Killing lawn to start over?

Funky_Bold_Ribena

We had a very big lawn with the same issue, at a community garden that we have recently taken over.

It's about 50ft diameter.

We deturfed it, piled the turf upside down in a ring around it, and have just reseeded it. The turf has potatoes in some of it and wild flowers in the rest. Once it's rotted down we will use it for potting plants in.

Linda32

Naf wrote: »

You from Carlisle & thinking of Bitts park perchance?

No, Abbey Park in Leicester Grass is clearly hard to kill up and down the country.

Leif

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Leif, are you using the Roseate (sp) product?

What dilution ratio have you settled on, I seem to have lost the very detailed instructions from mine.

Yes, Rosate 36 from ebay, about £13 per litre including P&P, very reasonable. I used ¬60ml in 3L applied with a sprayer. It is 360g glyphosate in 1L, so 60ml is 60*360/1000 ~ 21g, and in 3L that gives 7g/L which is the standard dilution in hand sprayers. You can find the instructions online:

http://media.pitchcare.com/O/jfOn6L0yFp.pdf

It took 1 week to show the first signs of dying, and 2 weeks for all plants to show signs of distress e.g. white at the centre of plantains.

The only problem I have is what to do where the grass meets a hedge, as the base of the hedge fills with weeds such as creeping buttercup and a. I might sow wildflowers to outcompete weeds.

Naf

Hedges probably won't be an issue where grass in concerned; they seem to suck so much moisture from the soil that grass doesn't grow within 6" of them...

Sounds like a good way to solve it. Will one application do the trick?
Any suggestions on good grass (type and/or brand) is good and hardy for a nice lawn the kids can play on?

Leif

I applied one application of glyphosate and I think after 4 weeks it will all be dead. There may be spots I missed, or which are hardier. I cannot advise on grass. There are many brands, I used Johnsons in one area, and it looks good. They are a reputable company, so the seed should be okay. Most companies do different grass mixes, such as shady, general, tough and luxury. Tough is tough, but not fast growing, or shade tolerant. Shady is not tough, or fast growing, and so on. So I suppose you want one called 'tough'. You can always sow a different kind in shady corners where the kids don't play. I will sow shady in the front and side, and general in the back garden. None of this poncy luxury stuff for me.

I have noticed that the lawn I sowed last autumn now has a lot of weeds, especially creeping buttercup, so I have watered with a weedkiller. I now avoid weed and feed, as it encourages too much growth, and lawn mowing is not my full time job.

wallbash

I have noticed that the lawn I sowed last autumn now has a lot of weeds,

The advantage of good turfs, have removed only two weeds in my lawn which was layed this time last year.

cyclonebri1

Leif wrote: »

Yes, Rosate 36 from ebay, about £13 per litre including P&P, very reasonable. I used ¬60ml in 3L applied with a sprayer. It is 360g glyphosate in 1L, so 60ml is 60*360/1000 ~ 21g, and in 3L that gives 7g/L which is the standard dilution in hand sprayers. You can find the instructions online:

http://media.pitchcare.com/O/jfOn6L0yFp.pdf

It took 1 week to show the first signs of dying, and 2 weeks for all plants to show signs of distress e.g. white at the centre of plantains.

The only problem I have is what to do where the grass meets a hedge, as the base of the hedge fills with weeds such as creeping buttercup and a. I might sow wildflowers to outcompete weeds.

Yes, it was me who put you on to it if you recall :rotfl:, the instructions are complicated on the bottle as it is primarily a trade product.

Incidentaly, I use it in a watering can for just the purpose of killing weeds, nettles and couch etc under my privet hedges, does no harm to the hedge and doesn't leach into the lawn when used in the correct dilution. Not killed mine afte 17 years and I've used the proper stuff for the last several years;);)

I messed around with the dilution last year to find the most economicVeffective dose.
25ml in a 5 ltre water can works for me, and is still about 2 1/2 x as strong as the garden centre stuff.

Incidentally I find a sprayer too indiscriminate for such a strong product, paint brush in super strength mix for me for target weeds, or as above for all else ;)

Naf

Is this basically the same stuff as on eBay for £13-odd including delivery (if you search glyphosate)?

http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=110&storeId=10151&partNumber=719061&stop_mobi=yes

Leif

Naf wrote: »

Is this basically the same stuff as on eBay for £13-odd including delivery (if you search glyphosate)?

http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=110&storeId=10151&partNumber=719061&stop_mobi=yes

No, that has 96g/L glyphosate compared with 360g/L in the other one, so it is roughly 1/4 strength, for more money.

Leif

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Yes, it was me who put you on to it if you recall :rotfl:, the instructions are complicated on the bottle as it is primarily a trade product.

Incidentaly, I use it in a watering can for just the purpose of killing weeds, nettles and couch etc under my privet hedges, does no harm to the hedge and doesn't leach into the lawn when used in the correct dilution. Not killed mine afte 17 years and I've used the proper stuff for the last several years;);)

I messed around with the dilution last year to find the most economicVeffective dose.
25ml in a 5 ltre water can works for me, and is still about 2 1/2 x as strong as the garden centre stuff.

Incidentally I find a sprayer too indiscriminate for such a strong product, paint brush in super strength mix for me for target weeds, or as above for all else ;)

25ml in 5 litres is 50ml in 10 litres, giving 50/10000 x 360g/L = 5*360/1000 = 180/100 = 1.8g/L. The ready mixed spray I bought a few years ago had 7g/L. Roundup ready mixed spray has 15g/L. So 'such a strong product' is actually not that strong when diluted your way. The effectiveness varies with season and plant. Some such as bramble just sneeze, and carry on growing when it is applied. My grass took 3 weeks to die.

http://www.roundup.com.au/pdf/AUS_RU_RTU_1L%20FA.pdf

A watering can is a wasteful way to apply the product as most will end up as run off in the soil. A proper sprayer allows accurate spraying on a weed by weed basis, or more widely. Don't bother with the handheld sprayers with an integral nozzle, you need one with a spray wand. I was able to spray the lawn without hurting any plants in the beds, apart from a Digitalis which was at the very edge. Obviously do not apply on a windy day.

For bindweed some people mix it with wallpaper paste, and then paint it on. My late mother used it that way. I found that it did not kill field bindweed, probably because the root system was far too well established. I must have pulled out many tens of metres of thick storage root, and there is more down there.