What a lot of fuss.......all you do is to build a turf wall with the turf
face down, this can be used for many things or just to let the grass die
off. you will get a bit of growth from the outside half inch but if you let
it alone for about 8 weeks you can then cut the wall back with a spade about
an inch and put the trimmings in your compost heap (Buried) after a year you
will gave first class loam for potting compost.
This was the way that loam was produced for many many years and it grew
great plants.
No need fro chemicals or the hard work of digging a trench or anything.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

Hi All

Subject: sod it?
From: "joe"
Date: Sun, 6 Jun 2004 11:00:15 +0100

I've just 'dug-up' a small lawn to lay a paved path and circle. Now I'm
faced with the problem of what to do with the grass sods.

Most of them will fit face-down on the compost heap but there are a few left
over.

Personally, I would stack them grass to grass, soil to soil, in alternate
layers.

If I burry them grass side down, say a spade depth deep, or even lay them
face-down and cover them with new topsoil in a week or so, would the grass
grow through again?

Cheers Joe.

In the past I have laid them face down and treated the edges where the grass
shows with Roundup.

Peter Bridge

"Sacha" wrote in message
k...
On 6/6/04 11:39, in article ,
"joe" wrote:


"Sacha" wrote

Does anyone you know nearby want to patch up their lawn? ;-)

Not that I know of Sacha.

Do you think I can burry the sods face down without the grass gowing
through
later?



I haven't done this myself but the received wisdom is that if you bury
them
deeply enough, you can do that. And IIRC, 6" or a little more is "deep
enough".
I haven't seen this done with turves but I've often seen unwanted plants
outside a garden gate with a 'free, please help yourself' notice. I
suppose
you could try that, having watered them well so they don't frazzle.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove the weeds after garden to email me.

********
Isn't it a shame that old, properly-done customs have fallen by the wayside
due to laziness of body and mind.
It was always the custom, - before the rape of the peat beds began, - (for
money, of course), - for gardeners and especially Nurserymen to make their
own loam for seedlings and potting-on.
They dug grass sods - usually from a field, - about inches thick, squared
them off very roughly and stacked them up to about hip or shoulder height
and left them to weather for no less than a year, My Dad and I used to
have three at time stacked. The one-year-old ones did not do too well,
that's why we built three stacks, joined together to make one long one but
the division between the three was obvious because the one just used and
replaced was just built and looked clean and new, it had no surface growth
on it.
They were stood in line in a sunny corner and we used the three-year old
one. The outside of the stacks gradually grew a grass coat each but as the
third one came into use it, the grass was skived off and put into the first
one to recycle and rot.. Simple!, - isn't it?. Everything happened more
slowly in those days.
The stacks when brought into use produced an excellent friable loam ideal
for seedlings and potting. all the weeds and their seeds in the middle of
the stacks had, usually, rotted.
The last Nurseryman I saw using the method had succumbed to the peat fad and
used it in various percentage mixes to suit the particular job in hand.
Doug.
*******

"Douglas" wrote in message
Isn't it a shame that old, properly-done customs have fallen by the
wayside
due to laziness of body and mind.
It was always the custom, - before the rape of the peat beds began, - (for
money, of course), - for gardeners and especially Nurserymen to make
their
own loam for seedlings and potting-on.
They dug grass sods - usually from a field, - about inches thick, squared
them off very roughly and stacked them up to about hip or shoulder height
and left them to weather for no less than a year, My Dad and I used to
have three at time stacked. The one-year-old ones did not do too well,
that's why we built three stacks, joined together to make one long one but
the division between the three was obvious because the one just used and
replaced was just built and looked clean and new, it had no surface growth
on it.
They were stood in line in a sunny corner and we used the three-year old
one. The outside of the stacks gradually grew a grass coat each but as
the
third one came into use it, the grass was skived off and put into the
first
one to recycle and rot.. Simple!, - isn't it?. Everything happened
more
slowly in those days.
The stacks when brought into use produced an excellent friable loam ideal
for seedlings and potting. all the weeds and their seeds in the middle of
the stacks had, usually, rotted.
The last Nurseryman I saw using the method had succumbed to the peat fad
and
used it in various percentage mixes to suit the particular job in hand.

I thought gardeners just collected mole hills for potting compost.

--
Regards
Bob

Some photos of my plants at.....

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
What a lot of fuss.......all you do is to build a turf wall with the turf
face down, this can be used for many things or just to let the grass die
off. you will get a bit of growth from the outside half inch but if you
let
it alone for about 8 weeks you can then cut the wall back with a spade
about
an inch and put the trimmings in your compost heap (Buried) after a year
you
will gave first class loam for potting compost.
This was the way that loam was produced for many many years and it grew
great plants.
No need fro chemicals or the hard work of digging a trench or anything.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

And might I add that as the de-compose that way, their activities of the
bacteria aiding decomposition will not affect what ever plants you tend to
place over them.
Not to mention avoiding a strange and intuitively unhealthy smell that can
sometimes arise from burying turf in large quantities.
The 6" option was going to come a cropper when you tried to plant the first
plant with a pot greater than that dept.
I am assuming that this new top-soil you mention is for a flower bed and not
also intended to go under the path. If I'm wrong and that is what you
intend, then your path will be alover the place in no time at all, and stink
for a while with it.

Patrick

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
What a lot of fuss.......all you do is to build a turf wall with the turf
face down, this can be used for many things or just to let the grass die
off. you will get a bit of growth from the outside half inch but if you
let
it alone for about 8 weeks you can then cut the wall back with a spade
about
an inch and put the trimmings in your compost heap (Buried) after a year
you
will gave first class loam for potting compost.
This was the way that loam was produced for many many years and it grew
great plants.
No need fro chemicals or the hard work of digging a trench or anything.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

And might I add that as the de-compose that way, their activities of the
bacteria aiding decomposition will not affect what ever plants you tend to
place over them.
Not to mention avoiding a strange and intuitively unhealthy smell that can
sometimes arise from burying turf in large quantities.
The 6" option was going to come a cropper when you tried to plant the first
plant with a pot greater than that dept.
I am assuming that this new top-soil you mention is for a flower bed and not
also intended to go under the path. If I'm wrong and that is what you
intend, then your path will be alover the place in no time at all, and stink
for a while with it.

Patrick

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
What a lot of fuss.......all you do is to build a turf wall with the turf
face down, this can be used for many things or just to let the grass die
off. you will get a bit of growth from the outside half inch but if you
let
it alone for about 8 weeks you can then cut the wall back with a spade
about
an inch and put the trimmings in your compost heap (Buried) after a year
you
will gave first class loam for potting compost.
This was the way that loam was produced for many many years and it grew
great plants.
No need fro chemicals or the hard work of digging a trench or anything.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

And might I add that as the de-compose that way, their activities of the
bacteria aiding decomposition will not affect what ever plants you tend to
place over them.
Not to mention avoiding a strange and intuitively unhealthy smell that can
sometimes arise from burying turf in large quantities.
The 6" option was going to come a cropper when you tried to plant the first
plant with a pot greater than that dept.
I am assuming that this new top-soil you mention is for a flower bed and not
also intended to go under the path. If I'm wrong and that is what you
intend, then your path will be alover the place in no time at all, and stink
for a while with it.

Patrick

"David Hill" wrote in message
...
What a lot of fuss.......all you do is to build a turf wall with the turf
face down, this can be used for many things or just to let the grass die
off. you will get a bit of growth from the outside half inch but if you
let
it alone for about 8 weeks you can then cut the wall back with a spade
about
an inch and put the trimmings in your compost heap (Buried) after a year
you
will gave first class loam for potting compost.
This was the way that loam was produced for many many years and it grew
great plants.
No need fro chemicals or the hard work of digging a trench or anything.

--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

And might I add that as the de-compose that way, their activities of the
bacteria aiding decomposition will not affect what ever plants you tend to
place over them.
Not to mention avoiding a strange and intuitively unhealthy smell that can
sometimes arise from burying turf in large quantities.
The 6" option was going to come a cropper when you tried to plant the first
plant with a pot greater than that dept.
I am assuming that this new top-soil you mention is for a flower bed and not
also intended to go under the path. If I'm wrong and that is what you
intend, then your path will be alover the place in no time at all, and stink
for a while with it.

Patrick

"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

"Douglas" wrote in message
Isn't it a shame that old, properly-done customs have fallen by the
wayside
due to laziness of body and mind.
It was always the custom, - before the rape of the peat beds began, -
(for
money, of course), - for gardeners and especially Nurserymen to make
their
own loam for seedlings and potting-on.
They dug grass sods - usually from a field, - about inches thick,
squared
them off very roughly and stacked them up to about hip or shoulder
height
and left them to weather for no less than a year, My Dad and I used to
have three at time stacked. The one-year-old ones did not do too well,
that's why we built three stacks, joined together to make one long one
but
the division between the three was obvious because the one just used and
replaced was just built and looked clean and new, it had no surface
growth
on it.
They were stood in line in a sunny corner and we used the three-year old
one. The outside of the stacks gradually grew a grass coat each but as
the
third one came into use it, the grass was skived off and put into the
first
one to recycle and rot.. Simple!, - isn't it?. Everything happened
more
slowly in those days.
The stacks when brought into use produced an excellent friable loam
ideal
for seedlings and potting. all the weeds and their seeds in the middle
of
the stacks had, usually, rotted.
The last Nurseryman I saw using the method had succumbed to the peat fad
and
used it in various percentage mixes to suit the particular job in hand.

I thought gardeners just collected mole hills for potting compost.

--
Regards
Bob

Some photos of my plants at.....


**************

And how right you were, Bob!.
There's a road goes past my house to Rampside on the Morecambe Bay northern
Coast Road and it has very wide grassy verges. Once a year the verges on
both sides and the adjoining fields sides are a mass of mole hills.
A country type narrow lane leads down to, and past, to a farm, what used to
be my Uncle's house, and he collected potting soil from the mole hill mounds
surrounding his garden.
I don't think the mole's digging procedure added any nutriment to the soil;
I think that because their style of digging with their small hands and
claws, it breaks the soil up into a mound of very friable soil which makes
for easy potting of plants. Moles have very high and speedy digestive
processes and they have to work speedily and diligently to survive. There's
a name for it but I have temporarily forgotten it They circumvent this by
digging caches chambers and they store surplus worms in them.
Up in Cumberland, now called Cumbria moles are called "Mowdiwarps" and the
new Oxf. dict. of English confirms it.
Way back in time you could see on farmhouse fences and other fields wooden
fences lots of mowdy skins spread out with tin-tacks drying in the air. When
sufficient were gathered they were sent away to make moleskin fur coats and
plumbing wipes.
Later on the mowdy-catcher tacked them unskinned and were held to the fence
with just one tack.
This was to allow the farmer on his field inspection-walk to be aware that
the catcher was diligent in his vocation and the number of skins hanging
there indicated how much he owed to the catcher, which would be handed over
the next saturday night in the local. The farmer never removed them, - the
catcher did that the next time he worked. Such was the simple countryman's
trust in each other it would never enter anyone's head to swindle the count.
Doug.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...
In article ,
joe wrote:
Thanks for all your advice folks. I'll give them a spray with
gyphosate,
leave for 48 hours, turn them over, burry them at least 6 inches deep and
if
a lawn springs through my newly planted garden I'll tip my hat to nature.

Unless they are riddled with couch, skip the glyphosate. Upside down
and 2" of soil will prevent almost all grasses regrowing. Upside
down and 12" will stop even couch and ground elder.
Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

***********
Speaking of couch grass; When I moved into one particular house the garden
was thick and wick with couch grass and had been like that, for many years.
I knew that to leave just an inch of root would cause rapid trouble so I
double dug the plot quite deeply, sieving and pulling out as much as I
could.
It was Ok for a couple of years then I got another house.
I will conclude with a little true story, unconnected with couch grass to
amuse you. Two days before, I had dug and prepared the soil and spread the
new lawn area with grass seed.
We left the house at about ten a.m. At just about 2p.m. I discovered I had
departed without a couple of items I needed, The new tenants had not yet
been given the keys and I hadn't yet handed them back to the estate office.
When I got there I found that everything in the garden had been looted. The
wide expanse of tilled soil was completely bare!
But , - hear this!,.... All the lawn seed had also gone!. As well as
digging up all the plants someone had scraped all the lawn topsoil off as
well, including the heavy spreading of grass seed ,- and scarpered with
that too.!
Doug.
**********