Lawn care question.... my grass is too dang thick and healthy!!!

[Lisa0825]

I was wondering if there is anything I can do to thin out my back yard. It is SOOOOOOO thick and lush that even when it isn't that high, it is REALLY difficult to cut. I was wondering if there is anything I can spread on it to just thin it out, without totally killing it. I called a store and asked, and they seemed to think I was nuts and should be happy to have such a great lawn! Yeah, well, come cut for me for free, Mister!!!

Any advice out there??? help!!!

[Deja Q]

1. Well, send some to me in a care package...

I'll happily roll some up and smoke it! :smoke: :smoke: :hippie: :evilgrin:

[Lisa0825]

4. If it was THAT kind of grass, I'd be RICH!LOL! (not to mention very happy)

:hippie:

[Don_G]

2. Rent A Dethatcher?

It'll cut into the soil, take out a few roots and aerate your lawn. Of course it will make your lawn healthier and possibly too thick.

[Lisa0825]

6. if it gets any thicker, I think it'll swallow up the house!

[madmax]

3. Get a few

dogs - big ones. That will take care of the lawn 'problem'. :evilgrin:

[Momof1]

7. Dogs are also natural fertilizer.

Ask me, if my neighbor doesn't keep his sh*t out of my yard, I just may fertilize his porch.

[Lisa0825]

8. reallllll funny! But my kitty don't like doggies!!!

[H2O Man]

5. It's because it's spring

and your grass will always grow faster, thicker, etc, now. Set the blade(s) on your mower at the highest level/setting. Do now mow the grass short right now. Also, when your mower is off, and you have disconnected the spark plug wire for safety reasons, make sure there are not clumps or grass underneathe. As the weather gets warmer, and the spring rains become a memory, your lawn will change. You won't mow as often, and can mow a little shorter.

[Don_G]

9. And NEVER Overfertilize In The Spring

You just don't know how much rain you're going to get.

[Lisa0825]

12. Yeah, it's worse in the spring, but I have lived here for years, and

it's really a pain alllll summer, and in Houston, summer lasts about 7 months.

[unblock]

15. note that this is "bad" advice for healthy lawns

keep in mind that we're trying to help you thin your lawn. in the heat of summer, lawns should normally be mowed higher to protect the root and the parts near the soil from too much direct sunlight.

since the goal is to thin things out a bit, go ahead an cut it short in the summer to do mild damage to some of it.

[Lisa0825]

18. I may try that... but it is sooooooo hard to cut it short.

Even if I cut it every week, I can't get the wheel height down to the low setting. Maybe over Memorial Day weekend I can cut it twice and get it really low.

[unblock]

10. it'll take a year, but try this:

step one, ALWAYS bag the clipping. yeah, i know, big pain. hire the neighbors kid.

step two. DO NOT FERTILIZE for an entire year. obviously don't overseed either.

this should help, but you have to be patient.


if you want faster results, test the pH of your soil. adjust it to something mildly hostile to your dominant grass.

add lime to make it more alkaline, add iron to make it more acidic. this will work faster, but DO NOT OVERDO it or you will have a disaster on your hands!

[Lisa0825]

14. I never fertilize and never seed... it's just like this naturally.

But I am interested in the pH thing! How can I test it? I guess they have kits ofr that at the lawn and garden store?

Thanks for the tip! I'll check into it!

[madrchsod]

11. you can have my back yard

it really thinned out. hell i`ll even drive down and trade you.....

[Lisa0825]

16. LOL! if you wanna roll up my lawn and drive it away, come on down!

[prole_for_peace]

13. if i lived there for a while that would all be taken care of.

for some reason the grass at my house got thinner and developed bare spots after i moved in. before that it was thick and green and there were flowers. but no more. i am a blight.

[Lisa0825]

17. You think it's contagious? Maybe we should meet for coffee and see

if I can return with blight!

[Nikia]

19. We have that problem at our rented place too

Most of the lawn is literally like carpet since it is so dense. At our old place, we used a non motorized mower. It was almost impossible to mow our lawn that way here. It was overly strenuous because the mower would not move even if I had all my weight leaned up against it. I literally had to run to get it to move. At our old place, we did not have this difficulty. With the motorized self propelled mower, it is doable. I think that some strains of grass are like this. When we buy a place, I don't think that we will choose to have a lawn like this. It isn't like I take naps in the lawn or anything.

[Lisa0825]

21. yep, that's exactly how mine is!

sometimes I have to pop a wheelie to get it to move! I can't afford a self-propelled mower right now though.

[HEyHEY]

20. get a dog that likes to run

He'll fuck up it up real good for ya!

[Lisa0825]

22. When my mom was still alive, we had a collie.... but she was afraid of

the grass! She would do aanything to not have to go in the grass! The vet said she probably got into ants or something young enough for it to be "imprinted" in her mind, so she always thought of that bad scene when she was around grass.

[St. Jarvitude]

23. Here. Have some of my lawn's urine stains.

I'm happy to give em to ya, free of charge. Consider it the gift of one DU'er to another. :hi:

[Lisa0825]

24. uuummmmmmm... gee..... uh.... thanks..... I think.

;-)