Renovate or maybe start from scratch.

I found this forum searching for ways to renovate gardens so joined up for some advice.

Our gardens are in pretty bad shape. Uneven, patchy and full of different weeds. I am pretty sure it is a job from scratch then laying new grass.

I was going to dig the top layer off level the ground, add some topsoil, feed and seed it.

I dug a small patch to see if the weeds would regrow and they have. So probably means roots are deep. Now I am considering using a weed killer like roundup let everything die and use a tiller, level it off, feed and then seed.

What is the best way to go about it. Kill everything and rototill or remove the top layer and seed. I'd appreciate some input.

I have added some pictures so some of you guys can assess the state of the garden.

 

Looking at your pictures I would say it's better starting from scratch. With the amount that needs to be put right it's just not worth trying to repair it.

Killing off all the weeds doesn't mean you will be free of them as seeds can lay dormant in soil for years before germinating. Round-up is a systemic weed killer containing glyphosate and it neutralises on contact with soil. If you use this be aware that it will kill or badly damage almost everything it touches and is best used on a windless day to prevent drift.

I would be inclined to rotovate the garden to open up the soil as it's probably compacted and it will give the opportunity to remove any large stones etc. Then you can level and break down the soil ready for seeding.

There are a number of threads here in the Lawns forum that will help guide you if you would like to have a look around.

 

I am leaning towards using a weed killer then rotor tiller it all. What I am unsure about is how much of the weeds are lying dormant and if the tilling will bring up new growth of weeds.

 

That's the 60 million dollar question I'm afraid. There is no way of predicting how much weed is laying dormant in the soil as seed. If you have any perennial weed roots left in your soil, tilling it will break them into 100's and 1000's of teeny pieces which *could* root and regrow.

I need to find some photo's to post further ... I'll be back

 

Hah! That is what I keep thinking that even after all that effort there will be weeds growing from here and there annoying the life out of me. Only the end result will tell I suppose.

I think to begin with I am going to go get some weed killer. Let it do its job and take it from there.

 

Ok, here goes.

When I moved into my previous house (June 2010) this is what the back third of the garden looked like


Behind that fence was just a jungle that hadn't been touched for years! First job was to get in there, strim it all, take down any unstable trees and then spray the lot with weed killer.

By August 2010 this is what it looked like: the ground was pretty much clear of most of the growth but there was still hand weeding to be done (sorry the picture isn't too great; at the time, I didn't think the photo's would be of any use to anyone other than my own private record).

Fast forward one year and a Spring rake/weed/dig over and this is what we had:



That pile (centre bottom) was the rakings/weeding result. The left hand side was the beginnings of a border.

One year further on again (July 2012) and this is how it looked (yes the willow had gone ):


Any grass had self seeded (bare in mind this was not the main garden, but the back third for fruit trees, veg beds, wildflowers and anything which took my fancy - including free ranging ducks and chooks!). There was still the occasional bramble/nettle/bindweed which appeared but was dealt with as and when necessary.

The main point being, it went from a tangled, overgrown, weedy area to an open patch free to do as we pleased with. What it took was:
1) strimming over the lot
2) go over the whole area with a weed killer
3) dig/hand weed stubborn/difficult weeds
4) keep on top of any regrowth
5) patience
6) within 2 years it was taking shape (but, I moved 2 years after that last photo).

PS: I do now have a tiller ... but that is best left for weed free soil as stated in my previous post.

 

So using a tiller is a bad idea even after killing the weeds off ?

Now I'm trying to figure out which weed killer to buy . So much choice (Roundup/Weedol/Resolva).

 

I would use the weed killer and I don't think you can beat Round-up. This will kill the roots too and any weeds that put out runners will also be killed, so you won't have to worry about leaving live roots in the ground. Try the tiller but if it can't cope perhaps you could hire a rotovator.

Weeds don't lay dormant in the ground but seeds do and they can germinate at any time. Once your lawn is laid you will have to deal with any at a later point with a lawn weed killer.

 

Not often I disagree with your experience and knowledge @Sheal but ... that is not my experience. The roots of some weeds can extend quite a way and are not always completely dealt with.
If the area has weeds such as bindweed, bramble, mares tail, ground elder and nettle, it will be quite a challenge to eradicate fully. Take a tiller/rotivator to that ground and all you are doing is unearthing the older deeper roots, chopping them up and redistributing them.

@mosamahab - you may find that you need more than one application of weed killer for some of the weeds. In which case, you will need to apply another dose a couple of weeks after the first.

 

You're right of course "M", I'm forgetting the exceptions to the rule and agree some will need more than one application.

 

So you guys reckon using Roundup and going over it twice.

There are a few weed killers that are using glyphosate as I mentioned previously.

 

There is no point in going over the area twice unless weeds re-shoot. The weed killer has to make contact with foliage to be effective.

Round-Up and Resolva have had very good results but Weedol isn't as thorough. I currently use Wilko's brand which comes up a lot cheaper than the others.

 

They are priced very similarly. I will see whatever is available locally and pick it up this week.

 

Wilko do some concentrated stuff 90G/L glyphosate. Works out cheaper.

Something even cheaper as I was looking at rosate 36 which is 360G/L.

Much better options than roundup I would say, unless I am missing something.

 

Now need to level the ground. The hard job.