Sowing

We had a new (less than 1 year) very patchy lawn which I overseeded over 2 weeks ago. I prepared diligently the existing lawn (aereted, de-thatched etc). I cut the grass fairly tight, laid top-soil then seed down. Gently raked the new seed in. Watered every day, when it wasn’t raining. I am still waiting … read more

I have recently killed the moss in a section of my garden. Raked it off when browned. I prepared garden for overseeding 2 weeks later March 16. I planted seed lightly watered and spread a light coat of fertilizer over it. Did I seed to early. The weather seems to have gone back to winter. … read more

Keeping weeds especially nettles at bay around holiday home in County Cork in recently cleared grounds. Would really appreciate suggestions for low maintenance quick low growing ‘anything’ that will sort this problem.

all of lawn mistakenly sprayed with Rosate 2 weeks ago. can I scarify now and overseed?

Some weeks prior to the recent dry spell, I applied ‘Dicophar’ lawn weedkiller. Some weeks later (about the beginning of the dry spell) I applied ‘Hygea lawn feed (3-in-1) to part of the lawn where growth wasn’t great, around trees & hedges and watered it in thoroughly and on successive days. Despite this, with the … read more

I note that in some US sites they talk about varieties of grass species that is quite resistant to talk urine. In a small garden, such as mine where the dog is trained not to go near borders, tubs or boxes, it is hard to also designate an area for urine that is also discrete … read more

I had a turf lawn laid about 3 weeks ago and have watered it every evening since. About a week ago I noticed patches of what looks like white fluffy cottony mould in places. What is this growth and how can it be treated?

I have an area about half acre and two years ago I converted to a wild flower meadow. The first year the results were spectacular. The second year was very disappointing with far too much grass and very few flowers. This happened even after I followed the instructions on mowing, cutting, lifting etc. I now … read more

Couple of years ago we got connected to water mains and dug a trench for pipes. Soil has now gone down and trench is about 6 inches under level of garden. Is it possible to put soil/sand on top of current grass where trench is and this will remain level. can’t dig up etc due … read more

Prior to laying a turf lawn (as soon as the weather allows me) in order to aid drainage and levels, is it advisable mix in some “sharp sand” with the topsoil? If so, would the stuff thy sell in the builders’ section of places like B&Q be suitable? My intention is to then mix in … read more

Ridges are appearing on my lawns for past few years. They are approx 3-5 metres long, 3cms wide and 1-2 cms high. There are up to 10 ridges perfectly parallel to one another, in three or four areas of the lawn. There are no tree roots near them. I have dug up 1 square foot … read more

How soon can I sow a new lawn? My rural garden is in County Laois. It is fairly well drained, and the area for sowing is sheltered on the south-east side only.

My friends lawn was badly damaged yesterday by a tractor driving over it. The ground is very soft and It has left several deep ridges and mucked up areas where the tyres appear to have spun. What if anything can be done to salvage this?

I want to remove concrete in my garden and replace it with a lawn. Would you advise just lifting the concrete now before the cold spell and spend the next few months over the winter preparing the ground for April or would I be better off waiting until the cold winter is over to start … read more

Am I leaving it too late to put down grass seed next weekend October 22/23rd. I have a very large lawn to plant and circumstances didn’t allow it to happen in Spring.

What is the best grass seed for a sunny lawn? its a small lawn 12 ft circular lawn.

what growing conditions does a camomile lawn require. Have read the non flowering ” chamaemelum treneague” is best ?? any advice would be greatly appreciated

We used weedkiller 360 and burnt all lawn. Now the weeds have grown and we want to kill them before we sow our new grass. Will we use the same weedkiller 360 or can you suggest another type?

Last autumn I took the top soil off an area of lawn and put down wildflower / grass mix and threw in extra wildflower seeds – poppies, cornflower, etc For added measure I added some extra flower seeds at Easter I know have some of the grasses but not a single flower seems to have … read more

We sowed a new lawn 2 weeks ago today and it slow enough to sprout. it had very dry spells but we watered it all throughout. Im just wondering how long is the usual germination time?

Last year I put down grass seed, it grew fine in the sunny section of the garden, but in the shaded section of the garden it grew poorly. I was just wondering whether the grass will grow in the shaded area or am I wasting my time laying grass seed again?

Our grass was full of moss so we aerated and scarified our lawn. Our local garden centre advised us to put down horticultural sand and plant grass seed. We have done this and kept the lawn well watered but it is now two weeks on and there is no sign of new grass. Has the … read more

14 large cattle broke into our lawn today.It is approx 1/4 acre. The back of the lawn was newly reseeded this Summer. The rest of the lawn to the front and sides is about 7 years old. Is there anything we can do to rectify it or is it best to leave alone. The ground … read more

I have a lawn of about a third of a acre and I am trying to redesgn it. can you recommend any simple design guides?

I am sowing a new lawn and i was wondering were can i buy 100% dwarf bargold ryegrass seed as i already have a 65% 35% fescue seed to mix with it?

Can you advise on turf laying soil preparation and actual laying procedure?

I have a patio at the top and bottom of my lawn. The one nearest the house is about 3 inches higher than the one at the bottom. The lawn has a brick border. the border starts to rise higher that the lawn roughly 3 metres from the top patio. I want to raise the … read more

Lawn got burnt from the heat of the BBQ any suggestions to rectify this.

I harrowed and reseeded my lawn and did not get the opportunity to roll. Now the weeds have taken over a very uneven lawn. Do I need to harrow again and reseed or what?

I have a small lawn with a lot of moss. I put down a coat of feed and weed a few months ago and am now left with a few rather large brown patches which are completely dead. I dug out all the dead stuff a week ago and put down grass seed but its … read more

I’m wondering if you could tell me the best way to sow grass where there is a mulch/bark area. We moved into our house a year ago and the whole front is bark. We would prefer grass as we think it will look nicer and it would be more suitable for our child.

I just dug the garden last week turned soil etc and put grass seed down, few stones etc still in the soil can u give me some tips for a new lawn and would sand be any good to put down mixed with the soil? Does the grass seed need to be buried or is … read more

I think i should use type 3 lawnseed on my re rotavated lawn,as type 2 has failed twice. Have good top soil,well drained and good sunlight, but need stronger seed.Do you supply this lawnseed and where can i pick it up.

Am new to gardening and would love your advice. Moved into a new house summer 2008. Front ‘lawn’ is about 30 x 30 so not particularly big. Have kept it grass, and want to stay grass for the forseeable. However, the soil is only about 3ft deep. Then it’s concrete/builders rubble. Planted some shrubs last … read more

We are a group of 5 houses and have a common area, about 1/3 of an acre, which we have just planted some well spaced out fruit trees. We want to put the area into a meadow. Roundup was applied 6 months ago and area has been levelled with a JCB but is fairly bumpy. … read more

I have a rather big lawn and my kids use some of the lawn/garden to play football, last year i had some very bad patches with bumps and no grass growth.I have now leveled up these areas with clay and top soil.Would spreading lawn seed type 3 be a waste of time during these cold … read more

We set lawn seed last week (first week in October) but unfortunely a day of heavy rainfall resulted in the seed being very patchy (very dense in areas where puddles had formed). The lawn area is very large! What would you advise?

Thinking of sowing my new lawn next week, do you think the grass will grow before frost season. The lawn is at a 30 degree angle do you think this is too steep for using a lawn mower

I recently sowed my lawn just over a week ago, I have had good growth in most parts of the lawn, while in places there is no growth, some lawn seed has grown while other seeds have not. I added some grass fertilizer to the lawn,What can i do to resolve these patches at this … read more

I was hoping u could tell me what is the best type of weed killer to get for a grave,my dad passed b4 xmas so its almost 8 months now and the earth has settled,i want to put down weed killer as although ive raked and weeded the grave regulary they keep coming back,i suppose … read more

It will be three weeks next Thursday since I had a turf lawn laid in my back garden. I have been watering it twice a day, however parts of it have grown better than others. Is this normal. I would also know as to when I would give it the first cut and how high … read more

My new lawn(about 3/4 acre) was sown the beginning of June this year and has come up well in some places but patchy in others.The ground seems to be quite dry however and I can still see seeds that haven’t sprouted.Should i water it in the evening time during this dry weather or will the … read more

i have prepared my garden for turf lawn, but with the recent hot weather the ground is all dried out and rock hard. how long should i leave it till i lay the lawn, should i wait till we have had a couple of days of rain. sheila

Italian rye grass is rapidly taking over our lawn. Lawn size approx half acre it would be a massive job to redo the lawn and we would rather not have to take this on. have you any other suggestions? It looks really bad.

Only moved into new house, garden just muck. Is it too late to grow grass seed? Also how long does it take to grow?

Hi Gerry,Moved into second hand home in Co. Limerick over the summer. There was poor drainage in back garden of new home so I put in drainage and soakaway. Have it now levelled with top soil. Is it possible to obtain and lay rolled grass that would take at this time of year? Thanks for … read more

Hi Gerry, Please could you tell me the different cultivars used in Ireland in relation to setting a new lawn. I am a liitle unclear as to what they are and their function? I am aware that there a several types available.

I have an average sized garden. With two growing children I have found myself gradually giving up flower beds and sowing grass seed with the result that our lawn is uneven, mossy, weed filled and generally unpleasant. I am currently adding to the grass space and reducing flower beds again and this time I want … read more

is it too late to set a new lawn as the weather this month very wet

Any ideas on getting rid of cattle hoof marks (between 3 to 5 inches) on lawn, (lawn used for kids to play football) so it is just getting it reasonable level without anyone twisting ankles

Gerry,New lawn 1 year old, horses left holes around the garden , I was going to mix good quality top soil with sand and lawn mix and fill the holes with this , and scatter some more seed on top of this , my question is , would this be a good solution to the … read more

Hi Gerry, I have a small lawn (4m x 6m) which I am preparing for reseeding with westlands dwarf ryegrass. The old lawn was pH neutral but had died off in parts and had some weeds, wild grass and moss. I rotovated it 2 days ago but did not spray round-up before hand. It is … read more

Hi Gerry, I seeded a new lawn a month ago, but as yet no grass, loads of weeds but no grass. I have watered it well. should i sow more grass seed? Thank u Evelyn