Much as I admire the effort and results the lawn obsessed put in and achieve, lawns are 'green concrete' and of no use to wildlife. I like the clover flowers and the bees they attract. As long as it survives being cut and is mostly green then it is OK for me!
Just wish those weeds which I don't mind in the grass paths (refuse to claim them as lawns) would stay in the grass and not migrate to the borders where they choke out things I want to grow. They even have the nerve to grow in the Veg patches! Cheeky things.
The one weed in the grass which I do prefer not to have though is a flat growing thistle. The mower just goes over the top of it and barefoot walking is a bit painful to say the least. It has spines which are almost invisible so if you pull the plant up, even with gloves on, they go into your fingers, disappear and then turn septic later on.
I also tend to kill off the Ragwort which, despite there being none in the hedgerows or fields round us, seems to re=appear each year.
Northernlass - thanks for the link. It looks like I may need to dig it all out - there goes the lawn!!!!!!
I don't mind the clover but this stuff makes the lawn look awful, especially when you can see the brown tinge from the flowers.
Rhinus - what was the name of the fertilizer? I may give that a go. Mind you, there is not much grass left to fertilize.
Paulk2 - the grass just looks longer in the photo. Both photos were taken at the same time. I mow it once a week. I did rake the patches of weed before mowing but it didn't help. And, yes, the lawn could do with scarifying - sorry!
It occurs to me that those people who want a bowling green lawn are a bit like the growers(not gardeners) who try to grow the biggest vegetable. It seems to me that they want ultimate control over nature whereas gardeners seem to be more open to a bit of give and take and serendipity.
My lawn has much more moss, prunella, creeping buttercup and bindweed in it than grass and it mostly looks awful. I'm planning to get it scarified etc this autumn to see what happens. I don't want a bowling green but I would like it to look a bit less scruffy and the surrounding fields and hedgerows are full of wildflowers so I don't feel at all guilty. Each to his own
It's artificial fertilizer used by farmers. My lawn was covered with different kind of weeds and there was a big yellow part. The weed is gone and the yellow part is green again. Most weeds don't like nitrogen, especially clover don't survive.. It's a combination of nitrogen, magnesium and phosphor. The magnesium gives the grass a full green colour. If you have moss in your lawn you can sprinkle chalk.
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Much as I admire the effort and results the lawn obsessed put in and achieve, lawns are 'green concrete' and of no use to wildlife. I like the clover flowers and the bees they attract. As long as it survives being cut and is mostly green then it is OK for me!
I once counted 15 plant species within a square metre on my 'lawn'.
In the sticks near Peterborough
Just wish those weeds which I don't mind in the grass paths (refuse to claim them as lawns) would stay in the grass and not migrate to the borders where they choke out things I want to grow. They even have the nerve to grow in the Veg patches! Cheeky things.
The one weed in the grass which I do prefer not to have though is a flat growing thistle. The mower just goes over the top of it and barefoot walking is a bit painful to say the least. It has spines which are almost invisible so if you pull the plant up, even with gloves on, they go into your fingers, disappear and then turn septic later on.
I also tend to kill off the Ragwort which, despite there being none in the hedgerows or fields round us, seems to re=appear each year.
Northernlass - thanks for the link. It looks like I may need to dig it all out - there goes the lawn!!!!!!
I don't mind the clover but this stuff makes the lawn look awful, especially when you can see the brown tinge from the flowers.
Rhinus - what was the name of the fertilizer? I may give that a go. Mind you, there is not much grass left to fertilize.
Paulk2 - the grass just looks longer in the photo. Both photos were taken at the same time. I mow it once a week. I did rake the patches of weed before mowing but it didn't help. And, yes, the lawn could do with scarifying - sorry!
Yarrow makes a good green cover jo
You might need some yellow rattle to make the grass a bit less grassy
In the sticks near Peterborough
I don't get many yarrow flowers, it seems to grow best where it gets mowed.
I was going to PM you jo but couldn't. PM me your address if you want some yellow rattle seeds
In the sticks near Peterborough
My lawn has much more moss, prunella, creeping buttercup and bindweed in it than grass and it mostly looks awful. I'm planning to get it scarified etc this autumn to see what happens. I don't want a bowling green but I would like it to look a bit less scruffy and the surrounding fields and hedgerows are full of wildflowers so I don't feel at all guilty. Each to his own
It's artificial fertilizer used by farmers. My lawn was covered with different kind of weeds and there was a big yellow part. The weed is gone and the yellow part is green again. Most weeds don't like nitrogen, especially clover don't survive.. It's a combination of nitrogen, magnesium and phosphor. The magnesium gives the grass a full green colour. If you have moss in your lawn you can sprinkle chalk.