In article , Bazza
writes
I'm not after a bowling green but
I'm not really hijacking your query Barry but I also have a serious prob
with moss. On checking prices of lawn sand and other proprietary moss
killers I realised it'll cost me an arm and a leg as I have roughly 50mx
70m of grass to treat. I seem to remember from the ice age in Mr
Hessayons book " how to be a lawn expert" that sulphate of iron was
effective. True?? Does anyone know what dosage of it I should use in a
lawn spreader? Should I mix in some nitrogen fertiliser to give the
grass a boost? Could I mix in some coarse sand to create my own lawn
sand? TIA
(I have been here before but it's been a while since I posted. I see
the levels of personal abuse are still well up to the old standard)
--
john fraser

In article ,
john fraser wrote:
In article , Bazza
writes
I'm not after a bowling green but
I'm not really hijacking your query Barry but I also have a serious prob
with moss. On checking prices of lawn sand and other proprietary moss
killers I realised it'll cost me an arm and a leg as I have roughly 50mx
70m of grass to treat. I seem to remember from the ice age in Mr
Hessayons book " how to be a lawn expert" that sulphate of iron was
effective. True?? Does anyone know what dosage of it I should use in a
lawn spreader? Should I mix in some nitrogen fertiliser to give the
grass a boost? Could I mix in some coarse sand to create my own lawn
sand? TIA

Frankly, is it worth the bother? That probably means poor drainage,
and killing the moss will merely lead to bare patches. Learning to
love your moss is less hassle.

The only real solution to a lawn moss problem is to rebuild the lawn
from scratch and improve the drainage.

(I have been here before but it's been a while since I posted. I see
the levels of personal abuse are still well up to the old standard)

It was a lot better for a long while, but there has been a troll hatch.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren,
University of Cambridge Computing Service,
New Museums Site, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QH, England.
Email:
Tel.: +44 1223 334761 Fax: +44 1223 334679

On Sat, 22 Mar 2003 19:47:46 +0000, john fraser
wrote:

In article , Bazza
writes
I'm not after a bowling green but
I'm not really hijacking your query Barry but I also have a serious prob
with moss. On checking prices of lawn sand and other proprietary moss
killers I realised it'll cost me an arm and a leg as I have roughly 50mx
70m of grass to treat. I seem to remember from the ice age in Mr
Hessayons book " how to be a lawn expert" that sulphate of iron was
effective. True?? Does anyone know what dosage of it I should use in a
lawn spreader? Should I mix in some nitrogen fertiliser to give the
grass a boost? Could I mix in some coarse sand to create my own lawn
sand? TIA
(I have been here before but it's been a while since I posted. I see
the levels of personal abuse are still well up to the old standard)
The real problem with your lawn is drainage. Short of re-building the
lawn have you tried slotting and tining. You can hire the machine to
do it, it's effective and it will definately improve your lawn's
appearance. The other thing to do is to de-thatch it. You can hire a
scarifier as well, and the two operations will rejuvenate your lawn
dramatically.
-
Peter James
Change AT to @ to reply

The real problem with your lawn is drainage.
The poor drainage extends to the fields around as well. From late Oct
onwards I stay off the lawn it squeches so much.

lawn have you tried slotting and tining.
I've never heard of this. I've considered the usual thing of sticking a
fork into the turf and wiggling it about but the scale of the work that
way wouldn't leave time for life.
You can hire the machine to
do it, it's effective and it will definately improve your lawn's
appearance. Cost? Roughly?
s Thanks again. Usually one finds reasonable advice on the URG and I
confess I'm tempted by Nick Maclaren's solution.
--
john fraser

"john fraser" wrote in message
...
In article , Bazza
writes
I'm not after a bowling green but
I'm not really hijacking your query Barry but I also have a serious prob
with moss. On checking prices of lawn sand and other proprietary moss
killers I realised it'll cost me an arm and a leg as I have roughly 50mx
70m of grass to treat. I seem to remember from the ice age in Mr
Hessayons book " how to be a lawn expert" that sulphate of iron was
effective. True?? Does anyone know what dosage of it I should use in a
lawn spreader? Should I mix in some nitrogen fertiliser to give the
grass a boost? Could I mix in some coarse sand to create my own lawn
sand? TIA

I wouldn't worry about the moss, the great advantage of moss is
that it doesn't require cutting, you can have a green patch all year
round with no work!

Alan
--
Reply to alan(at)windsor-berks(dot)freeserve(dot)co(dot)uk

On Sun, 23 Mar 2003 13:16:26 +0000, john fraser
wrote:



You can hire the machine to
do it, it's effective and it will definately improve your lawn's
appearance. Cost? Roughly?
s Thanks again. Usually one finds reasonable advice on the URG and I
confess I'm tempted by Nick Maclaren's solution.
I was a member of a bowling club that had no money and very little
equipment. We needed to slot and tine our green and later in the year
to scarify it as well. We hired the necessary machine from the local
golf club who were delighted to do the job for us. The cost I seem to
remember at about £40 for hollow spiking and tining. It took about
three hours on a full sized bowling green of 42 yards x 42 yards.
That left us to top dress with lawn dressing with a small amount of
grass seed mixed in with the dressing. The results were very good,
and worth the money. We managed to buy a scarifier later in the year
and the amount of dead moss and grass that maching pulled out was
staggering. We were burning that for what seemed days. Very
effective, and with small quantities of moss dressing solved our
problem. But you have to hollow spike one year in three and solid
spike the other two years. It might be worth considering if your lawn
is that sort of size, and if you are concerned about moss and general
degradation.
-
Peter James
Change AT to @ to reply