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Lawn Patches - Need to seed? Or grow itself?

Fairway_GoalFairway_Goal Posts: 3
in Problem solving
Hi All, I am new to this and looking for a bit of advice. Started with the lawn again this year and treated it with some moss killer, weed and feed. Most has come up looking good, but I have these patches of like dry dead grass which appeared over winter. They haven’t reacted to the feed and I have attempted to rake away. I have attached a photo.


Will these need reseeding? Or will they restore themselves?

I am debating turfing some patches of needs be, but cant ever really get them to match.

Thanks in advance!

Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Hard to tell from the photo but, that just looks like thatch, which you can remove with a tined rake.
    It can take a wee bit of effort, but that's the best solution. 
    Afterwards, you can loosen up the surface and re seed, mixing it with a little soil or compost, but it's still very early for sowing seed, so better to wait a few weeks, especially if you've used a chemical weed and feed, which will inhibit seed germinating anyway.
    Another reason for that appearance is cutting the grass with a blunt blade. It tears the grass rather than cutting, which results in clumps being pulled out. It could be that.
    The grass also looks very short. That can also result in grass pulling out, rather than cutting cleanly.
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • Fairway_GoalFairway_Goal Posts: 3
    Thank you for your response! It may be because I have already raked it. The grass in the patches looks pretty much dead so all that is left is the thatch. I just wasn't sure if there was some sort of bug or water/cold damage that has occurred. It was the same state before I cut it this year, seemed to die off over winter. I will buy some seed and see how I get on. Thanks!
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    As I said - just don't be in too much of a hurry with the seed as you've used a weed and feed.
    It also helps to keep the grass longer - otherwise you deplete the grass strength. Regular, light mowing helps 'tillering' which means it encourages grass to spread sideways, thickening it up at the same time  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • asrobertsonasrobertson Posts: 2
    Mmmm. Most of my lawn has gone like that this year. Embarrassing next to the golf course behind.  Grass is thin and poor, if there at all.   Not sure where to begin!  I’m thinking aeration, feed, scarify, feed again and cut longer.  Or move...
  • amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,736
    Or just get rid of it @asrobertson frankly if I had the golf people offering me the green vista...I'd gravel it and make some massive herbaceous border from all sides 😂
    To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
  • asrobertsonasrobertson Posts: 2
    @amancalledgeorge That was my fathers comment too..."1000 acres of someone else mowing your view!  What's not to like!"  This is new though. Not sure what’s happened over the winter, although I suspect a more chronic problem. Too much football and neglect. 
  • Fairway_GoalFairway_Goal Posts: 3
    So I have just turfed all the patches that I had and the lawn looks great. 

    Pretty sure I have found out the problem, Leather Jackets. The soil was full of them when I dug up the old turf. As a result, the patches where the grass was dead pretty much had no roots too.

    This article below covers it, the photo used pretty much looks exactly how mine looked.

    https://gardening.which.co.uk/hc/en-gb/articles/115000185985-Leatherjackets

    Now to use a lot of water to help the new turf and keep the leather jackets at bay.
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