Cicero wrote:


There was a TV programme ('This old house' ) recently which showed a novel
way of creating a new lawn. A kind of 'mush' was sprayed on to bare ground
and a new lawn appeared in a few days. The 'mush' was apparently a mixture
of water and germinated grass seeds. The programme showed this method being
used in America but it's just possible that it's available in this country
and if so it might solve your problem. Maybe somebody here knows of this
method being used in the UK.


Hydro seeding - used commercially in UK for motorway banks, land reclamation etc
- I doubt if it's available or cost effective for small areas.

My last efforts with normal seeding were a bit frustrating because the birds
seemed to regard my new lawn as place to fatten up on my expensive seed. I'm
going for turf next time - in a few weeks.

Did you rake the seed in and roll or compact the seedbed afterwards? Seeds need
to be in intimate contact with constantly moist soil to germinate well.
Raking helps to make the distribution of the seeds more even.
Alternate drying and wetting of the seeds is death to the seeds (not just grass
seeds - almost any seeds). Also if they're just covered it's not so easy for
the birds to find them all. This is the bit most unsuccesful newbies get wrong,
it is a shame because seeding is a far better job and much cheaper and easier
than turf.
Another thing that costs most folks money is the seed sowing rate. The seedsmen
like to sell you enough to do 2.5 oz per sq yd. You need 1.5 max. 0.75 per sq
yd is OK if you can sow evenly on a good seedbed and keep it well watered (if
needed) in the first few weeks.
--
Rod
http://website.lineone.net/%7Erodcraddock/index.html
My email address needs weeding.