johnw100

Hi,

I`ve searched high and low to find some clear answers to how to clear
an overgrown garden but without much luck. So i thought i`d just ask.

I have just bought a house with a 60` x 25` garden and it currently
has about 3 foot tall weeds covering all of it apart from a couple of
trees.

Any ideas on how to clear it. The idea is to returf the whole garden.
Should i hire a petrol strimmer and clear it then turf it? or go at it
with a lot of weed killer and wait a few weeks?

any help would be greatly appriciated.

thanks

J

brian

The best solution is to firstly strim and rake off all the debris. Leave
for a few weeks and then Roundup the re-growth. Preferably repeat this after
another few weeks. Finally make a totally level surface before turfing.
Don't economise on the quality of the turf but at the same time ensure that
it is suitable for your potential usage.
Best Wishes Brian.

peter crosland

Rent a goat!

johnw100

Thanks brian,

Would you recommend any weed killer? There is some bine weed (sp?) all along
one wall, i`ve heard its difficult to get rid of.

J

totototo

If you can afford it, hire a garden maintenance guy to do the
hard dirty work of cutting down the weeds and hauling them away.
Your new garden is only 1500 sqft, and the job shouldn't take
long with proper power equipment. Once the weeds are gone, the
situation will become much more manageable.

As for turfing, in the long run you might do better by seeding a
new lawn. The most sensible advice I've seen on this subject was
published years ago in one of our local papers by the late Jack
Beastall. He recommended that you kill off the existing
vegetation in the late spring or early summer, then till the soil
thoroughly (adding amendments to taste), and levelling it.

You then start a regimen that goes on all summer, watering,
fertilizing, and hoeing the soil regularly. The idea is to
encourage weed seeds to germinate freely, then kill the seedlings
via the hoe. By reducing the weed-seediness of the soil, when you
sow your grass seed around the beginning of September, you get
many fewer weeds coming up.

The hoeing is important; repeated use of weedkillers is not as
good. Not only does regular hoeing kill young weed seedllings,
but it also disturbs the soil and exposes more weed seeds,
thereby encouraging their germination. It is important to realize
that many weeds are native to sites where the soil is constantly
disturbed, and by regularly hoeing, you give them great
encouragement.

You clearly want to hoe rather deeply so as to clean some depth
of soil, not just the immediate surface.

This method also gives unrepentant perennial weeds (couch grass,
for example) a chance to reveal themselves. If any turn up, you
can nuke them either by hand or using Roundup. My own preference
would be to carefully fork up any couch grass roots as the
process will provide yet further disturbance of the soil.

The long delay between initial tillage and final seeding also
gives the soil a chance to settle, so you can correct any bumps
or dips during the summer and get a smoother lawn than you might
otherwise.

This may sound like a lot of work, and the long delay while you
face an area of bare earth may sound unappealing, but as in so
many aspects of gardening, the secret to long-term success lies
in careful preparation.


--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
[change "atlantic" to "pacific" and
"invalid" to "net" to reply by email]

michelle

Use a glyphosphate - type weedkiller first, this is absorbed by growing
plants/weeds hence no need to cut them down first , they will die in two
weeks.

david hill

"....... Use a glyphosphate - type weedkiller first, this is absorbed by
growing plants/weeds hence no need to cut them down first , they will die in
two weeks. ........."
I'd cut first then spray when things start to re grow, cutting the dead
grass etc is harder than cutting it fresh.
Let it dry and you can burn it.


--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
http://www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

tillerbill

You might find your answer below.

"Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning."

http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a.tcl?topic=Country%20Style%20Homesteading

gary davis

On 5/30/04 3:43 AM, in article
cb888f13.0405300243.1b619f5a@posting.google.com, "paulr"


Hi,
I have read all the posts to date and am somewhat surprised that there
are some who still suggest using a chemical to kill the weeds. "It will do
no harm" is the usual response. I remember in the early years of the 2nd
World War when some Canadian soldiers were subjected to radiation (or
something) and were told "It will do no harm"! That was not true! After
hearing about that I am always suspect about anyone who says "It will do no
harm!"
Therefore, my suggestions are as follows and the reasons:
Firstly, cut down the weeds with some kind of mechanical tool... A man, for
example, with a scythe. Or use a lawn mower raised to the highest cutting
level. Or a weed eater...that's what we call them in Canada...probably the
same as a petrol strimmer. It's a motorized or electric weed cutter downer!
You do want to do this before the weeds go to seed!
It sounds like this particular area was at one time a garden. It should
be easy digging! Dig it in, one shovel full at a time. Try to bury as much
of the green leaves as you can. Dig, flip and roll the greenery into the
bottom of the just dug hole. (Digging the first shovel full, turn over just
on the edge of the hole you have just dug. As it rolls, the tops (green)
will fall into the hole.) Try to cover any greenery left from the first
shovel full with the following shovel full. Don't worry about the greenery
left showing. Right now we want to get the whole garden turned over. We will
look after the 'greenery left showing' later.
Remember, we are doing this one shovel full at a time. Turn over a few
shovel fulls then sit down with your favourite beverage and enjoy the work
you have done! It looks good, doesn't it?
And just think-no chemicals! And you are using green compost! Good for
the worms and that is good for whatever you plant there later.
Should you have any fledgling ice hockey players in your town, tell them
you have a great way for them to improve their wrist shot or slap shot! (It
will strengthen their wrists and arms). Get them to dig it for you. Be sure
that they read the above instructions. Tell them you won't charge them for
the experience. Well, good luck with that one!
That's my 'how' and 'why'. No chemical is a good chemical...ask any
worm...they work 24-7 and in the dark...as far as I know!
Gary
Fort Langley BC
Canada

To reply please remove...yoursocks...

tuin man

Agreeing with the cut down first and adding, then feed them. prefably with
something high on nitrogen. The either spray when the fertilizer if really
getting them absorbing all the can, or go the gary davis approach.
patrick