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#1
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grass on a mound style septic field
Wow, a newsgroup on lawns! What will they think of next.
Anyways, last year I had a new septic field built here in a mountain top hill town in western Massachusetts- where the ground won't perk due to heavy clay soils. The new septic field is a huge "mound" type. The contractors brought in something like 38 huge truck loads of gravel and sand and whatever else goes into it. It's almost the size of a tennis court! The top is elevated like a mound with a gentle slope in all directions. The contractor told me that there is 4" of top soil on top of all that sand and gravel. The lawn that they seeded hasn't come in well. At the time, I had no idea of what type of seed is available- since then I've learned about "contractor mix" which I think has some weeds in it which can grab hold quick to hold the dirt in place. Along the edges of the mound, the grass has come in much better- but in the middle it looks sparse. I'm trying to keep the cost down in fixing the lawn problem. Most people seem to think the best solution is to spread out more grass seed. That may be true, but I also wonder if the top soil is deficient and it's probably excessively well drained in the middle. If I were to spread seed, what type is best? Can I spread fertilizer at the same time? Any other suggestions? We've had far too much rain this spring, so a shortage of water at this time can't be the problem. -- Joe Zorzin |
#2
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grass on a mound style septic field
"Joe Zorzin" wrote in message ... Wow, a newsgroup on lawns! What will they think of next. Anyways, last year I had a new septic field built here in a mountain top hill town in western Massachusetts- where the ground won't perk due to heavy clay soils. The new septic field is a huge "mound" type. The contractors brought in something like 38 huge truck loads of gravel and sand and whatever else goes into it. It's almost the size of a tennis court! The top is elevated like a mound with a gentle slope in all directions. The contractor told me that there is 4" of top soil on top of all that sand and gravel. The lawn that they seeded hasn't come in well. At the time, I had no idea of what type of seed is available- since then I've learned about "contractor mix" which I think has some weeds in it which can grab hold quick to hold the dirt in place. Along the edges of the mound, the grass has come in much better- but in the middle it looks sparse. I'm trying to keep the cost down in fixing the lawn problem. Most people seem to think the best solution is to spread out more grass seed. That may be true, but I also wonder if the top soil is deficient and it's probably excessively well drained in the middle. If I were to spread seed, what type is best? Can I spread fertilizer at the same time? Any other suggestions? We've had far too much rain this spring, so a shortage of water at this time can't be the problem. -- Joe Zorzin It sounds to me like the weeds got a foothold before the grass had a chance to. The fault may have been with the topsoil or the seed. This is a very common problem when starting a lawn from seed anyway. My suggestion would be to get rid of the weeds and then see what happens. You may possibly be pleasantly surprised to find that there is a lawn there struggling to come through. The best time to seed a lawn is in mid-August as the fall weed season is not nearly as competitive as the spring one. Why not take a couple of wacks at the weeds with a weed killer this spring and then reseed in August. Peter H |
#3
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grass on a mound style septic field
"Joe Zorzin" wrote:
Wow, a newsgroup on lawns! What will they think of next. Anyways, last year I had a new septic field built here in a mountain top hill town in western Massachusetts- where the ground won't perk due to heavy clay soils. The new septic field is a huge "mound" type. The contractors brought in something like 38 huge truck loads of gravel and sand and whatever else goes into it. It's almost the size of a tennis court! The top is elevated like a mound with a gentle slope in all directions. The contractor told me that there is 4" of top soil on top of all that sand and gravel. The lawn that they seeded hasn't come in well. At the time, I had no idea of what type of seed is available- since then I've learned about "contractor mix" which I think has some weeds in it which can grab hold quick to hold the dirt in place. Along the edges of the mound, the grass has come in much better- but in the middle it looks sparse. I'm trying to keep the cost down in fixing the lawn problem. Most people seem to think the best solution is to spread out more grass seed. That may be true, but I also wonder if the top soil is deficient and it's probably excessively well drained in the middle. If I were to spread seed, what type is best? Can I spread fertilizer at the same time? Any other suggestions? We've had far too much rain this spring, so a shortage of water at this time can't be the problem. If you don't wan't to cut,fert,weed, that mound, try the 'no mow' blend. Here's a link: http://www.prairienursery.com/FAQs/faq_nomow.html If you want a more cared for look, try the hybrid turf type tall fescue blends. -- GO# 40 ------------------------------------------------------------- http://NewsReader.Com/ 50 GB/Month |
#4
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grass on a mound style septic field
Get the soil tested, at least for PH. New material that is trucked in
can be way out of wack, frequently too low in PH. A PH of about 6.5 is good for most grass types. Get it adjusted with lime now if necessary. Wait till early Sept to reseed. If you have lots of weeds, little grass, kill the whole thing with roundup the week before you reseed. Rent a slice seeder and use the best seed you can find. A mix of tall fescue, Rebel variety is good and blue grass should work fine. If you are more concerned about drought resistance since it's raised, I think Loft's has a summer stress mix seed. Use starter fertilizer, keep it constantly lightly wetted, use weed free straw or some peat moss as a light top dressing to help retain moisture. "Peter H" wrote in message able.rogers.com... "Joe Zorzin" wrote in message ... Wow, a newsgroup on lawns! What will they think of next. Anyways, last year I had a new septic field built here in a mountain top hill town in western Massachusetts- where the ground won't perk due to heavy clay soils. The new septic field is a huge "mound" type. The contractors brought in something like 38 huge truck loads of gravel and sand and whatever else goes into it. It's almost the size of a tennis court! The top is elevated like a mound with a gentle slope in all directions. The contractor told me that there is 4" of top soil on top of all that sand and gravel. The lawn that they seeded hasn't come in well. At the time, I had no idea of what type of seed is available- since then I've learned about "contractor mix" which I think has some weeds in it which can grab hold quick to hold the dirt in place. Along the edges of the mound, the grass has come in much better- but in the middle it looks sparse. I'm trying to keep the cost down in fixing the lawn problem. Most people seem to think the best solution is to spread out more grass seed. That may be true, but I also wonder if the top soil is deficient and it's probably excessively well drained in the middle. If I were to spread seed, what type is best? Can I spread fertilizer at the same time? Any other suggestions? We've had far too much rain this spring, so a shortage of water at this time can't be the problem. -- Joe Zorzin It sounds to me like the weeds got a foothold before the grass had a chance to. The fault may have been with the topsoil or the seed. This is a very common problem when starting a lawn from seed anyway. My suggestion would be to get rid of the weeds and then see what happens. You may possibly be pleasantly surprised to find that there is a lawn there struggling to come through. The best time to seed a lawn is in mid-August as the fall weed season is not nearly as competitive as the spring one. Why not take a couple of wacks at the weeds with a weed killer this spring and then reseed in August. Peter H |
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