Regenerating Grass

mikecb · Hazel Tree Joined: 19 Aug 2008 Posts: 1

I have a very large area of lawn - over an acre in a limestone area - which I have just had cleared of briars and ferns. Five years ago it was rich green grass but I let it go wild due to illness and now with the briars and ferns cut it is very bare. Does anyone know if the grass will grow back naturally over time, say a few years - I'm too old to re-seed it - and what fertilizer will help this. Is fertilizer high in Phosphorous and Potassium such as 7/6/17 or 0/7/30 a good type to use for this.
Many thanks,
Mikecb

janelee · Hazel Tree Joined: 24 Jul 2008 Posts: 25

Surely the grass that will come back will be scrubby wild old grass. The lawn will be more like a cut meadow I would say. The briars and ferns will recover too unless you cut it regularly or spray them now. I suppose it all depends on what you want your finised lawn to look like agricultural grass versus lawn grass.

verge · Posted: Tue Aug 19, 2008 3:26 pm Post subject:

It will be possible to bring it back fairly well alright, not putting green finish or anything like it though Razz

. 18/6/12 would be a better fertiliser for grass. Have a look at the piece below taken from here Rough grass to lawn.

Lawn Renovation
If you have inherited a lawn in very poor condition with large worn areas, infestation of perennial weeds, and largely the coarser long-stemmed wiry grasses then perhaps the answer is to remove the top, cultivate the soil, prepare a new seed bed (or base for turf) and start afresh.
There are though few areas of grass that cannot be renovated into a lush green area, be it for playing on, relaxing on, or as a background to the plants in your borders. Of course if you have your heart set on a very lush green sward consisting solely of the finest blades you not only need to start from scratch but you are looking forward to a rigorous maintenance programme as described above. For most of us a general purpose lawn with an attractive carpet of grass that acts as a perfect foil for flowering plants as well as somewhere to relax and play is what we are after.
This type of lawn can even be created from almost any starting point so whatever grass you have inherited could be turned into a reasonably attractive lawn with a little effort - and by that I mean much less effort than creating an entirely new lawn from scratch!

Creating a lawn from a patch of rough grass
The first step to renovating a patch of rough grass into a lawn starts with mowing.
Assuming the surface of the lawn is also rough, this is best done with a rotary type of mower that will also cope with couch grass. Do not try to cut the grass short in a single cut but instead try not to reduce the height of the grass by more than a third of its height at one cut. Long grass is usually best cut without a collecting box but do remember to rake up the mown grass. Once you are able to cut the grass shorter you may discover bumps and hollows indicated by patches of scalped lawn and longer grass. The worst of these can be dealt with by cutting with a spade or half-moon edging iron across the centre of the peak or hollow. Cut either side of the bump or hollow at right angles to this centre cut and to both side of the first cut so you can slide the spade under the turf in order to roll it back like a piece of carpet on either side of the bump or depression. Now you can either remove soil or add soil as required to level the area before gently tamping the turf back into place. Larger depressions can be treated by vigorously raking before sprinkling a sifted layer of soil or soil/compost to fill the depression before sowing seed. Once you are able regularly to mow the grass reasonably closely you will also find that many of the weeds disappear. The very best way to get rid of troublesome perennial weeds is with a weeding tool made for the purpose that you slide under the roots of e.g. buttercups or dandelions so you can prise them out; the small gap will soon disappear.
If you insist on a lawn without anything other than grass growing in it then you may need to use a selective weed and/or moss treatment but remember moss is usually a sign of other problems and it is best to deal with the causes of moss first .

JennyS has some words of encouragement at the bottom of this post too How to turn a field into a lawn
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Q. What is the best soil for growing plants?
A. Your soil.