"stuart noble" wrote in message
...
On 16/01/2014 10:44, Martin Brown wrote:
On 15/01/2014 20:16, stuart noble wrote:
My son's lawn has a dip in the middle. The whole area is probably 60 ft
x 20 ft and the centre is about 3" lower than the edges. I thought of
trying a quick fix by leveling with topsoil/sand/seed and hoping the
existing grass will grow through it. Is that a realistic expectation?
If you top dress the low spots about an inch at a time over three years
you won't need much if any seed. You will likely need a lot of sharp
sand and topsoil though 25kg goes nowhere. If it is deeper as I had with
a big tree root extracted and you use new grass seed expect to see a
different coloured patch of grass there almost forever!
I read a long discussion about it on Gardenweb, so I know about sand
types etc, but what works in the southern USA might not be successful in
SE England. With a toddler charging about, doing a proper job isn't an
option for the foreseeable future .
Any advice welcome
If you don't add too much at once grass it pretty good at growing
through and re-establishing itself. You might want to attack the low
spot with a hollow tined fork to improve drainage first. Get a really
tough one as the ones in sheds are pretty useless and break easily.
Three years is an eternity to young families these days. Once the lawn
receives the focus (first fine day of the year) it has to be "fixed",
preferably by lunchtime :-)
Slightly concerned that seed might be a waste of time if the weather takes
a turn for the worse. Charlie might get away with it, but I probably
won't. Maybe "burying" turf would be an option? I don't think the dip is
much more than a sod thickness, so I could fine level with soil on top of
the turf. Just thinking out loud here....
Martins right doing it in layers works really well, but you can short cut by
using turf and soil but the weather at the moment isn't great for projects
of any kind. this link shows what we achieved in 6 weeks over a winter
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk/pond/pond.htm
But its worth pointing out my children are of an age that nothing would
induce them out into the garden!
--
Charlie, Gardening in Cornwall
Holders of National Collections of Clematis viticella
and Lapageria rosea cvs
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk