Re: Compost on the lawn

Nan Sterman wrote:
> 
> >I was interested by Carol's observations that the grubs are frequently
> >of little moment on really healthy vigorous lawns, as since I have
> >adopted a better regime for _my_ lawns (higher mowing, feeding with
> >compost)
> 
> Moira, I have a dumb question for you -- how do you apply compost to your
> lawn.  Do you simply pile on the compost over the surface of the lawn?  If
> so, how do you keep from killing the grass and how long does it take for
> the compost to disappear into the lawn?  How long until you can walk on it
> again?

Nan
It's not in the least a dumb question. I was doubtful myself when I
first read about it.

I first found the information in the pages of Organic Gardening magazine
several years ago and have used it with success ever since.

Basically, one feeds the lawn just like any garden bed, by spreading a
thin layer of the material over the surface. The original acount said
the application should be in Fall, but I now think this would apply only
to places where the ground is frozen over winter. In milder climates one
could put it on almost any time of year when the ground was already wet
or rain confidently expected. I don't think it could actually harm a dry
lawn, but the conditions would be very hard on the microlife in the
compost, and advantages could be lost because many of the organisms
simply died off.

Now the method. It is easier to get a good spread if the lawn is first
mowed. Once this is done the compost is spread over the turf as evenly
as possible. I find about  one gallon of compost (half a standard bucket
in my country) is just  about the righ amount to cover one square metre
(or yard, in your measures - near enough). Until one gets the hang of
the rate it helps to have square yards marked out with a string or to
use a light wooden "mask" of the right dimensions. The correct amount is
dumped in the space and then worked down among the grass stems as evenly
as possible with the back of a rake. By the time you have done this on
several occasions you will proably find you can dispense with the
guidelines and judge by eye you  have the right amount.

As to your questions. I guess it is best not to walk on the area right
away, but you certainly do not need to avoid it for more than a couple
of days. Especially in warm weather it disappears underground with the
most remarkable rapidity and within a week I can seldom find any of it,
though often the lawn which was mulched
is already greener than the untreated parts. it is, of course a pretty
complete feed and I have never found any need to supplement it with
fertilizers, even organic ones. Furthermore, my lawn fertilty has
increased so much I do not feel it necessary to feed all the grass every
year, but work round so each area gets a new dressing about every third
year. This might however depend on individual circumstances.

If you have been feeding your lawn with acid fertilizers for many years,
the applied compost might be a bit longer disappearing the first time,
because there could be a scarcity of worms to do the job, but as you
persist in this natural style of feeding your worm population will
steadily increase and speed up the action.

If you make your own compost, this makes feeding the lawn a great deal
cheaper than than if you puchase fertilizers, and because it encourages
the microlife it has a better and more lasting effect on the grass
growth. One effect I have seen on poor weedy areas is the rapid and
vigorous spreading of remaining clumps of good lawn grass, filling in
bare areas and crowding out the weeds.

And talking of home-made compost. For the first few times I religiously
sieved the compost before applying it to my grass, but then came an 
occasion  when, pressed for time, I just used it straight from the bin,
picking out only any obviously-unrotted twigs, stones and the odd
plastic or metal remant. When I found this rough stuff actually
diasppeared as rapidly as the poncy sieved variety, I gave up worrying
and have used the unsieved version ever since.

I think I have covered everyting, but if any other questios strike you,
just ask me.

Moira

-- 
Tony & Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz>
Wainuiomata, New Zealand. (on the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
Lat. 41:16S Long. 174:58E. Climate: Mediterranean/Temperate
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