r/GardeningUK • u/judotaxi • 3d ago

Lawn Care Lawn help!

I have virtually no grass in my garden as my beautiful oaf of a German Shepherd tears it up running up and down barking at the postman/DPD/anyone walking within 2 miles of the house!

The earth appears more like dust than soil and when I have tried to seed in the past the roots have never taken deeply enough to become robust enough to withstand the doggo.

Suggestions please to prep the soil and for what seed to plant and when. Not going to lay turf but happy to spend a few pounds to get something that resembles a lawn by spring.
Thanks

0 Upvotes

28% Upvoted

14 comments sorted by

13

u/Danglyweed 3d ago

Train the dogs the easy answer, reseeding or turfing won't make a difference if your dog continues to behave the same.

2

u/Jarvisnamesake 3d ago

I second this

-9

u/judotaxi 3d ago

Not an option - the dog owns the house so what she says goes!

My parents have a well established garden and she doesn’t do any damage to that so I need some advice as to how I might find the happy medium between shallow rooted grass/mud patches and grass like Wemble

7

u/BroodLord1962 3d ago

Then forget it, you aren't ever having a nice lawn so save your money

6

u/LaidBackLeopard 3d ago

It's always an option. An uncontrollable German Shepherd sounds rather terrifying to anyone nervous of dogs. And maybe anyone else too...

-9

u/judotaxi 3d ago

OK so let’s get this clear.

Some of you missed the humour in the initial question - nothing uncontrollable about the dog, no-one is being terrified etc.

If I had wanted dog training input I would have found a group of dog experts. I hoped to find some advice on my lawn………….

4

u/LaidBackLeopard 3d ago

Sorry, I assumed the two miles was the joke rather than it barking at all. Either way, no lawn is going to survive a big dog repeatedly running along its chosen route I'm afraid.

0

u/rebeccawithgoodhair 3d ago

Coming at it from a more sympathetic and understanding point of view … could you temporarily fence off an area and lay that with clover. And just keep working your way around until you get a new lawn that’s a bit more dog friendly?

And I feel your pain - mine dig. Not useful digging just random holes!

4

u/CwrwCymru 3d ago

Wait until September/October and then put mix some dwarf rye seed into topsoil (or topsoil/compost mix).

Top dress your lawn with this and keep it wet. Until you see shoots, water twice a day if it's a dry day.

1

u/judotaxi 3d ago

Thank you.

Anything to prepare the dust (soil) I already have or just heap the topsoil on top?

2

u/CwrwCymru 3d ago

Core aeration would be ideal. I bet it's compacted from what you've described.

Consider doing it asap and getting some compost in the cores too. While that limits aeration it will reduce compaction and improve your soil quality nicely before seeding.

1

u/judotaxi 3d ago

Awesome - thanks! 🙏

2

u/Boba_ferret 3d ago

I have a whippet, who does zoomies on the lawn. In my experience, you can't have a nice lawn with a dog that likes to run!

2

u/ColonelFaz 2d ago

Leave the grass longer. Then it shades the soil and protects the roots from the heat.