Moss in the lawn can be dangerous if it covers other plants. Get rid of the moss with our tips.
"Nothing going on without moss!" is a lax popular saying. However, he is undesirable in the garden, especially on the lawn. It spreads mainly in shady places and where the soil is acidic. But it also expands when there is waterlogging or the soil is loamy.
Under all these circumstances, moss has optimal growth conditions. Where lawn care is neglected, moss can spread quickly. If you see moss spreading across your lawn, you should act quickly.
Renovate the lawn in your garden
Annoying moss on the lawn can be permanently removed by restricting its growth conditions as much as possible. You should also pay careful attention to lawn care, as this is the only way to develop a "feel-good lawn" in the garden over a long period of time.
Spring is the best time to clean up the lawn. The lawn growth will then not be as advanced and the work will be easier.
Tip 1: Mow and scarify the lawn first
- If necessary, mow your lawn at a cutting height of approx. 2 centimetres. Then scarify it (see scarifier) in lengthways and crossways. The bottom should be scratched no more than 3 to 4 mm deep. In this way, the moss is plucked out of the ground as best as possible and the lawn thatch is loosened.
- Then thoroughly rake the lawn and test the pH value of your soil with a test set (see pH value soil test).
- If the pH value of the soil is well below 7, add lawn lime to the green area. Pay attention to the dosage instructions on the packaging and use a spreader if possible when spreading the lime.
- Scarify the lawn again after 10 days. The lime has now destroyed the remaining moss and should now be combed out.
Tip 2: Moss destroyer only in exceptional cases
A moss destroyer can help when scarifying and liming were not very effective. With this, even the most stubborn moss thatch can be removed from the lawn. The moss will be in about 10 daysdead. It is recommended to bring the moss killer to the lawn together with the lawn fertilizer. However, you should be careful when choosing the moss killer.
If you use preparations with ferrous sulfate too intensively, they can even acidify the soil. That would be fatal for the lawn. Thus, the ground once again becomes a good breeding ground for moss. On the other hand, moss killers with acetic acid or quinoclamin are less dangerous. Moss Killers are applied as follows:
- Mow your lawn at a cutting height of 2 centimeters before applying the moss killer. Now you can use a preparation such as "Substral - Moss remains without chance".
- Ten days after using the moss killer, scarify the lawn to remove the dead moss. Now rake the lawn vigorously.
- After three weeks, check the pH of your lawn soil. If the value is below 7, then lime it. If possible, follow the manufacturer's dosage specifications.
» Tip: You are well advised to use a lawn fertilizer with weed killer.
Tip 3: shaded lawns on areas with little sunlight
Light, shady areas in the lawn become mossy very quickly. That's because conventional lawns don't grow really dense when there's little sunlight. Cut out the old sparsely populated lawn and sow shade lawns in its place. This grows closer together and offers the moss less surface to attack in order to be able to spread. Any lawn is unsuitable in very shady places.
Tip 4: Take good care of the lawn to prevent new moss infestation
Once you have cleaned up the lawn and removed the moss, you should take good care of the green area regularly, otherwise the moss will soon sprout again and your efforts will be in vain.
Mowing the lawn is important. The more often the lawn is mowed, the denser the turf becomes. This allows new grass shoots to form quickly and minimize free surfaces on the lawn. Pay attention to the cutting height. This should be at least 4 centimeters.
While you mow utility and shade lawns once a week, mow decorative lawns twice a week.