Lawn care - why does mine look ugly but the neigbors is good

[obsessed]

Wy is my neigbors lawn nicer than mine?

First off theirs is higher than mine and doesn't look like it holds water like mine. So how did they get it higher? and so even? Our houses were built at the same time. And our is actually all weeds and thiers looks like grass.

I should probably ask them, huh?

 

[patandchickens]

Asking them *would* be the simplest solution

But, it may be that they had topsoil brought in at some point; or laid sod (possibly even several times); or for any of a variety of reasons did not have their property's topsoil all removed when the house was built while yours maybe was.

Low and wet can, in and of itself, cause weediness. But it is also true that sometimes the same thing -- being on subsoil -- causes all *three* things.

Your best bet probably involves improving drainage however much possible (including loosening/aerating the existing soil, if it is reasonably top-soil-y already), and adding organic matter (or possibly just adding *topsoil*, if you haven't got much).

Lawns are unfortunately not usually a quick or easy fix, though.

One possibility is to convert as much as possible into other sorts of garden, so there is less lawn TO look disreputable <g>

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[wifezilla]

I agree...convert as much lawn as possible to growing beds

When my boys were little, the big yard was nice. It gave them lots of room to run around and be crazy. Now that the oldest is out and my youngest is 20, the lawn is just a waste of energy.

Basically if I can't eat it or feed it to my ducks, I don't grow it.

 

[obsessed]

So you guys know my story, right? Moved down here to LA and am just amazed by the drainage problems here. I am from Southern Cali where standing water is so not an issue. I was thinking that who ever owned the property before me neglected it. From my understanding we are supposed to bring in a load of dirt every couple of years. I intend on bringing in some river sand when it dries here. When it dries here.................

 

[journey11]

Theirs being higher probably doesn't help your drainage issues...you get some of their extra water too!

I have a low area at the back of my house that was dug out and graded. The original house didn't have a basement and the house was jacked up at one point and the basement put under, so to have a back door, they graded out part of the hill the house sets on. We have bad drainage problems there too in the low spot that sits now between two embankments. It's only wet during the winter, but that is enough to keep anything but weeds from growing there. We're going to run drainage/grade it to slope this summer, then go back in with lots of sand, pavers and gravel. I can't do anything else with it! This will make it better so that I can get my firewood into the basement through the winter without tearing it up worse.