Hi Sven,

My garden is looking really dry and the grass is very thin and patchy. It's not even as if we've had a scorching summer! I've tried watering but it's a very big lawn and just seems to go muddy. We moved into the house last Christmas so it's our first summer here. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Jo

Our Gardens expert replies:

Hi Jo,

It sounds like the lawn if suffering from poor drainage. After years of people trampling over it, the soil under the lawn becomes compacted and the water cannot penetrate down to the roots.

There are a few simple things you can do. In autumn, when the soil is slightly moist go around with a fork and stick it in as deep as it will go and rock it back and forth, do this every six inches or so all over the lawn. Then spread sharp sand all over and brush it in so the holes fill with sand keeping them open so that water can now drain away.

In early spring you will need to scarify the lawn, which basically means getting a wire rake and vigorously raking the whole area to remove the dead grass. By doing this you will encourage new growth and also lift the stems of spreading weeds like buttercups, so when you next mow you will cut them too.
Because the lawn is bare in patches it also may need re-seeding. You can get packs of seed from garden centres. Just follow the instructions on the packet, and this should give you a nice, healthy, green lawn for next year.

Good luck!

Sven

For more advice see Getting a Luscious Lawn, Lawn Maintenance and Low-Maintainence Lawn.