#lawnhack: How to deal with patches of your lawn killed by dogs

Cobie’s first selfie … taken at the scene of the on-going crime – ‘scorch’ patches in our lawn!

You’ve got two options with dog urine. Either deal with it as happens – by pouring water over the area they’ve urinated on as soon as they’ve done it, or fix it afterwards, when the grass lets you know where they did it.

Ironically dog wee isn’t bad for lawns – it’s actually a fertilizer – but it’s the concentration not the chemical that’s killing your lawn.

And bitches cause worse issues than dogs – not because there’s anything wrong, purely because the guys spread it around to mark territory, while the ladies are more efficient in putting it all in once place. So dilute it – and your grass may even thrive – as it’ll be more like a fertilizer than a toxin.

So if you’re dealing with it once you’ve got a scorch mark… here’s how to do it

1) Mow - to stop competition from the healthier grass

2) Clear-out the dead – using a lawn rake to remove the thatch (that’s the dead stuff!)

3) Make some holes – using a screw driver or something sharp. This gives the seed a chance to root in soil, rather than on top of it. Which means it has more chance of staying moist and not getting eaten by birds.

4) Make a seed mix - equal parts of seed, sand and compost. Better than just seed, because this gives it nourishment and something to work with all in one. And scatter it in the holes.

5) Water it, and keep it moist.

… and let it grow! Let it grow! (#Lorax!)

Do carry-on mowing while it establishes to help keep that competition from the bigger grasses down, just try to keep the mower wheels off this patch so you don’t squash the emerging seedlings until they’re more robust.

Muirgheas
Secret Gardener