Garden Lawn Help/Advice

marc.jones

Hello all, I am a new member to the forum and I am reaching out for some help and support with my garden. 

Last year my garden was very bald and I spent majority of the year overseeding to cover the gaps and develop a strong lawn.  

The problem I have is during the winter the drainage on the garden isn't great and it seems to waterlog a lot (I think the house is built on clay) - and with a dog and small toddler I seem to be in a similar position this year or I think I am.  

The dog seems to circle the garden in a specifc direction which also seems to be adding to my problem. 

3 weeks ago was the first cut since the winter, I know probably too late but I have been busy and just didn't get chance - I had to cut on a high level and then 2 days later rake and cut again on my normal length - since then I have tried to water as much as possible to bring the grass back to life (green), which seems to be working.

i suppose next step was to but some seed and cover the bald areas but I'm after some expert advice - is it needed or will it grow back on its own? 

I have been looking at eBay item no. 391659126357 Which is a 3kg seed and fertiliser combination but then I was also looking at Evergreen 4 in 1 to help feed the lawn - but I'm not sure if you can put this on new seed.  

Ill post some pictures and appreciate your thoughts - apologies the grass is due another cut this weekend

Thanks 

Marc

Rob Lockwood

Hi Marc - I've not got clay soil so my experience may be different to yours but you're right in assuming that neat fertiliser will kill new seeds / seedlings. I doubt the bare patches will grow back unaided so is it possible to apply a fertiliser (controlled/slow release is best I think) to the "green" areas (if it's granular, you might be able to avoid any straying onto the bare patches) and then seed the patches as you've done before? If there's an underlying problem, of course, this will be a temporary solution, but I think the advice on heavy clay soil is to aerate (make holes in the grass with fork or hollow-tine) and brush sand in to the holes, which may start to move you away from constant renovation. I think the advice on dogs and toddlers is: don't expect a great lawn! There are loads of different seed mixtures including hard-wearing varieties which stand up to a bit of rough treatment. Good luck!

This guy's got some great advice:
http://www.lawnsmith.co.uk/

Fairygirl

I garden on clay too, but small children and dogs are a difficult combination if you want a nice lawn, unless you have a really large space to work with.

Just to add to Rob's good advice - if you apply a feed only initially, that will give the grass a boost early on. Regular cutting with the cut a bit higher will also help. If you want to reseed - which you will probably need to  - buy a mix that's suitable for the hard wear the grass will get. 

And be prepared for it to be imperfect until the child/children are older!