OT- gardening help

[ShanaMama]

We just did our lawn- put down sod, mulch & planted a few bushes and flowers. We are having two problems & I wonder if any experienced gardeners can help.
1. Weeds are coming up between the mulch. Like, tons of weeds. When we try to pull them up they just crack. Can't get the roots out of the ground. Is there something we can use to kill the weeds that won't harm the bushes & flowers?
2. My sod is looking very sad. We've been watering it like crazy, but went away for the weekend. Missed Saturday & Sunday, which were both hot days. Now there are brown spots cropping up all over the place. The seams of the pieces seem to be drying out as well as some entire areas. As much as I water it, it doesn't seem to help. Can dead sod be revived? Is there anything to do other than water it?
TIA- we are completely new at gardening & really want this to work out.

[traumarn]

unfortuantely, the best cure for the weeds coming up through the mulch is to put down weed blocker/sheeting first- that mean you have to pull it all back up- but it does work pretty well. i have never had the guts to try the weed killers that say they will only kill weeds.
as far as the new sod: you may be watering too much- it will also make the grass turn brown. best bet is to ask an expert at a local nursery(not home depot) about how much to water your new sod, because it varies so much from one town to the next.(as well as what the weather has been doing, and will be doing)
good luck!!!!

btw: the weed blocker material does not need to be the most expensive, and lowes or home depot(maybe ace, also) should have the best prices.

[ThreeofUs]

Sounds like something's wrong with the soil underneath. Continue to water like crazy, but also consider:
1. Testing the soil under the sod for too much acidity. You can use a topical application of alkaline lime - natural - to correct.
2. Talk to folks at your local garden center or the place you got the sod, and don't stop talking to them until you have a couple good leads on what might be wrong and what to do about it.

Good luck!

[urquie]

it sounds like a hula hoe may help with your weed problem. you push it so it goes just under the soil and brakes the roots. you can do a large area in a relatively short amount of time. it's good to do it on a sunny day so the sun kills the uprooted weeds faster (i just leave them on the ground unless there are seed heads developed).

also wet soil makes weeding easier - the roots come out better, instead of the top breaking off.


eta: you can get a hula hoe at any garden center or hardware store.
http://www.amazon.com/Hula-Hoe-Weeding/dp/B0002XH4JU

[ShanaMama]

Argh! I am so frustrated. We actually had a professional landscaper put down the sod & mulch. (Not sure how professional... he's someone DH works with & gave us a good deal.) Shouldn't he have put down the sheeting before putting in the mulch? And shouldn't he know the acidity of the local soil?
We kinda started a trend and some of my neighbors are now doing their lawns on their own. I'm curious to see what happens- if they have the same problems we do then it must be the soil.

[alexsmommy]

Argh! I am so frustrated. We actually had a professional landscaper put down the sod & mulch. (Not sure how professional... he's someone DH works with & gave us a good deal.) Shouldn't he have put down the sheeting before putting in the mulch? And shouldn't he know the acidity of the local soil?
We kinda started a trend and some of my neighbors are now doing their lawns on their own. I'm curious to see what happens- if they have the same problems we do then it must be the soil.

I would think so. We did all the same work you did this spring (did it ourselves) and we definitely put down landscape fabric under the mulch - otherwise you get the exact problem you are describing. If he wasn't a true professional, he may have just literally did what you asked, as opposed to telling you what you need to get good results. We also conditioned the soil after we tilled, level the soil, then did a layer of a very fine soil conditioning mulch before laying the sod. It's only been a week, but it already looks way better than a previous attempt where we just patched an area with sod and didn't really do any prep work.

Although moving the mulch and putting down the landscape fabric would be a PITA, I think it would be worth it. I can't imagine how many old plants and weeds we'd have popping back up otherwise. Good luck - it's always frustrating to spend money and not get what you had hoped for.

[ShanaMama]

we definitely put down landscape fabric under the mulch - otherwise you get the exact problem you are describing.

My question is we planted some shrubs & annuals in the mulch (dug down to topsoil.) How would that work with the sheeting? Do you cut holes in it to plant thru? If I understand properly plants can't grow in mulch- they need to take root in the soil. Would I need to pull up all my bushes & impatients? No way I'm doing that! If it's only the mulch I'd consider it....

[niccig]

I hate the weed block sheeting. Hate with a passion. Our garden was landscaped by previous owner - won landscaping awards. Sections that have the sheeting are impossible to get weeds out with roots - and weeds do come through them. If you want to re-do that area, you have to cut big holes to dig up plants etc. I prefer the sections of our yard that don't have the sheeting.

Weeds - before you mulch you can put down corn gluten meal - it's a weed suppressant and needs to get raked into dirt and watered in. Then you put mulch on top. For pulling out, get a v-shaped weeding tool, it's a hand tool so you're on your knees, but you can use it to dig out the weed. Do you have enough mulch down - 2 - 3" ? I've got friends that skimp on the mulch and complain about the weeds. Grass-B-Gone - will kill grass that is coming up in your plants and not your plants. For the worst of the worst, I use round-up. I hate to use it, so it has to be a very stubborn problem area like the weed I have that grows on runners so once it's in one garden bed, it spreads and to remove I've had to dig up the entire bed. I've cut the bottom off a plastic milk jug, put that over the plant and spray through the top opening so the roundup doesn't go elsewhere. I only use chemicals maybe once/twice a year, but lately I just live with the weeds, they're a part of gardening.

[niccig]

My question is we planted some shrubs & annuals in the mulch (dug down to topsoil.) How would that work with the sheeting? Do you cut holes in it to plant thru? If I understand properly plants can't grow in mulch- they need to take root in the soil. Would I need to pull up all my bushes & impatients? No way I'm doing that! If it's only the mulch I'd consider it....

You have to cut the sheeting, it's why I don't like using it. You can rake the mulch off, lay down sheeting cutting holes where you need them for your current plants. For planting - yes you dig holes into the soil, so the top of the plant will be even with the top of the soil, put the plant in with extra soil around it. Then you mulch around the plant - don't push mulch right up to plant, leave a space around it. Wet mulch can cause rot if pushed up against some plants. I've got some great beginning garden books - I'll post back with titles. We were novice gardeners until a few years ago too.

[cmonbaby]

Niccig, I would love to get some suggestions on great books. We too just had the front of our yard landscaped and I would love to get more involved in gardening. I don't know where to start. I don't have a great track record with live plants so any help is appreciated!

[alexsmommy]

Yep you cut the sheeting like others said. You just cut in a "X" and then the flaps will go over your already planted plants. I think this would be a big pain though with stuff you've already planted. For us, once it was down, I just used a utility knife to cut the "X" where I wanted to plant some shrubs, pulled back the fabric and then dug the holes for the pants. Maybe the pp's suggestion on what to do to decrease your weeds is better. I am NOT a gardener, but we had a really limited budget so I researched and did it ourselves. We also knew about the fabric b/c we put it down under themulch under the playset a few years back. Sorry this is such a pain for you! Good luck.

[Alice523]

We did sod by ourselves last May and we had the same brown seams that you mentioned. They healed themselves and went back to green as the lawn established itself. We watered plenty every day, though; we were told by our sod company that we could not water too much in the first few weeks. We did 2x/day for two weeks and then switched to 3x/week once it was established. (We are in CA and we don't get a drop of rain all summer, but we also need to conserve our water, so we water as little as possible without allowing it to go brown.) Watering will correct the brown spots - if you have actual bare spots, it is harder to fix, but brown will turn back to healthy if you water it properly from here on out.

You can call the sod company for help, too. I am pretty sure they will tell you that not enough water is your problem, but FWIW, we watered 2x/day and still had some brown seams in the beginning. I think it's just part of the process.

[niccig]

These are the books I find useful as a beginning gardener.

A manual to all things garden and yard. I'm sure there are others, but I use this one.
http://www.amazon.com/Yard-Garden-Owners-Manual-Everything/dp/0696217600/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212459121&sr=1-1


A guide to gardening in your area. This one is for SoCal and it gives a month by month list of things to do - I wish I followed it more closely
http://www.amazon.com/Welshs-Southern-California-Gardening-Month/dp/B0009GVMTI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212458718&sr=1-1


The Sunset Garden Book for your area. I use the Western Garden Book. We take this with us to the nursery and look up every plant before buying to make sure we can plant it where we want to and to check that the plant will be the right size for our space.
http://www.amazon.com/Western-Garden-Book-Sunset/dp/0376039167/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212458784&sr=1-3


Two good books for roses.
http://www.amazon.com/Foolproof-Guide-Growing-Roses-Roebuck/dp/1580110835/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212459154&sr=1-1
http://www.amazon.com/Orthos-All-About-Roses-Gardening/dp/B000H2MNCE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212459195&sr=1-3

I hope this helps someone.

Nicci

[ShanaMama]

Thanks Nicci. I'll have to look at those books. The brown spots are turning green again! :yay: :cheerleader1: DH bought some Roundup for the weeds, hopefully it will kill the weeds & not the flowers. I just can't bring myself to get down on hands & knees & weed because it's so hard to pull out the roots so I know the weeds will be right back.
Thanks for all the advice! The lawn still looks *much* nicer than when we bought this house & cars were being parked all over it!

[niccig]

For the weeds, go look for a v-shaped weeding tool. It's a hand held tool, about the length of a trowel. It's a skinny tube of metal and at the end it has a v-shaped notch. It'll be with other garden tools at home depot etc. You use this to dig into the soil by the weed to loosen the dirt and to pull the weed up, roots and all. My mother uses an old table fork to do the same thing.

ETA - here's a picture of the weeding tool. I actually have 3 of them, so I can always find one when I need it.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=56763-76362-18001204&lpage=none

I said I use round-up, but it's a PITA to use it all the time. I have to have someone at home to be with DS so he's not around me, I use it, then I jump in the shower and immediately wash the clothes I was wearing. I use it for problem areas like weeds that grow on runners or weeds coming up in pavement cracks etc. I prefer the weeding tool above as it's less hassle.

[writermama]

Vinegar kills weeds at a fraction of the cost of Round-up and is much, much safer. I use regular household vinegar in a spray bottle. It works best on sunny days.

For very stubborn weeds there are concentrated vingegar products, Burnout is one trade name. They cost a little more than the household kind, still less than Round-up, and need to be applied with care since it's an acid, but they degrade quickly and safely.

More about vinegar as a weed killer here:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2002/020515.htm

and here:
http://www.the-organic-gardener.com/weed-killers.html

[ShanaMama]

Vinegar kills weeds at a fraction of the cost of Round-up and is much, much safer. I use regular household vinegar in a spray bottle. It works best on sunny days.


From one of the links: "It is not selective and harms the plants it touches."
This wouldn't work for me because the weeds are coming up among the flowers & shrubs. I don't want to kill those! The Roundup bottle claims to only kill the weeds. I was not aware of the safety concerns regarding Roundup. I need to get one of those weeding tools Nicci & a pp recommended. Nothing like good old hard work!

[niccig]

Be very careful of roundup. I have it stored under lock and key and only use it if someone else has DS, and I shower and wash everything before I touch anything else. I only use it for stubborn problems. Eg. I have one bed that I am battling a weed that grows on runners, the battle is going on 3 years. When I do use it, I have a milk gallon that I cut the bottom off, I put it over the weed and then spray through the top of the bottle, so it doens't touch anything else. All other weeds I can pull out with the weeding tool. I'm about to try vinegar on the cracks in the driveway and then put salt in - read that in the Queen of Clean. But you can't use salt in garden beds, just cracks in cement.

[ShanaMama]

Thanks for all your help & advice Nicci. I actually spent a couple of hours weeding tonight. Since I haven't done it in such a long time some of those weeds were really deeply rooted. I used the tool you recommended & my hands. The part I did now looks beautiful- I forgot how nice it looks with no weeds between my flowers!!
Next gross problem- we have mushrooms! EWWW! I forbade DD from touching them because I have no idea if they're dangerous & I only touched them with gloves on. We've been watering like crazy so I guess we asked for them. The weird part is the lawn still looks like it needs to be watered alot. Certain trouble spots still get brown & haven't completely taken root. Now I have to balance watering enough for the sod but not enough to grow mushrooms!