Need Ideas on building a lawn.

[Leo Voisine]

OK - you saw in the last set of pictures, that I spread 60 yards of nice black rich loam on the front yard.

I did the best I could with a bob cat. I dont do bobcat work very often but I think I did pretty good anyway,

It is ROUGHLY spread out - but with serious ruts, highs and lows.

It needs to be seriously raked out.

I ain't about to even try that by hand.

I have a dethatcher and a riding mower. I put a cement block on the dethatcher and it is kinda like a rake.

Any ideas? How about one of those rotary airators?

I will be working this out tomorrow and manybe Saturday and Sunday.

[Stretch]

For leveling, I built a drag out of some scrap 2 x 4's and some extra chain link fence that I had. I took two 8 footers for the sides, then nailed two 6' cross braces on spaced two feet from the end's so I had a 4' x 6' box. (it was a 4' x 6' piece of chain link). I attached the chain link to the bottom and threw a scrap piece of plywood on the top to add rigidity and weight. Basically you want the legs to stick out in front and behind the drag surface (chain link) so that it'll float over the low spots and catch on the high spots. It worked great for following up the bobcat when I leveled the pad to pour the concrete for my shop.

[Ruffnek]

I've got a doubled piece of concrete re-mesh about 3' x 5' with a rope pull and a couple pieces of cross-tie on top for weight. I drag it around with the riding mower (I'd use the 4-wheeler now) and it does a pretty good job of breaking up clods, filing in the ruts, etc.

I think Stretch's chain link drag would work better though because it's flexible.

DR makes a leveler for just that application. You could probably rent one if you have something to pull it with...a big riding mower or a f-wheeler.

[TDHofstetter]

Another option - I don't have one of these, but they DO WORK... go to the dump or just cruise town looking for "free piles". You're looking for a real box spring, the old type loaded with springs & a steel frame. When you get it home, strip the fabric off it & lay it on the ground. Toss several concrete blocks on top of it, tie it up to whatever you'll be using to tug it around, and tug it around. Does a fine job, ugly as it is.

Or... it's entirely possible to build a wood-framed grader with a steel snowplow cutting edge bolted to it. Tie off to the REAR, though, so you don't pull it apart, if you don't run stiffener cables front-to-rear. You'd be surprised what a wooden frame can tolerate - I've seen amazing stuff.

[fredbelknap]

Leo if all you got to pull with is a riding lawn mower I would make a drag some 2x4 space several inches apart, make something real simple maybe 4'x4' and make its so that you can add or remove weight like bricks, rocks , or what ever you have.. If it is packed pretty hard you might put some spikes in it to loosen up the ground.
edit: never used one of those rotary things but they look like you would need a little more to pull one.

[Joe Lyddon]

Leo, when that's all done, are you going to mess with seed (going to get cold) or are you going to buy Sod and just LAY it in place to get Instant Lawn?

[dburkhart]

Leo i would use a troybilt rototiller at its shallow setting.It will break up the clumps and level the yard.The troybilts are very easy to use they dont bounce and you can run them with one hand while walkink at the side so no foot prints.You may want to wait till winter is over to let the earth settle and redo in the spring.Iwould loan you the tiller all you have to do is come get it.

[Leo Voisine]

I am gonna wait till spring to seed it.

I need to spread another 50 yards on top of the fill I just spread - but I wand that to settle over the winter.

Cody's concrete mesh sounds like something I might be able to obtain.

The troy built is something I have used many many times - but I need the raking - leveling thing now.

For today I need to do a pile of stuff by hand with a stone rake - then I am gonna go at it with the dethatcher and 1-2 cement blocks on top.

Saturday - I might try something different

My small town dump has recycling dumpsters - and they don't allow you to dive into them. Ohhh - I remember the old days - got some nice stuff out of dumps.

[deepsplinter]

I've seen Stretch's chain link fence gizmo used before. I was surprised at how well it worked.

[Joe Lyddon]

Out here in Calif., the common procedures are:

Install the sprinkling system. (for all methods)

Turf laying:
After the area is nice & flat, just lay it on... in rows.
Set your timers to keep it moist and not dry out... when established, you can set it for a more normal frequency.

Seed planting #1
There is a method where they (installers) will literally blow a top coat onto the area with the seeds already in the mix.
Then, you just keep watered... damp & do not let it dry out.

Seed planting #2
After your top coat has been applied & rolled flat, spread the seed either by hand broadcasting (like feeding chickens) or use a "spreader". Water like #1 above.

The turf method is the most popular... you get Instant lawn! But, it does cost more and you don't have the headache of watching the watering so closely as in seed planting. You can walk on it right now!

[Leo Voisine]

Nov 12, 2009 12:44:01 GMT -6 Joe Lyddon said:

Out here in Calif., the common procedures are:

Install the sprinkling system. (for all methods)

Turf laying:
After the area is nice & flat, just lay it on... in rows.
Set your timers to keep it moist and not dry out... when established, you can set it for a more normal frequency.

Seed planting #1
There is a method where they (installers) will literally blow a top coat onto the area with the seeds already in the mix.
Then, you just keep watered... damp & do not let it dry out.

Seed planting #2
After your top coat has been applied & rolled flat, spread the seed either by hand broadcasting (like feeding chickens) or use a "spreader". Water like #1 above.

The turf method is the most popular... you get Instant lawn! But, it does cost more and you don't have the headache of watching the watering so closely as in seed planting. You can walk on it right now!

Nah - I ain't doin no sprinkler system. I would need to drill a seperate well just for that - and I am not doing that.

Hydroseeding is the stuff I am thinking of - in the springtime.

Well - the dethatcher is fair - but I am thinking of getting the rotary airator. I need something a little more agressive than the dethatcher. I can doo it with the dethatcher - but it would take an entire day and a full tank of gas. Not too bad I guess.

I did about half on Wednesday - but it got dark out.

[CajunRider]

If your riding mower is strong enough you can try dragging a piece of hurricane fence with one steel post attached to the far end to level the high and low. I've always done all my final leveling that way and it works great. After the drag, the yard should be ready for seeding. I don't know about where you live but down here, this time of year I'll seed it with winter rye. The winter rye can tolerate quite a bit of low temperature. The winter rye keeps level through the winter. Then I'll seed it with whatever I want in the spring. I don't like to leave my land unseeded for a long period because the rain will erode all my good soil away.

[Leo Voisine]

Nov 17, 2009 0:46:19 GMT -6 CajunRider said:

If your riding mower is strong enough you can try dragging a piece of hurricane fence with one steel post attached to the far end to level the high and low. I've always done all my final leveling that way and it works great. After the drag, the yard should be ready for seeding. I don't know about where you live but down here, this time of year I'll seed it with winter rye. The winter rye can tolerate quite a bit of low temperature. The winter rye keeps level through the winter. Then I'll seed it with whatever I want in the spring. I don't like to leave my land unseeded for a long period because the rain will erode all my good soil away.

Ya know - I don't know what hurricane fence is - we just don't get much in the way of hurrycanes here.

BUT

You made me think of an idea for a rake to drag around. Now I need to sketch it out otherwise I will forget all about it.

Looks like the weather is changing into the cooler months and the yahd work is closing down REAL fast. We have a couple of freezing nights already.

Thanks.

[monty]

Nov 18, 2009 17:08:19 GMT -6 Leo Voisine said:

Ya know - I don't know what hurricane fence is - we just don't get much in the way of hurrycanes here.

Hurricane fence is the same as cyclone fence or chain link fence.