How to repair a lawn

Anyone with a lawn knows that keeping it looking good all year round often involves a little more than just getting the mower out every week or so. During the warmer months our gardens are an open air extension of our homes; where we can get closer to nature, the perfect place to relax, play, and entertain. But over a relatively short time the effects of wear and tear start to tell. Constant footfall, children playing, molehills, and then there is man’s best friend, who often leave their mark.

Here we look at how to repair a lawn and remove these awful eye-sore patches and get things looking green and fresh again.

Anyone with a dog knows they have a knack sometimes of doing their business when and where you least want it. The saying “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks isn’t quite true, you can! It just takes a little patience, and a treat! You have to work at it, but give it a try, you’ll be surprised. Train your puppy/dog to ‘go’ in one particular area of the garden but if mistakes do happen, pour a bucket of clean water on the area as soon as you notice it – this will dilute the liquid resulting in less damage.

The best time of year to repair a damaged lawn is in the spring or autumn as the cooler damp weather encourages the grass to grow. However, if you are prepared and able to water regularly and shade the new, emerging grass seedlings from a hot summer sun, you can do it at any time, except during the depths of winter.

Start by cutting out the damaged area of lawn and lightly fork over the soil underneath. To give the newly emerging roots a good start in life, scatter some compost in the hole before sowing the seed. The grass seed should be sprinkled at about 20g per square metre or at the rate shown on the packet. Cover the seeds with a little compost and water well through a fine rose on a watering can.

Another way of repairing a damaged lawn is to use a patch of turf taken from an out of the way area of the lawn. Cut out the damaged turf in a square and replace it with an identical sized piece of turf. Tamp it down well and brush some lawn top dressing over the area. Keep it well watered.

A new and innovative lawn seed is now available that self-repairs if the surface is damaged. Amazingly, once established, this grass will regenerate within 7-10days eliminating the need for future patch repairs. It sounds too good to be true, but it really does work. Rhizomes and stolons on the roots multiply to create a strong mesh which fuels each blade of grass to regenerate, allowing damaged areas to repair themselves.

The grass is a low growing variety that will provide you with a beautiful thick lawn that will need less mowing and is drought resistant. The all-in-one solution to achieving the perfect lawn!

Once upon a time, artificial grass looked just that – artificial and plastic, but things have moved on. Today’s artificial grass is so convincing you need to touch it before you believe it. And what’s more there are added benefits in that there’s no need to cut it, or water it in times of drought and hose pipe bans – ideal for the elderly and busy people with little time.

Published July 13th, 2015 by Jordan. Article ref 3831

Tags: lawn

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