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Bare Land, now what?
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hartlbb
Guest
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| Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2005 2:52 pm Post subject: Bare Land, now what? |
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I just had my yard completely cleared (back yard). I will now bring in top soil and seed for grass. Considering my yard is clear, and I had a huge weed problem prior to this, what should I do to the existing soil? I would like to do something to prevent the weeds from sprouting again.
Thanks!
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Frank
Happy Gardening
 Administrator
Joined: 25 Jan 2005
Location: Malmö, Sweden
Posts: 10628
PlantStew: 2307 |
| Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2005 5:51 pm Post subject: |
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Hi hartlbb and good to have you on our message boards! 
There is unfortunately no one magic secret for keeping a lawn weed free but the best thing you can possibly do is to maintain a healthy lawn which is well watered and fed. This is your best possible defense against weeds as it allows the lawn itself to win the "survival of the fittest" battle against weeds as it will have the resources to do so.
Your lawn needs good soil. Mix in organic matter e.g. compost, with your existing soil before seeding to give your lawn a better chance in the fight against weeds. Soil containing the correct amount of organic matter will retain moisture and nutrients more readily.
Once your lawn begins to grow you will inevitably have some weeds emerging. You can pick these out with a weeding tool or by hand. Try to pull the whole root system as leaving pieces of the weed root behind will allow it to grow back. If you don't manage to get the whole root out don't worry because it hasn't been a complete waste of time, the weed is now weakened and therefore will find it harder to come back as strong, that is if the lawn is healthy. The weed will find it harder to compete with the lawn grass to get the nutrients and water it needs and will eventually die back completely. Keep you lawn cut at a height of 2.5 inches for optimium preformance against weeds.
Also once your lawn is established you can use a pre-emergence herbicide twice a year, usually in February and September, to tackle the weeds before they germinate. Some of these pre-emergence herbicides come combined with fertilizer so that you are feeding you lawn as well.
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hartlbb
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| Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2005 8:23 pm Post subject: |
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Considering that I have a bare area, shouldn't I put some kind of weed killer down to kill the remaining weeds that are hanging around. Maybe do something so that the soil is affected, considering that I am going to put topsoil on top?
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