I have an old cracked tennis court in my backyard. Came with the
house. I would love to turn it into a lawn, but I'm concerned it'll
turn into a huge pile of mud. Any ideas on how to turn a tennis court
into a low maintenance garden?

Is is a dirt floor or blacktop or cement. Dirt could be tilled and amended
nicely. The other surfaces need elbow grease then the amending and tilling.

--
"God has a plan for me. I don't know what that is, and I'm
not leaving until I find out."



BetsyB



wrote in message
oups.com...
I have an old cracked tennis court in my backyard. Came with the
house. I would love to turn it into a lawn, but I'm concerned it'll
turn into a huge pile of mud. Any ideas on how to turn a tennis court
into a low maintenance garden?

On May 9, 3:42 am, wrote:
I have an old cracked tennis court in my backyard. Came with the
house. I would love to turn it into a lawn, but I'm concerned it'll
turn into a huge pile of mud. Any ideas on how to turn a tennis court
into a low maintenance garden?

Start by digging a hole in it to see what is underneath. You don't
want to be incorporating a whole lot of rock, builder's rubbish or
other mess into your garden.

I would rip up and remove whatever it is made of unless it is grass.
Even if it is just clay it will be inches thick and very compacted due
to repeated rollings. Pure clay makes very poor garden soil which
will require much ammendment to be any good even if you loosen it up.
Easier to get rid of it. The aim with a tennin court (except grass) is
for plants to NOT grow on it. When you see what is underneath you can
decide on how to proceed then.

If it is grass then it will need to be ripped or plowed in some way as
although grass grows there the soil is still quite compacted.

Doing this by hand would be murderously hard work even if you are
young and fit. A tiller or cultivator is also unlikely to get through
it, some heavy equipment will be required. Around here you would get
a neighbour with a tractor and start with a single-point deep ripper
and then change it for a plow. A bobcat or some other digger would be
needed to remove material if that is required.

After you have got to something that resembles soil you will need to
add compost/mulch/manure etc in fairly large amounts to improve the
texture and fertilty. A tiller would be OK to turn this in or just
run the plow over it again.

David

g'day,

use raised beds, i'd suggest it won't matter a heap whether you have
concrete or packed earth.

see our site for ideas



On 8 May 2007 10:42:31 -0700, wrote:

I have an old cracked tennis court in my backyard. Came with the
house. I would love to turn it into a lawn, but I'm concerned it'll
turn into a huge pile of mud. Any ideas on how to turn a tennis court
into a low maintenance garden?
With peace and brightest of blessings,

len & bev

--
"Be Content With What You Have And
May You Find Serenity and Tranquillity In
A World That You May Not Understand."

http://www.lensgarden.com.au/

On May 8, 1:42 pm, wrote:
I have an old cracked tennis court in my backyard. Came with the
house. I would love to turn it into a lawn, but I'm concerned it'll
turn into a huge pile of mud. Any ideas on how to turn a tennis court
into a low maintenance garden?

Read the article about raised gardens on pavement and roof tops at
www.raised-garden-bed.com
Johhnny