Lawns

[cheshiremusicman]

Are there any selective weedkillers here that kill unwanted weeds, but do not harm the Malay grass? I've asked in Chiang Mai & the reply is always "mai mee" & a look of amazement that such like could possibly exist.

Please have a look at my previous comments on this thread re a liquid called '2-4-D', this is probably the best selective weedkiller than you can buy, but as I said previously - I stand corrected if anybody knows anything better.

[ozzydom]

Are there any selective weedkillers here that kill unwanted weeds, but do not harm the Malay grass? I've asked in Chiang Mai & the reply is always "mai mee" & a look of amazement that such like could possibly exist.

Please have a look at my previous comments on this thread re a liquid called '2-4-D', this is probably the best selective weedkiller than you can buy, but as I said previously - I stand corrected if anybody knows anything better.

2-4-D certainly does the job, in Oz it is sold under quite a few names ,I personally stopped using it in my business many years ago when it came to light that it is one of the two active constituents in the manufacture of Agent Orange.

[Pierrot]

I heard it's better to water the lawn in the late evening, because if you do it in the morning the sun will evaporate it before it has time to reach the ground and you're just wasting water. It kind of makes sense especially in Thailand, but is that true ? My land doesn't have much water, I will dig a new pond for the next rainy season but in the mean time I don't want to waste the little water I have.

Is there any ratio for the water needed in Isaan, based on the land size ? For information, we have around 2 rais garden (lawn) and 8 rais wher we want to grow trees, but not yet decide which ones.

On the same subject, does anybody has the address of good shop selling pump and irrigation system in the Korat (south) area? Ideally an honest merchant (!?) who can also provide advises to an amateur gardener

[ozzydom]

Having your lawn wet from watering in the evening is a recipe for mould attack due to the warm humid evenings. It is better to give your lawn one good long watering than many splash and dashes.

The aim is to get the moisture down to the root system rather than just wetting the top where it will evaporate very quickly. A moisture gauge or probe that you just push into the soil of your lawn is a good investment if water is in short supply, the gauge tells you whether your lawn needs water.

A cheap way is to cut a V shaped sod about 6 inches deep from your lawn that you can take out and replace ,by lifting out the sod you can get a profile of your soil and see when it is dry enough to need water.

Most of the big shops like Global house have pumps and irrigation equipment, but I would not hold your breath waiting for advise,that is a scarce commodity in the retail trade here.

Your best bet is ,to ask specific questions on this forum as you progress with your garden,there are many here doing exactly the same as you and quite willing to share their experience and expertise.

Cheers

ozzy

[chownah]

I heard it's better to water the lawn in the late evening, because if you do it in the morning the sun will evaporate it before it has time to reach the ground and you're just wasting water. It kind of makes sense especially in Thailand, but is that true ? My land doesn't have much water, I will dig a new pond for the next rainy season but in the mean time I don't want to waste the little water I have.

Is there any ratio for the water needed in Isaan, based on the land size ? For information, we have around 2 rais garden (lawn) and 8 rais wher we want to grow trees, but not yet decide which ones.

On the same subject, does anybody has the address of good shop selling pump and irrigation system in the Korat (south) area? Ideally an honest merchant (!?) who can also provide advises to an amateur gardener

In Isaan the soils are generally sandy. Sandy soil will not hold alot of water and it is difficult to water it efficiently in that any amount of water above the optimum will be lost to the subsoil. To improve the water holding ability of the soil you can fertilize with aged manures (cow, buffalo, chicken, duck) or composts instead of chemical fertilizers. Using these natural fertilizers will improve the water retention of your soil.

Chownah

[mobile69]

Are there any selective weedkillers here that kill unwanted weeds, but do not harm the Malay grass? I've asked in Chiang Mai & the reply is always "mai mee" & a look of amazement that such like could possibly exist.

Please have a look at my previous comments on this thread re a liquid called '2-4-D', this is probably the best selective weedkiller than you can buy, but as I said previously - I stand corrected if anybody knows anything better.

2-4-D seems to be a broad leaf weedkiller. Does Malay grass qualify as broad leaf? Certainly got broader leaves than the weeds (other "wild" grasses) I need to kill. Anyone know the scientific name for Malay grass? Anyone used 2-4-D on Malay grass lawn?

[cheshiremusicman]

Lite Beer ,It depends on what type of mower you have.

Ozzy

Black and Decker. Rotary

If the blades are on one bolt (swingers ) its safer to take them off and give them a sharpen on a grinder ,if they are two bolt fastened you can just tip the mower over and do them in situ.If you dont have a grinder whip them off and take them to a welding shop, probably cost you 20 baht,.

Sharp blades are also a lot gentler on your motor also.

Cheers

ozzy

Always try to ensure that the 'blade' is balanced after grinding or fileing it, by centre balancing it on a bolt or nail and see that it remains horizontal - this will ensure that you are doing your best to stop out of balance vibrations from setting up in the machine. Just remember, that the blade(s) spin at very high speeds and it only takes a very small inbalance to set up some very strong vibrations.

[rjhklein]

As Nomad says,morning or evening is ok, but I personally prefer mornings especially during the hot humid season as there is less chance of moulds and fungii breakouts if your lawn is dry at night. Natural rain does not seem to cause these problems .

Another tip is to keep your cutting equipment sharp and in the case of cylinder type mowers set properly and run your mower at high revs to give a good clean cut, Lawns that are just chewed down suffer tip browning and look pretty ordinary.

This is probably a stupid question , but how do you keep your mower blade sharp? Can you do it yourself or do you take it somewhere.

I never had a garden in UK so I am learning as I go along.

Last week I fitted some extra water outlets and bought some more sprinklers. Hopefully it is getting enough water now.

I just have to keep the dog off the sprinklers

I just use my drilling machine and bought a " sharpening stone" for it. Check our the drill section at the home pro, they have those drill bit sharpening stones. I guess twice a year is fine depending how many garden sand and stones you include in your mowing sessions