3

It’s a new build where the lawn was laid roughly 1.5years ago.

Last year I tried putting fertiliser on my hand but I either put too much or too little cause a lot of the grass went yellow.

What do I need to do to get a nice green lawn? Are there any products I can apply with pre-made tools so I don’t have to guess how much I need to/I am putting down?

The attached picture is after I cut at the weekend to 40mm. It might not be apparent but it’s patchy so it would be great if the recommended product also includes seed

enter image description here

6
  • Hi Cheetah, welcome to the gardening site. Lawns can be very deep! How involved are you willing to get with your lawn? And just FYI, the top answer on this question has some good general information. gardening.stackexchange.com/questions/1499/…
    – MackM
    Commented Apr 2 at 16:29
  • Another question - what can you tell us about the soil?
    – MackM
    Commented Apr 2 at 16:31
  • 1
    @MackM - don't know anything about the soil. Looking for a low effort/low skill solution short of paying for an expert.
    – Cheetah
    Commented Apr 2 at 17:50
  • Spreading food by hand is not the best, but here's a hack: spread half East-West and half North-South. Much more even. All they really want is high nitrogen. Commented Apr 3 at 4:01
  • 1
    Soil testing is the only way to know what to add, and how much of it - other than things most "quick fix my lawn" folks won't do, such as 1/4" of compost every year, which is universally beneficial, but isn't a powdered chemical "lawn product." If the pH is way off, you need to adjust it. If it's not, you don't.
    – Ecnerwal
    Commented Apr 3 at 11:18

1 Answer 1

2

I note you are in the UK; from mid month, you can apply a Lawn Feed, either a granular one or a liquid mixed in a can. Some of the granular ones also contain moss killer and weed killer - if your lawn is largely weed free, I suggest you avoid one with weedkiller in it. This is because the weedkiller inevitably 'checks' lawn growth, and they are not terribly effective anyway when in a combined formulation. Separate lawn weedkillers such as the Weedol one are more effective if you need weed control. You can reapply the feed usually six weeks after the first application, but it's easier to get the dosing right if you use a lawn spreader designed for the purpose, they're not usually very expensive.

For granular feeds, the grass should not have been cut for at least 4 days, and you need a dry, wind free or light winds only day in order to spread it - you need the blades of grass to be dry when you apply it. If it doesn't rain after application within 48 hours, then you will need to put a sprinkler on it to wash it into the soil. Liquid feeds have different rules - check the products at the garden centre and follow any instructions on the package, whether you choose a granular or liquid formulation.

As for seeding, this can only be done when chemicals have not been used for the previous 6 weeks, and no chemicals should be applied for another six weeks afterwards. From the looks of it, not sure you need to overseed - if you use lawn fertiliser and proper lawn care such as cutting regularly, but not too short when you do, it'll probably grow rapidly and won't look 'patchy'. Now all you need is for it to stop raining....and finally, a question - how sharp are the blades on your mower? I ask because in closeup, your lawn looks like it has slightly fuzzy or chewed ends where it's been cut, though this could have been because it was pretty wet when you did cut it...

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.