young lawn

[Jimbeam]

I have a 3 month old lawn that has grown and knitted well considering our cold winter here in sydney. Its the exact grass from the same farm used on Flemington race coarse. Its a combination of Kikuyu over seeded with Rye and Bluegrass. Because I got the rejected rolls of turf (rolls broke or tore during the harvesting) not all of it survived (roughly less than 5%) so its a little patchy particularly where the rye has not come on. 2 questions

1. Can I and how do I seed those areas less dense with the rye to make the lawn more uniform in appearence or will the rye spread on its own??

2. Weeds. I have SW Buffalo in the back yard and use Bindi for weed control. Is it save to use on the Rye as well??

I fertilized about 2 weeks ago and with a few days of rain it went crazy so I had to cut it today and it looks very healthy.

[David L]

1.The rye will not spread, you could buy some seed and just sprinkle it on and water.
2. Bindi should be safe on the rye grass. Bindi is a killer of broad leaf plants where as rye is narrow leaf.

[Planned LScape]

Ryegrass is a single-stemmed grass, which is why it is commonly used in a blend of other grasses, especially with warm season ones where it will be green while they are dormant over winter.

Top dress the bare areas with some light soil and the SWB should spread once it warms a bit more and is actively growing. Chuck on some of the blended seed too so it looks good next winter

[Jimbeam]

Ryegrass is a single-stemmed grass, which is why it is commonly used in a blend of other grasses, especially with warm season ones where it will be green while they are dormant over winter.

Top dress the bare areas with some light soil and the SWB should spread once it warms a bit more and is actively growing. Chuck on some of the blended seed too so it looks good next winter

The SWB is in the rear yard. Its a few years old and is doing fantastic, even through winters. I mentioned it because I use the bindi on it as its the only thing that is safe to use.

The new lawn is in the front. Should I remove the portions of dead turf to expose the soil or just let it rot away and turn into food for the lawn. what should I do first, spray for the weeds, or plant the new seeds??? How long does it take for the new seeds to come to life??

[David L]

Spray first to rid the weeds. Then wait a few days before scratching around the soil and sowing the new seed it will take about a week to sprout.
Please your self about the dead runners. The Kikuyu will start to run as the weather warms up.

[Jimbeam]

I have now sprayed for the weeds and given it another cut on a lower level. Its growing very fast with the weather warming up. I now plan to seed those bare patches with rye but where can I buy the seeds in a small quantity?? Once the seeds begin to sprout I plan on giving the whole yard a top dress to level it all. Its pretty level already but there are some low spots. I used a special top dress soil on the back yard but they had wood chips in it, I didnt like that. I would prefer to use sand. Its heavier and less likely to move or blow away. I have a rainwater tank so I can water daily to keep it moist. But which sand is suitable for this application?

One other thing, I understand the rye will die off when it gets warmer. Will it actaully die or will it go dormant?

[David L]

You should be able to see the effects of the spray starting to work by now. If you have some sort of rural supplier, stock feed place or nursery in the area you may be able to buy seed. Use either river sand or crusher dust to top dress after a short mowing and only enough to fill depressions. If you are going to seed do it immediately prior to topdressing. I think rye is seasonal but a percentage will survive till next season. If you are patient the Kikuyu will spread in no time.

[Jimbeam]

Yeah, its proving difficult to find seeds that arent already blended with other grasses. But Im not giving up that easily. Lawn is coming on in leaps and bounds with the rain and warmer temps, grass is running into barer patches already. Needing to cut every 3-4 days in order to keep the roots away from the surface. Yard is only about 70m2. I'll order 1tonne of sand but only use what is necessary. Thanks for your help. I'll post a pick and another in a few weeks after it grows though the top dress.