Lawns demand a touch more care now that the UK has steered into autumn, presenting ideal conditions for weeds and moss to flourish.
Gardening whiz Kate Turner from Love The Garden highlighted that while we commonly grumble about weeds, moss actually flags up issues with lawn health, pointing to things such as poor drainage or perhaps too much shade, not enough fertiliser, cutting the grass too short or even lots of people walking over it.
She said: “Moss in lawns is a sign that there is an underlying problem with the lawn. This can be caused by any of several factors, including poor drainage, shade, lack of fertiliser, [the] grass [being] cut too short or heavy foot traffic.”
The good news is you can beat both weeds and moss and stop the latter settling in again simply by giving your lawn a good scarifying session.
Scarifying is essentially a process that rids your lawn of thatch, which is basically a mix-up of organic materials like dead grass, plant roots, and leaves, that build up over time between the soil and the grass on your lawn.
This layer of thatch can be quite the menace it stops water, air, and nutrients getting down into the soil, causing all sorts of grief for your green space.
Consider it the root of diverse lawn woes, from poor drainage and stunted root growth to compacted soil, unsightly patchy grass, and a higher chance of pests, not to mention weeds and moss setting up shop on your lawn.
Scarifying a lawn is a straightforward task where one simply has to rake over the turf in spring, removing superfluous thatch alongside potential weeds.
On the matter, Kate said: “If the moss problem is mild, it may be possible to get on top of it by simply scarifying and then improving the overall health of the lawn with regular lawn care to stop the moss coming back.”
Additionally, she instructed: “Always mow before scarifying and try not to be too vigorous in spring, only scarify until you can see soil underneath.”
However, Kate underscored the importance of adopting a comprehensive approach to tackling moss, which often includes a combination of scarifying, diligent lawn maintenance, and the application of moss-killer solutions.
She remarked: “Scarifying moss before treatment is a good idea as if there is a really thick problem then the treatment doesn’t always get to work to the underneath sections so loosening it and thinning it will help the treatment get to work.”
Kate recommended choosing an organic moss killer for its environmental benefits and for easing the treatment procedure.
Elaborating on this, she stated: “An advantage of organic moss killers is that since the bacteria effectively ‘digest’ the moss in situ it doesn’t go black and needs no raking out.”
She pointed out that for the best outcomes, one should apply organic moss killers during the warmer months, particularly from late spring to early autumn, when temperatures are consistently above 15C.
Kate summarised: “Moss and weeds in lawns don’t need to be a problem. With a little care and attention, you can turn a mossy lawn into beautiful green turf to be proud of.”