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Leaves on freshly grown lawn seed... do i leave them , rake them or pick them up by hand

haydan2002 884haydan2002 884 Posts: 4
in Problem solving
Hello
My lawn was destroyed by my children playing football and it was completely bare.
In mid October i laid down fertiliser and grass seed.
It looks good from afar but patchy on close inspection but overall i am happy with it as it is a big improvement.
Now i have leaves falling onto it.
I haven't walked on the lawn as i read it might damage it.
When i picked up a few leaves it appears it is bear under them and no grass.

My question is do i leave the leaves, lightly rake them or pick them up by hand.
Sadly i haven't got a leaf blower and is it ok to walk on the lawn now?

I am confused as some forums i have read say cut the lawn.

any help would be appreciated
kind regards
Dan

Posts

  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 9,914
    I'd leave the leaves where they are and resow seed in spring if needs be. They'll do more good than your chemical fertiliser by the time they've broken down over winter. You'll probably want to aerate the soil at some point too if the kids have been compacting it and the worms working on the leaves will do half the job for you.
    Tradition is just peer pressure from dead people
  • haydan2002 884haydan2002 884 Posts: 4
    Thank you so much for your reply.
    Sorry i am an absolute novice.
    I was very proud of myself when grass actually appeared  :)
    I will leave it then and reseed in spring...although i was in big trouble banning the kids from football from mid october

    thank you once again
     
  • haydan2002 884haydan2002 884 Posts: 4
    sorry just one more question

    when i reseed in spring are the kids allowed on it to play football?
    as i dont think it will be possible if this is the case...it was bad enough in october
  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 9,914
    You're really going to have to play it by ear. You might get regrowth from the old grass roots and your current seeds will continue to establish slowly. By the time football season comes around it might be looking ok, it's a bit hard to say as all lawns are different. Did you sow with a hard wearing grass variety?
    Tradition is just peer pressure from dead people
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 9,593
    Even if it looks OK by spring, you should ideally keep off it as much as possible (except for mowing) until it's been growing strongly for a while and is well-established. Even then, frequent continuous use will eventually damage even hardwearing grass types, although last summer the hot dry weather probably contributed because the grass would have struggled to grow and repair itself between football sessions.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • haydan2002 884haydan2002 884 Posts: 4
    Thank you once again for your replies
    i sowed it with a mixture of grass seed but it was hard wearing.
    I did read that no football for a year until its established...but that's impossible..
    Its only a small garden.
    I know it will get ruined but it was completely bare by the end of last year and would have turned to a mud pit if i did nothing.
    It looks good at the moment so i am pretty pleased with myself.
    And will be better prepared for next autumn "when" i do it again.

    thank you
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