Lawn Renovation
by David Aldous

Many home lawns going into winter are often unacceptable for play and spongy to the touch. If this is the case with your lawn, renovation may be the answer to improve the quality of the surface.

The need for renovation

Renovation involves planting grass seed into the existing lawn area, so as to repair damage or to increase the lawn's tolerance to drought, shade and/or wear. Renovation usually isn't necessary until approximately 20-25% of the lawn is bare or covered with weeds. If you have excessively compacted soil, greater than 50% weeds or bare soil, or a thatch problem, it may warrant your bypassing a spring renovation and choosing to sow a new lawn in the autumn.

Preparation for successful lawn renovation

Aim to undertake renovation when conditions start to improve in spring as new growth benefit from warmer temperatures. Weeds can be removed manually, or selectively removed with herbicides such as glyphosate. If the lawn is spongy (thatch), this should be removed with a garden rake, or with a vertical mower or sod cutter. The latter can be leased from a plant hire agency.

Vertical mowing to a depth of 10mm results in large clumps which will need to be raked from the site. If the ground is still soft, you may want to consider coring. (Coring machines poke holes in the ground and remove small cores of soil.) This will improve aeration. Acrifier cores can be allowed to partially dry out and then broken up using a rake before seeding is carried out. Just prior to seeding, apply 20-30g/sq.m. of a NPK fertiliser and lightly rake it into the surface where the soil is bare and loose.

Sowing the lawn

When choosing seed for renovation, endeavour to obtain seed that suits your area and is similar to your current lawn surface. In cool temperate Australia, this may be perennial ryegrass, chewings fescue or Kentucky bluegrass, whereas in transitional or warm areas of Australia, the grass species may be common couch, or vegetative plant parts of buffalo grass, Queensland blue couch or in some cases, Kikuyu grass. Whatever the seed or plant material chosen, mix with sand in a bucket and uniformly sow over the bare patches. Sowing rates are slightly lower - 15-20g/sq.m.

After seeding, water the soil lightly. Excess water can wash seeds away, as well as increase the risk of fungal attack.

Care of new lawn

Once seedlings have emerged, or sprigs have started to grow, watering duration should gradually be increased and watering frequency decreased as the lawn becomes established. Mowing should take place when there are about 3-4 grass blades per plant. Mow with a sharp mower to a height that only removes a third of these leaf blades. Traffic and play on a newly renovated lawn should be avoided for the first few weeks after seedlings emerge.

About the writer: Dr David Aldous is Principal Lecturer at Burnley College where his special interests include turf management. 

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