over the winter months, and returfing around February, or maybe before December. Once you've removed the turf you'll soon be able to see if the underlying soil is any good, or is just full of rubble. If the soil is good then turning it over, or rotovating it will bring back some structure to it. Do this down to a depth of about 8 - 12 inches. When done rake the soil level and then firm down, using your feet is best (yes you'll feel stupid waddling around like a penguin, but will be highly amusing to the kids). Then rake level again, raking in a few different directions should obtain a very smooth result, some extra topsoil may be required at this point. Try to use a rake which doesn't have very sharp teeth, as this will be easier. I would then leave it for a few days or until it rains on the areas. The rain will help to remove excess air from the soil profile and result in better firming down and settling. You can then rake the area level once more and it will be then ready for turf. Try to avoid standing on the turf when laying it, using wide boards is excellent for spreading your weight. It's amazing how much ground pressure your feet produce. As your laying then turf firm it down using a rake will do, tapping down from above. If need be a light roll (if you have access to one) a few weeks later will help settle the area down, but nothing too heavy. Then it will just need a cut once some growth has been seen, but don't take a lot off the grass, graduly take the height down to where you want it.. Don't leave it too long however or the turf will thin out, taking you back to where you started. Turf isn't as expensive an option as you might think. Finding a supplier of turf shouldn't be too hard, there's bound to be a local grower. If you are struggling you can always try a local golf club, or gardening expert to see where they get their turf from. The golf clubs may even have an area of turf they grow for their own needs, may even sell you some.

If I lived a bit near to you I would offer my services to you, but best of luck in your project.

If you plan on seeding it a similar operation can be followed with the soil and then just apply seed to the bare soil and rake into the surface. Cover if birds or animals cause problems. The only difference would be to do the work around the end of summer, when the temperatures are still warm enough for the seed to germinate.

But before you start digging try to make sure your not about to smash your way through any pipiework or cables which would may bring a definate increase in your costs.

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Captain Scarlet

Here's the scale of job I can get up to at work.

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Lummox

I need me a damn digger

might even find a Nazi tunnel

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Old Blue

[quote=Kandy;1317765]You could just cut it all as short as possible, dig out any high points, fill the dips with topsoil, and re-seed the affected areas.

It depends on what's under the grass though - probably rubble etc. - in which case for best results dig it all over removing rubbish (or dig it out and import some top soil). Grass only really needs a few inches of soil, but the deeper the better.

Tread it down well with the heels of your wellies (this 'Injun' dance calls for the assistance of a small child). Do it when the soil isn't too wet. Then rake it even to get a flat crumbly surface and remove the worst of the stones.

Warm & damp is best for establishing a lawn - early Autumn is good as the ground still has plenty of warmth and you won't have to water much.

As you've got a kid and a small area best use turf as it will establish quicker - and get off to an easier start with less use over Autumn/Winter. With turf just butt the edges firmly together and tread down into firm contact with the ground (walk over it with a scaffold plank etc.). Level/slightly proud of path is best for mowing. A bread knife is good for cutting turf to shape. Don't let it dry out or walk on it until established (can't lift it up & edges knitted together!).

Kandy is right. Get top soil from Wickes (was 5 bags for a tenner) cut the humps off, they were probably caused by someone playing around on it when wet. Fill up the dips with the top soil.As you have some grass already I wouldn't think you will have a drainage problem.
Buy a box of all round grass seed mix it with some dry top soil and spread it evenly across the areas. Using top soil mixed with the seed (or sharp sand) tends to confuse the birds, usually. Total outlay around £20 plus a bit of sweat and of course the odd beer!! Keep it watered with a fine rose watering can. Keep the kids /pets off. Do it this time of the year and you must make sure you water regulary.