Cardboard mulching for “instant” sowing?

Posts

• JennyJ Posts: 10,576

  February 2022

  I'm thinking there's a third option, if you want a wildflower meadow that includes grass. Hire a fairly heavy-duty scarifying machine, give the lawn a really good going over with it (in several directions) to pull out a lot of the moss and grass, and scuff up the soil, then sow the wild flower seeds. I don't know what particular mixture you have, but most wildflower meadow type plants like poorer soil - they don't need compost.
  

  Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  

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• cmarkr Posts: 142

  February 2022

  I think JennyJ's proposal is probably the best route. If using cardboard you could consider covering in sand rather than compost to weigh it down and help the seeds germinate without adding nutrition. Overlap the cardboard by about a foot minimum to stop the grass growing through the seams. I think the roots will grow into the cardboard if it's kept moist, I score cardboard when I use it to help it absorb moisture but will also help roots to penetrate it before it starts to break down. The turf underneath will provide unwanted nutrition when it breaks down but while grass seeds are yet to arrive above the cardboard, the meadow seeds will be able to establish - it is largely about not providing nutrition to grass that will out compete the wildflowers.

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• ncevens Posts: 3

  February 2022

  Thanks folks The seed supplier recommended getting rid of all existing grass because of the risk, as you point out, of it out-competing both the flower seeds, and the grass seed contained within the mix.  Would scarification alone remove enough of the existing grass?
  

  I’m wondering if scarification (reduces latent nitrogen by reducing grass) AND cardboard (kills residual grass) AND low nutrition mulch (sand) might be good, but this is getting a wee bit faffy

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• fidgetbones Posts: 17,618

  February 2022 edited February 2022

  Use  lawn stripper /turf lifter to completely strip off the top two inches.( Most of the nutrition will be in that layer) Then rake to a fine tilth and sow. Stack the turf upside down, soak it and cover with black plastic, to let it transform into lovely top soil for use in the rest of the garden.
  

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• JennyJ Posts: 10,576

  February 2022

  Turf lifter would work too - I hadn't thought of that. I was thinking of adding flowers to the existing grass rather than using a mix that has grass in it as well as flowers, so thanks for clarifying . If there's yellow rattle in the mix, that's parasitic on grass and would weaken it, once it gets established.
  

  Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  

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• fidgetbones Posts: 17,618

  February 2022

  If you want to do that I would mow it as short as you can then add plugs of wild flowers in a suitable matrix.  I've tried growing seeds on top of grass. waste of seed.
  

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• rocks93979 Posts: 1

  2 March

  I appreciate this is an old thread but have been wondering to do the same in an area of a garden I won't have the time to wait for the grass to die off before planting. My plan is to cover the area with
  a thick (5 or 6 layers) layer of cardboard
  a thin layer of top soil
  a layer of sand and
  either sow the wildflower seeds directly on top or a wildflower seed membrane
  
  The sand is for anchorage and oxygen and the thin layer of topsoil should help the wildflower seeds to establish whilst the weeds/grass is smothered underneath by the cardboard. Could it work? Thanks everyone

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• Slow-worm Posts: 1,630

  2 March

  I think that would work. I've never tried the cardboard/seed method (I'm pretty crap at seeds whichever way I do them) but you could also pin the corners of the cardboard if necessary too.

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• MenaintheGarden Posts: 31

  2 March

  I’ve not done it with lawn but I’ve used this ‘no dig’ method successfully for creating a new boarder filled with flowers. 

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• Fire Posts: 19,096

  3 March

  @rocks93979 How big is the area of wildlflower area you are want to plant?
  

  
  

  Some of the common problems with planting wildflower areas are 1) grass ingress and 2) rich soil. It might be an idea to take off as much of the grass and top soil as you can, reducing the richness. Try and keep the grass edges away from your wildflower area if you can as grasses will always win out in the end.
  

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