Scarification advice

Matty_P · 4 February

Hi all, I'd like to remove most of the moss from our lawns and have a few questions.
-Lawn area-64m2 & 36m2 (pic of one lawn attached)

-Use moss killer or not?
-Spring tined rake ok for this area?
-Overseeding, always advisable?
-Spread by hand? Or merit in buying a spreader?

Thanks for any advice

Perki · 4 February

Moss killer is up to you . A lot depends on how deep the moss is how effective moss killer works . It can be easier to rake as well using moss killer it dry it out, but not make much difference if you have a heavy infestation of moss.

Spring tine is fine if you are fit enough , you'll find out fast how hard it can be . Powered machine is far easier .

Over seeding will speed up the recovery / appearance of the lawn , I'd personally over seed the entire lawn but you can just do bad patches .

Hand or spreader most people but to much seed down using either, 35g per square metre for over seeding if I remember correctly .

JennyJ · 4 February

Moss killer if you want to. There's a school of thought that says if you rake out moss before killing it'll spread the spores about, but I don't know whether there's any truth in it. I never bother with moss killer.

A spring-tined rake is fine if you're up for the vigorous exercise! I use a small domestic-type electric rake for mine, probably similar total area, but I'm a bit on the puny side.

Overseeding - yes if there's a lot of bare soil showing when you're done with the moss, but I think it's still a bit early for good germination. Maybe give it another month or so unless you live somewhere very mild. Ideally you want temperatures consistently above about 8-10 degrees C and regular rain so you don't need to water it.

Seeding by hand isn't difficult, you just need to take it steady - spread less to begin with, you can always go back over it with the rest but you don't want to run out before you get to the end. Dividing the seed for an area in half and broadcasting one lot in one direction and one lot in the other is supposed to make it more even but that's something else I never bothered with.

rossdriscoll13 · 4 February

@Matty_P 1. Scarify the lawn first using a scarifier, electric/cordless your choice. You won’t remove all the moss.

2. Apply a moss killer, ferrous/iron sulphate, after scarifying to any remaining moss which should be thin enough to allow better penetration of the moss killer.

If using ferrous/iron sulphate use a liquid form and not a granular one as granular takes longer to break down. Always avoid those 4in1 lawn weed, feed and moss killers. Also be careful when using ferrous/iron sulphate as it can stain hard surfaces.

Moss usually produces spores around April. In the south it will be early, in Scotland late and in the midlands the middle of the month as a general rule although never guaranteed. So treating the moss before it spores is a good idea.

After treating your lawn with the ferrous/iron sulphate wait several weeks before overseeding.

Matty_P · 4 February

Hi both, thanks for the comments. I might look at getting a push mechanical scarifier as that might strike a balance between storage space, cost, energy input..,

For grass seed I see they tell you how far a bag will go, so 5kg says 140m2, 5000g/140=35g/m2 as Perki mentioned. I assume though you wouldn't do it to this accuracy. I guess I would work out the weight I needed per lawn based on the area then figure out a way to evenly spread it?

Do you feed the lawn post seeding or does it manage ok without? I wonder if online articles give you bells and whistles and not all steps are required. Especially if they're trying to sell you something.

Perki · 4 February

I do it the same way as Ross has mentioned you get more of the moss out this way.

After scarifying it be worth it just giving the lawn a fork over just stab the garden fork in give it a gentle pull downwards to make a fissure and repeat, it may help future problems with moss or they might not be as much. Overseed and top dress after this if you wish .

Over seeding feed isn't necessary but I like to top dress at the same time which will give the lawn a little boost with the nutrients in the top dressing . Top dressing is very expensive in my opinion for what it is , some people just use multipurpose compost I've used just top soil ( sterilised ) sometimes but I tend to mix 1 part top soil - 1 part compost - 1 part sharp sand this is ideal for the conditions I have in my garden , it can be amended for lawns with more clay in or sandy soil by adding more sand or compost you get the jist . As long as the seed has good contact with ground it should germinate whether its been top dressed / feed or what ever.

Just do 1m2 that gives you a idea of how much seed to use , you can always add a little bit more in a few weeks time .

Matty_P · 4 February

Thank you all, will take that on board. Looks like I have some bits to order.

rossdriscoll13 · 4 February

@Matty_P I would advise against spreading the grass seed by hand unless you know what you are doing. Instead use a rotary spreader. You can buy rotary hand spreaders from garden centres or Amazon. The way you work out how much seed you need is by multiplying 35g by the area of your lawn. So 35g x 64m2 and 35g x 36m2. Before overseeding mow your lawns to between 20mm - 25mm in height, your lowest mower setting.
After sowing I spray liquid seaweed over the whole lawn, including the newly sown seed, however you don’t have to. I just find it helps the seed to germinate better. Remember you will need to water any new grass seed you sow, unless it rains. Always water in the morning, before mid day, or late afternoon.
Before overseeding I would also aerate your lawns. You can use a garden fork however hollow tine aeration is better as this removes plugs of soil. You can buy hollow tine aerators from amazon but be careful they’re not all up to the job. I use this one...

Matty_P · 4 February

Thanks Ross, I'm sure you're right on the tools. Will have to check the budget, some of them are quite specific for the task and not sure I'd use them after this or for anything else.

bédé · 5 February

Attack the basic cause. Usually too wet.

I use Iron Sulphate (FeSO4), 6 tablespoons dissolved in a 1.5gln watering can, applied thinly but uniformly. Only the moss goes black, but soon rots - you'd be surprised by how much grass is there.

Spores are already there - everywhere!

Scarification advice

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