Kids, Pets, Wildlife & Safety
- Safe way to kill moss
- Lawn feed and pets
- Natural or Organic Weed Killer Recommendation
- Lawns and hens
- Rabbit Safe Lawn Feed
- Soluble lawn food safety
Safe way to kill moss
I want to kill the moss, but I don't want to kill my dog...
Hi Lana
Presuming you want to get rid of the moss as well then the first thing is to rake it out. Won't affect the dog at all.
The second thing is to spray what is left with a solution of ferrous sulphate. This is a naturally occuring salt and the only possibly side effects are that the grass will be a little saltier and rich in iron (as is spinach) should the dog decide to eat it.
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Lawn feed and pets
Can you recommend what I can buy from you to feed the lawn which is dog friendly and a product to clear up the patches
Andy – thanks for your question
You've highlighted a weak spot in the information we provide on our fertiliser products pages so these are going to be updated over the next 24 hours to state that your lawn is safe for use by kids, pets and wildlife straight after applying any Lawnsmith® Fertiliser. This includes puppies that will eat anything! Just keep the bag away from it!!!
The fertilisers we use do not contain any pesticides or herbicides (weed killer) as we believe this is better for you, your family, pets, wildlife and the environment. You can read more at Weed and Feed is OUT. Two of our fertilisers do contain Iron and this may cause staining of feet or footwear for a day or so after application but otherwise safe.
This means our Autumn Lawn Feed will be fine for your needs. It is soluble once applied and will quickly dissolve into the soil where it can feed the grass roots.
With regard the patches; you can find more about dog urine burn at Dogs and the Lawn. Though this may not be the answer you want, keeping a high level of moisture in the soil is the only thing that works for certain. It is also beneficial to keep the lawn mower on the high side as this promotes grass strength and deep roots. A feed in the spring as well as autumn will also keep the grass in good health. For spring I'd recommend either Extra-LONG for Clay Soil or Extra-LONG for Sandy Soil.
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Natural or Organic Weed Killer
I would like to use organic or natural weed killers on my lawn. Can you suggest anything other than vinegar?
Hi Melanie
You can use vinegar or a strong salt solution to kill weeds, the problem is it will kill any plant, grass included so it is not ideal for the lawn. If you are going to do this be very accurate and I would suggest 'painting' the solution on the weed. If your concerns are to reduce pesticide use for the environment then I would suggest using a lawn spot spray weed killer. This way it only goes on the weed with minimal impact on anything else.
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Lawns and hens
I keep a small flock of hens (mainly bantams) in my back garden and this year the lawn is looking very bare and sparse. Amazingly the grass usually grows back each year but the condition and thickness of the grass is diminishing year by year.
I want to reseed parts of it and perhaps feed it, so I could do with advice on when to do this and what type of grass seed and fertilizer would be suitable plus any other tips in maintaining a lawn that gets hard use. The lawn is well aerated by a vast number of worms that surface at night (I think they have moved from the borders to escape from the hens!) Thanks in advance
Sue
It shouldn't be any problem managing a lawn with hens though sometimes priority will have to go to the grass otherwise you'll end up with mud.
The hens lifestyle usually means little thatch, moss and few weeds. Sometimes though it can mean little grass particularly after a long winter. Also on the upside hen poop adds some useful nutrition and plenty of organics hence a thriving population of worms.
What you're lacking is an opportunity for the lawn to recover together with the fact that the lawn requires more nitrogen than the hen poo can supply. So, wait until things warm up and the grass gets growing which would perhaps be early to mid April in Shropshire and get some fertiliser and grass seed into the area. Try and keep the hens off for two weeks or alternativley do one half then two weeks later do the other half.
I would recommend the Spring & Summer Feed for Clay Soil as this is the most cost effective for your needs. For seed I'd go with EasyGreen as this is the fastest germinating and growing whilst being very robust and once again cost effective.
More help can be found in the directions for recovering a lawn after scarifying plus over seeding.
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Rabbit Safe Lawn Feed
I have a giant rabbit that has free-run of the garden. I would like to give the lawn a boost with some feed but need something that is safe for the rabbit even if he goes out the day or morning after it is applied and eats the grass, what would you recommend?
Hi Tracy
Ours certainly are - it says so at the bottom of 'Additional Information' on all of our fertilisers - rabbits included. Just go to the Lawnsmith Shop.
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Soluble lawn food
Can children and pets go on the grass after I put down the lawn food - is it safe?
Hi Daniel
It says so at the bottom of 'Additional Information' on the Soluble Fertiliser page. On the bag we recommend not using the lawn until the spray has dried that's all.
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