Quick Lawn Help Please!

[Brian Kent]

I need recommendations on quick lawn repair. How can I level it quickly?

My son is getting married on October 22. It will be a backyard wedding. The lawn area where the chairs will be is 30' by 60'. It was new sod when we bought the house a year ago.

Since then, the gophers have done their damage - several holes and mounds per week. The dogs used to dig trenches to try to get to the gophers.

I have filled all holes, and can pretty well keep up with the new ones. The dogs are no longer digging. The remaining problem is the uneven remnants of all of these repairs. I am looking for safety, not for beauty.

With a wedding coming up in 4-1/2 weeks, I need to level the lawn. Yesterday I walked all around with a wheel barrow full of dirt, filling in low spots, evening it out with the hose.

I appreciate any recommendations, short of re-sodding 1800 sq. ft. What would you do to make the lawn safer for high-heeled guests?
Is 4 weeks long enough to get some new sprouts going, too, or should I only work on leveling?

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Brian

[Sean Troy]

I need recommendations on quick lawn repair. How can I level it quickly?

My son is getting married on October 22. It will be a backyard wedding. The lawn area where the chairs will be is 30' by 60'. It was new sod when we bought the house a year ago.

Since then, the gophers have done their damage - several holes and mounds per week. The dogs used to dig trenches to try to get to the gophers.

I have filled all holes, and can pretty well keep up with the new ones. The dogs are no longer digging. The remaining problem is the uneven remnants of all of these repairs. I am looking for safety, not for beauty.

With a wedding coming up in 4-1/2 weeks, I need to level the lawn. Yesterday I walked all around with a wheel barrow full of dirt, filling in low spots, evening it out with the hose.

I appreciate any recommendations, short of re-sodding 1800 sq. ft. What would you do to make the lawn safer for high-heeled guests?
Is 4 weeks long enough to get some new sprouts going, too, or should I only work on leveling?

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Brian

Four weeks is plenty of time to get some grass growing if you get on it right away. I don't think there is a easy way to make any lawn safe for high heals short of laying down plywood and that won't look good for a wedding.

[curtis rosche]

steam roler, thats what the amish around here do. they use a heavy roller to flatten it. ive never seen them use one of those huge multi ton rollers though, not sure if they would sink, or just kill the grass. but those rollers under 2000, they seem to be common around here. try after a rain to get the smoothest surface is what i was told once

[John Pratt]

A lot of tool rental places rent out the lawn rollers that you can tow behind a lawn mower/tractor. you just have to add water to the drum. I've used one on mine to level the sod/ground before. As far as high heels go, I can't help.

[Brian Kent]

I like the idea of a roller. If I can level with a roller ASAP and get a little fresh seed growing, I can stop watering enough days in advance that they are walking on a lawn and not a marsh. I'll look into a roller rental.

[Graham Wintersgill]

If you have to add more dirt then before applying mix grass seed through it so it goes down ready mixed.

Regards

[Ben Hatcher]

A slit seeder will do a better job of filling in the bare spots if you have a significant number of them.

[Brian Kent]

Ben, I now know what a slit seeder is. Never hear of that before.

I am looking today for lawn roller services. Otherwise I need to rent a roller, a tractor, a trailer, and a truck to pull it.

What about the 24" wide hand-pushed rollers?

[Ben Hatcher]

If your soil is sandy and the bumps from tunnels, the hand pushed roller will do a decent job for you. I tried one on our clay soil to fix bumps caused by tree roots and it was completely ineffective. My local BORG rents the push rollers for $11...certainly worth a try.

[Brian Kent]

Not sandy. The underlying stuff is clay, with sod over the top that has some give. For $11, I'll give it a try.

[Jim Koepke]

You can also use sand to fill in some of the shallow spots. Don't try this on deep holes. It is usually only good for leveling areas less than an inch.

jtk

[Ben Hatcher]

Don't add sand to clay. Sand + Clay are the main ingredients in bricks. Clay actually compacts better when sand is added. And it isn't any better if the two don't mix because sand doesn't hold water well and isn't a very good growing medium for grass. Anything rooted in sand will die if not watered frequently. Topsoil is a much better choice.

[Brian Kent]

If topsoil contains manure, how long will it stink (warm days, daily watering)?

[Ben Hatcher]

Not long. A week, maybe two. If it really stinks, then it hasn't fully composted and you should avoid it.

[Brian Kent]

I filled holes with topsoil and seeded this morning. There is some composted manure in the topsoil, but it already is not bad. I walked up and down what will be the aisle the bride walks on, to make sure all holes were filled and bumps pushed down. That would be a heck of a time to trip - with all eyes on the bride.