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Article and tips on how to improve your lawn: Sulphate of Iron

   As the growing season gets underway its time to have a look at that lawn spoiler.
   MOSS!!!                                                           
   
A fairly common seen at the moment, with growth
   being dormant over the winter period moss tends to
   prevail and we are left with a rather unsightly lawn.
   It actually looks worse than it is but we can speed up the
   mosses departure with an application of  Iron
   ( ferrous sulphate).
 Use a powdered Sulphate of Iron which is soluble in
 water such as
Westland Sulphate of Iron 1.5kg 
and mix
 with cold water before adding to a sprayer or watering
 can and apply at 6-7 grammes per m2.or use a proprietary            Sulphate of Iron applied at
 liquid Iron such as
Maxicrop Moss Killer 2.5L                                 7 grammes per m2

  Another way of applying Sulphate of Iron is Lawn sand which is a sand and Iron mix where the sand
 is used as a carrier to allow for easier spreading. Bagged lawn sand is available through your local
 garden centre.To apply evenly it is best done by using a spreader. Scotts provide a good range of
 spreaders like the
EvenGreen Drop Spreader and the EverGreen Easy Spreader Plus both very handy
 for the lawn as they can be used for spreading fertilisers and grass seed as well as lawn sand.
 Tip:
If you want to keep a deep green colour to your lawn without the      

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extra cutting required after using a nitrogen based fertilizer.
 Use liquid iron once every 6-8 weeks at 4 grammes per m2  
 (except during long dry spells). To ensure a good coverage apply
 at half rate and go over the area twice.

 After an application of Iron moss blackens and then can be removed by 
 scarification either by hand using a springbok rake. Use a spung steel toothed
 rake with a solidwooden handle like the
Draper Expert a good quality rake
 which will last.Dont be afraid to use the rake quite vigorously to scarify the 
build up of moss and dead grass, pick up all the material you have removed as its this build up of
decaying material that gives a very spongy poor surface to your lawn.                                                   
   If your lawn is larger than 50 square metres look at at one of the pedestrian scarifiers such as the
Flymo 750 Watt Lawnraker Compact 3400 with a good size collection box and adjustable height setting  Setting the height will depend on the condition of the lawn. A really firm lawn will manage the lower settings while a very soft lawn the higher ones. Try out at a higher setting first and then judge if you can reduce the machine lower.
Tip: little and often is the best policy for your lawn, scarify twice lightly rather than once deeply. 
Depending on how long its been since your lawn had a good scarify you might be

surprised by the amount of debris that will have built up over that time. 
This picture shows the amount of dead material that can be removed.
 Only 10 metres2 was scarified but there was enough decayed material removed to fill a
normal sized wheelbarrow.
 Carry out the scarifying during a dry day as this will ensure better collection of all the
material removed. Once done you should see an improvement in the firmness of the lawn.
One of the attributes to a fine lawn which we will cover in some more detail in upcoming articles.

Sulphate of Iron is very underestimated and underused by many in the garden/lawn sector although it has been widely used by the sportsturf industry for years. Not just as a mosskiller but to enhance colour, harden the plant against disease and to acidify the soil.

 Next: Manage your lawn to promote the finer grasses and discourage moss.                   

Next:  OVERSEEDING

 

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