New turf issue of pockets of mould.
GodfreyD
Posts: 4
Lawn relaid with new turf on heavy 
clay, sharp sand and compost in September but within 6 weeks small deep black spots of mould appeared under the adjacent grass. Ground quite wet. The problem seems to be growing over the weeks and we do not have pests or dogs. Any ideas please?
clay, sharp sand and compost in September but within 6 weeks small deep black spots of mould appeared under the adjacent grass. Ground quite wet. The problem seems to be growing over the weeks and we do not have pests or dogs. Any ideas please? 0
Posts
I'm sorry but we really need a better photo to be able to see what's going on with your turf.
Not very pretty but quite harmless and will usually vanish in a few days.
The 'body' of the mould is underground and the black goo are its 'flowers'.
Once it dries the spores are released and it disintegrates and vanishes.
Some info here-
https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/lawn-garden/slime-molds-on-home-lawns/
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
I think our problem is that the installers recently laid the new turf on compost, on sharp sand which was on top of clay without working the sand into the clay thus leading to waterlogging after recent downpours.
Will keep you posted on how we get on.
Grass doesn't need a huge depth of decent soil in order to grow well, but if the clay is manky and not improved in any way, that's where the problems will arise, especially if you're in a wet area.
You may find you need to do a fair bit of aeration in future.
I created a lawn here about 8 years ago [heavy clay soil, lots of rain] and I knew the prep would be key. The 'garden' was mainly gravel and slabs. The advantage I had was that I could leave a lot of the gravel in situ, and worked in, to combat the clay. I did a raised edge and then filled with soil/compost and a good amount of the gravel. That worked very well.
I hope it improves for you, but I think you may find it soggy on a regular basis if you can't improve the drainage, especially if you want to use it a lot. Good luck with it
It does sound like you have a problem with drainage in that area.
Hopefully as @Fairygirl suggests a lot of aeration with a fork will help.
Good luck!
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
Our neighbour had his whole lawn re-turfed at the same time on identical clay soil, the only difference being is that our installer placed a shallow amount of sharp sand on top of it. The two adjacent gardens are now materially different with his showing a lush level green whilst our is pot marked in the way shown in the photos. Our installer refuses to return to check it out.