Gardening

[BennyCake]

I'm after a petrol rotovator, hoping to plant a few vegetables.

Anyone recommend where to buy, what brand, likely cost etc?

[Jim Bob]

Mantis tiller 4 stroke. Has a  Honda engine. Great job. Even hardened ground turned to fine soil. Maybe a bit expensive though if it's a one off job.

[BennyCake]

Mantis tiller 4 stroke. Has a  Honda engine. Great job. Even hardened ground turned to fine soil. Maybe a bit expensive though if it's a one off job.

Well I plan to use it more than once 

What sort of money would you be talking for that?

[Jim Bob]

https://mantis.uk.com/product/mantis-deluxe-4-stroke-tillercultivator/

[BennyCake]

Thinking of growing a few veg now we're stuck for the forseeable future.

Anyone recommend a good place online to buy seeds? Tomato, pepper, onions etc.

[bogball88]

Such is my prowess at this kind of stuff I'm not sure if this comes under gardening or DIY...

I put some brick pavers down 4/5 years back, this year weeds and moss have started to show plus they could do with a clean. Mr Google has provided mostly contradictory answers. Do Powerhose/ or definitely don't powerhose, bleach, washing powder, specially made up solutions..

Any tips.. ta

I got a 25 litre container of sodium hypochlorite from a builder's yard, fourteen quid. Try that.

Where could you pick up a jar of this now?

[bogball88]

Powerhosing not a good thing in my book esp if pavers are just held with sand. Did it once years ago and never again.

Nowadays I just put down diluted hypochlorite 3:1 (deosan red label). Apply in the dry and rinse off a half day later for best results. I just use a watering can with reduced flow spout and I cover some size of an area at not that great an expense. I get a drum for around £18. If you were to cover the same area with weedol or an equivalent it would be £100's

Use gloves and welly boots and clothes you can handle a stain on as this stuff strips the die outta clothes quickly. Other than that, keep the kids clear and don't mind the smell that will linger for a few days like a swimming pool ...

Why so?

[marty34]

Such is my prowess at this kind of stuff I'm not sure if this comes under gardening or DIY...

I put some brick pavers down 4/5 years back, this year weeds and moss have started to show plus they could do with a clean. Mr Google has provided mostly contradictory answers. Do Powerhose/ or definitely don't powerhose, bleach, washing powder, specially made up solutions..

Any tips.. ta

I got a 25 litre container of sodium hypochlorite from a builder's yard, fourteen quid. Try that.

Where could you pick up a jar of this now?

A builder's yard that sells animal feeds.  I think they are still open.

[Tony Baloney]

Such is my prowess at this kind of stuff I'm not sure if this comes under gardening or DIY...

I put some brick pavers down 4/5 years back, this year weeds and moss have started to show plus they could do with a clean. Mr Google has provided mostly contradictory answers. Do Powerhose/ or definitely don't powerhose, bleach, washing powder, specially made up solutions..

Any tips.. ta

I got a 25 litre container of sodium hypochlorite from a builder's yard, fourteen quid. Try that.

Where could you pick up a jar of this now?

A builder's yard that sells animal feeds.  I think they are still open.

You've reminded me that's something I need to pick up. Fane Valley in Armagh do it. Acheson and Glover have advised me against power washing their pavers.

[bigfrank]

Bought a turnkey house last year,lawn at the front has grew out pretty well but the back lawn hasn't had the same progress,it had far more stones in it and is likely full of hard fill,broken pavers etc underneath that contractor wanted rid off on site lol. It's quite mossy and has small clumps of rush type grass through it. Would something like miracle grow and daily watering gradually help grass growth and suffocate the weed type areas??

[Gaafan2]

Bought a turnkey house last year,lawn at the front has grew out pretty well but the back lawn hasn't had the same progress,it had far more stones in it and is likely full of hard fill,broken pavers etc underneath that contractor wanted rid off on site lol. It's quite mossy and has small clumps of rush type grass through it. Would something like miracle grow and daily watering gradually help grass growth and suffocate the weed type areas??

In the same predicament myself, only for moss I'd have nothing on the back lawn.

I've also a feeling the contractor has loaded it with hard fill and waste materials.

Any advise would be welcome.

[general]

also in this predicament.

the front of the house is growing well in places, poor in others, im in the house 4 1/2 years now.

id imagine ive spent in the region of 500 quid on feeds, seeds etc.

these contractors throw the unwanted materials in and 3 inches of poor quality top soil on top, then seed it. cheap as possible.

ive been toying with the idea of a couple of loads of top soil and barrowing it to the back of my house. serious work involved however I think its the only option at this stage. something seriously wrong if grass refuses to grow

[Milltown Row2]

also in this predicament.

the front of the house is growing well in places, poor in others, im in the house 4 1/2 years now.

id imagine ive spent in the region of 500 quid on feeds, seeds etc.

these contractors throw the unwanted materials in and 3 inches of poor quality top soil on top, then seed it. cheap as possible.

ive been toying with the idea of a couple of loads of top soil and barrowing it to the back of my house. serious work involved however I think its the only option at this stage. something seriously wrong if grass refuses to grow

I got Green Thumb in years ago to do a bitta stuff as we are not green fingers at all, the did a few treatments at the start and they come twice a year, initially it cost a bit (not too much) but they manage to maintain a very difficult lawn. The two treatments cost around 30 quid each, if the garden had taken a beating of the autumn winter period I get them out again.

Have flower beds around the outside of the lawns which are easy kept plants, would love a real flush looking garden but like most people the builders weren't great when left with the garden

[bigfrank]

Yes much more effort put into front of house by contractor as it's on show and in my case attached to another house,back garden I have filled buckets of stones off it around the fence edge,also tried to make holes in garden before I threw down garden seed and every time I drove fork in it seemed to hit something hard.

Cut the small rush clumps out at the stump one day,tried to get root and all and filled hole with top soil taken from a site my brother is building on. Seeds haven't really done anything yet a week later,possibly crap quality or need more time. Few handfuls of fertiliser help??

[Tony Baloney]

also in this predicament.

the front of the house is growing well in places, poor in others, im in the house 4 1/2 years now.

id imagine ive spent in the region of 500 quid on feeds, seeds etc.

these contractors throw the unwanted materials in and 3 inches of poor quality top soil on top, then seed it. cheap as possible.

ive been toying with the idea of a couple of loads of top soil and barrowing it to the back of my house. serious work involved however I think its the only option at this stage. something seriously wrong if grass refuses to grow

Wasting time feeding it as it can't grow in poor soil. It's like painting over a damp patch. The rushes etc. are a result of poor drainage so I'd say all the reasons you have cited re. fill etc. are correct. Contractors are c***ts for this, people are paying for the house inc. site, not just the 4 walls and a roof.

I don't see how you resolve it without a mini-digger and a trailer to get the area properly drained and then put at least a foot of topsoil on it and re-seed.

My lawn is similar but it's on clay soil so there are parts where the water just lies after heavy rain. I'm getting a fella to do some fencing and when he has his digger out I'm going to get him to dig some sort of drainage into the lawn then fill it with clean stones and cover with a bit of soil and re-seed. It's a bollox!