New Lawn for Luna

In July I started a new project growing a new lawn from seed. Having grass would be nice for a few reasons. One great benefit is that it will cut down on the dust. There is so much dirt here and when the wind blows it’s very uncomfortable. Plus my friend had mentioned that he would like to have a lawn, so I wanted to make that come true for him. And the dog is going to love it!! I thought that if it didn’t work out, I would just consider it an experiment. I think that this made it easier for me to go into this project without the pressure of needing to be perfect and was prepared for whatever the result would be.

I’ve heard of people growing a clover mixture lawn and some have even grown an entire lawn with it, so I did a little research on the topic and reviewed opinions and also some of the advantages and the disadvantages but there was very little that discouraged me from going forward with it and trying it. I started off small. If I was successful with a small patch of grass, I would continue the process and extend it to the front perennial gardens and up to the driveway.

First I stared by raking the area to flatten it as much as possible and removed the weeds and large rocks and sticks. Then I sprinkled some compost on the surface using a bucket, watered well so that the seeds would stick to the soil surface better. Then I sprinkled some grass seed using a slotted spoon and a bucket. I did not have a professional seed spreader, and topped with a fine layer of peat moss and compost mix. I made a fenced off area with some bamboo stakes and some twine  to keep the dog out and continued to keep it well watered several times a day.  Day 4 is when the growth really started to show and on around day 25 it was ready for mowing.  I bought a push mower and it’s really amazing! I am very happy with it! It’s so cute to watch Luna and seeing her excitement when the string fence was removed and she was finally allowed to step inside.

The process of seeding started with some white clover and then I realized that what I really wanted was microclover because it’s suppose to hold up to heavy traffic better and is way more dense. For now I only have the white clover growing and so far I really love it, it’s so soft! I have read that it is not as affected by dog urine as much as grass is, but it’s too soon to know right now. The first grass seed that I started was Kentucky blue Grass since that was one my friend suggested and that he has used on all his properties in the past.  Then I tried a mixture called landscapers mix and another one that was for a high traffic. lol I am experimenting at this point and see what happens. I’ve been using a little of everything. 

The video shows the process from start to finish but I didn’t record the seeding part. I found that the most rewarding part of this whole project is that the entire process took under a month to complete and Ive made one happy dog in the process. It has been a great place to gather around the back garden and be cool and away from the summer heat. I also find that laying in the grass with the dog in the late afternoons is extremely relaxing. I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed grass until now. I am most grateful for the small things that are really great big things in my life!