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Garden lawn

Hi 

At my property I have a lot for rubble under my lawn.

However the grass itself is pretty good but has deteriated over the last year with my children playing on it .

But I find the problem is its always wet.

Can you help 

Making holes in garden 

Sand ? 

Top soil then seeds 

Trench on side to help ,?

Please help 

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Posts

  • Papi JoPapi Jo Posts: 4,254

    Hi there,

    Lots of rubble under the lawn,

    children playing on lawn,

    wet, wet, wet...

    Would it not be wiser to just give up the idea of having a lawn?image

  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090

    Lawns are great places for kids to play on as long as you're not precious about keeping it pristine.

    Is it wet as in damp or wet as in visible water lying on the surface?   Have a read of these articles from the RHS website - https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=204 and https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=475 and https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/garden-features/lawns 

    They will help you decide how bad your problem is and also how much effort you want to go to to fix the problem.   It may be a simple matter of spiking with a garden fork and brushing sharp sand into the resulting holes or you may need to dig a trench or soak away or start all over again removing the rubble and loosening any compacted soil or clay below.

    Last edited: 31 December 2017 09:36:39

    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • PalaisglidePalaisglide Posts: 3,414

    The first lawn I ever saw laid was two lady gardeners in a new house. The asked my Father to deliver brick rubble with his truck and this was put down as a base for drainage. This covered in soil then compost mixed with sand and the grass sown, they kept that lawn pristine for many years but then they had no children.

    My lawns for years were playgrounds for children then Grandchildren, I kept them tidy which is all you can do and I always knew where the children were plus others from round about. Now I have two lovely lawns, the occasional Great Grandchild the odd dogs they bring not enough to spoil anything. and at the moment they are wet after the snow melted and will be wet, damp until spring.

    The moral being children dogs and lawns do not mix well in winter, leave them alone do not even walk on them yourself as they will be damp and every footfall will leave a delve in the lawn. In the spring work on the lawn first cut always with the blade high and never cut shorter than on inch of grass, bear with it until the children stop playing on it and end up laying on sun beds with phones glued to their ears talking  nonsense to their peers, you will wish they were playing again. Good luck.

    Frank.

  • I agree with every word you've said Frank image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Bee witchedBee witched Posts: 1,295

    Hi pjay,

    Just to add to what others have said ..... it would be worth feeding your lawn each spring and autumn (there are different feeds for each season so check you get the right one). Just like any other plant, grass needs nourishment ... especially if it's coping with your children's games!

    Bee x

    image

    PS .. great game last night .... Mo Salah  ... genius image

    Gardener and beekeeper in beautiful Scottish Borders  

    A single bee creates just one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime
  • Thanks guys 

    No visible water just wet and when making holes with fork doesn't go down much until you can feel the rubble kids been on it once since September due to new goal for Xmas held up better than expected .

    Will post pic soon.

    Will try sand to see if it drys out I think .

    Bee Salah genius klopp making inroads with squad and signings now.

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  • PalaisglidePalaisglide Posts: 3,414

    Domestic garden lawns are a boon to busy families, a place of safety, you know where they children are and they cannot hurt themselves on a soft grassy lawn, I have two one for the youngest children that the dogs never get onto and one that lets the dogs run too (visitors dogs). Having helped maintain a bowling green for many years (Voluntary as were all the helpers) and being treasurer of the Bowls Club I do Know the cost of maintaining one and the amount of work involved. The normal urban garden lawn can never reach the high level of a bowling green and most people never expect it too, plenty of food can be grown as well as a small lawn or even small patches of grass that are restful to the eye.

    Most Bowling greens are started on a rubble bed for drainage and then built up with top soil, compost and then a sand and compost mix then the correct grass seed mix. Each year we had to put down a special top soil dressing mix costing hundreds of pounds and then the weeding and other maintenance that all costs money including the various machines you must have.

    In my opinion a lawn is better than masses of wood planking as in instant garden make overs and lets face it the garden whether grass or boarded out or even full of plants bushes or trees is only used for recreation in our hit and miss summers. So each to their own after all a garden is built in our own image for us as we wish to use it. My advice is use the toughest grass seed, feed and weed twice a year, never walk on it when wet and do not expect it to look like the local Bowling Green, it never will.

    Frank.

  • Kitty 2Kitty 2 Posts: 5,150

    Garden lawns don't have to be dull mono-cultures IanC63 image

    Some of us aren't obsessed with a pitch perfect patch, and allow the "weeds" to grow. I love the white clover in mine, and so do the bees ?. 

    Happy summer day memories, sat on the grass, making daisy chains when my girls were small. It's a valuable outside space when you have children image.

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