REVscene - Vancouver Automotive Forum

3klipze · 04-30-2012, 10:01 PM

Thought this would fit in this section.

After spray some weedkillers all over my lawn, basically a good 90% of my lawn is dead grass and still weeds that have not been fully killed.

I am currently shoveling and turning the soil a bit day by day ( really labour intensive). Basically i'm pulling out the old grass and weeds and then adding fresh soil to the lawn + seeding the lawn with new grass seeds. But there are a few questions ( I have googled, but there is a lot of mixed answers)

1) Should i just rent a tiller machine? IF so, does anyone here know a company + rates? ( This is due to the fact that the old grass is really hard to take out with a shovel)
2) Do i really need fertilizer? I have bought couple bags of "enriched" lawn soil ( The Home Depot lady said it was fine for growing grass in normal conditions )
3) Where do i throw the soil + weed + dead grass mixture. Apprently the garbage bin with the green lid can only take grass and grass only.

Thanks. I might have more questions as i go.

blkgsr · 05-01-2012, 12:14 PM

- power rake
- airator
- seed
- fertilizer

Berzerker · 05-01-2012, 12:25 PM

OR if you really want all of the old stuff gone go get a sod cutter. Then if you have a truck go get a few yards of 50/50 soil and spread it over the lawn.

If your going to power rake it (all that's really needed to remove dead lawn) then you can also aerate it after. Again get some 50/50 soil and using a shovel just throw it all over the lawn. Manually rake it so it's even. Get a fertilizer machine and fill it with seed and then overseed the lawn. Or use handfuls just be sure to get even coverage.

If you really want to start from scratch I highly recommend just getting a sod cutter and removing the whole lawn and starting over. Also if your going to remove the whole lawn with a sod cutter you might as well just order up new turf to roll out. I guess it depends on your budget and your patience also your abilities.

If your going to remove a lot of material you can get a bin dropped off to throw all the old turf into. I have no idea how big your yard is so that might be overkill and you might just need to call a junk removal company to come with a truck and take it to the dump.

Berz out.

GLOW · 05-01-2012, 02:16 PM

Is there such a thing as a low maintenance lawn? i.e. the type of grass/soil in your yard? i swear everyone's lawn on my block looks awesome except mine, but the amount of time they put in to it ... they're all retired so i guess they have the time

melloman · 05-01-2012, 02:50 PM

Getting a perfect lawn is tedious.. especially with all the crap that blows in the air. Weeds can come from anywhere (seeds blow into your lawn, birds bring them, etc.)

I don't think there is a "low maintenance lawn."

PS. blkgsr got it 100%.

3klipze · 05-01-2012, 04:26 PM

Thanks for all the diligent replies.

Basically my budget is trying to aim for low as possible(do not mind the minimal manual labor). I have time once in a while to maintenance the lawn, but in order for it, i need to regrow back my damn dead weed infested lawn.

Only problem I'm encountering is throwing out the old sod. AND cutting up the old sod. Using a shovel is pretty bad manual labor. IF anyone here has a suggestion for a rental company for Sod cutter/power rake machine, suggestions appreciated. (even ones where i can hire a guy to remove all the old sod)

I already have bought seeds + soil
And heard that seeds is way cheaper than buying + rolling new sod on top of the soil. So i might just stick with seeding and watering.

edit: so is the "enriched" soil considered good enough to be my fertilizer?

bluejays · 05-01-2012, 05:29 PM

Could probably do this as a weekend job if you're interested (power rake, aerate if needed, top dress and seed) send me a pic of your lawn through pm if you're interested

edit: I work for a landscaping company

subordinate · 05-01-2012, 05:52 PM

Rent all the equipment yourself or browse on Craigslist for any cheap rentals.

Home Depot is typically the place to go to rent the machines - hope you have a truck or friend with one.
Any pictures of the lawn? Just curiosity.

Note: If you are redoing the lawn completely, removing the old sod - then no need for an aerator and dethatch (power-raking) at the moment.
1. Just removal the old sod
2. Maybe get a Roto Tiller to soften up the old dirt
3. Get some Top Soil and spread over it with the rake (Even it out)
4. Overseed and fertilize/lime
5. Water - and watch it grow.

Edit: you asked if enriched soil is fine - I'll tell you this, why spend over 150 dollars and hours to cheap out on 40 dollars worth of fertlizer/lime? It makes no sense lol, since you want to maximize the grass growth and health.

And you should start on this project soon, Spring is the optimal time to start.

3klipze · 05-01-2012, 10:11 PM

Will take a quick picture of the lawn in the morning and PM Those who are interested in giving some insight.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

subordinate · 05-01-2012, 11:12 PM

If your lawn is big, might as well include sprinklers? If you are going to remove the old sod.

Renthal · 05-01-2012, 11:20 PM

my 2 cents, but there are lots of good pointers already mentioned and I dont know how big your yard is...

rip out the old weed infested stuff
install irrigation ( to make life easy )
put down a good base of topsoil.. a couple of inches
seed it
throw down some 18-18-18 starter fert
sprinkle a little bit of peat moss to help hold the moisture in the new seeding grass
set sprinklers to a run time of 10 mins in the morning, noon, and night
germination!

3klipze · 05-02-2012, 05:46 PM

I would estimate my lawn to be no more than 8-10 square meters total?

I have seeded and watered the side i have finished removing the sod to test my procedure works. Will start working on the other side and the lawn on the other side of the fence soon enough.

bluejays · 05-02-2012, 05:51 PM

Looks like enough seed, make sure you rake it in nice and smooth

3klipze · 05-02-2012, 06:07 PM

yup. i raked it nice and even and watered it till it the soil was all moist.

Heading out this weekend for some top soil + some fertilizer. (top soil is on sale this weekend)

Domani · 05-19-2012, 10:38 PM

Hi guys,

Is it too late too dethach and reseed again being its end of may and it's getting hot soon.

Thanks.

subordinate · 05-20-2012, 01:24 AM

Definitely not too late. Just not optimal, but not late. - Just keep the soil hydrated and fertilized, so the seed doesn't dry out.

Verdasco · 05-20-2012, 07:06 PM

question, sort of the opposite but how do i stop grass from growing and weed growing from my side of the house? *side of the house is filled with white small rocks bedded on a black garbage bag layer.

elwell · 05-20-2012, 07:24 PM

What I did last summer was dig up my entire lawn and rolled in fresh new grass. Easy way for quick green grass

Domani · 05-21-2012, 08:40 AM

thinking about a honda mini tiller with dethatcher attachment for next season, any thoughts on those? thanks.

True.True · 05-21-2012, 05:13 PM

just rent the dethatcher every year from rona. doesnt take long to do. just dethatch the lawn and then take the machine back and rake it when u come back because it will be easier to rake when it dries out a bit.

!SG · 05-21-2012, 06:33 PM

to add, also look into removing whatever moss may have grown on ur lawn. if you dont, it may make adding grass seed unless.

remove moss
aerate
fertilze (do not take a dump on ur lawn, or get ur dog to, though my back lawn looks freakin awesome and thats where the dog shits and piss's all over the place...)
seed

dont remember if thats what the guy at the garden works place said to me in that order, but cant hurt.

BigBad · 09-17-2012, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Renthal

my 2 cents, but there are lots of good pointers already mentioned and I dont know how big your yard is...

rip out the old weed infested stuff
install irrigation ( to make life easy )
put down a good base of topsoil.. a couple of inches
seed it
throw down some 18-18-18 starter fert
sprinkle a little bit of peat moss to help hold the moisture in the new seeding grass
set sprinklers to a run time of 10 mins in the morning, noon, and night
germination!

completely agree!

I installed irrigation system on my lawn and it was the best thing ever, simply set a timer for the sprinklers.

This summer my lawn was a bit on the golden brown side, I simply just threw a ton of fertizler on it (Scotts) and watered it like crazy and now its a nice rich green!