Sanding the lawn: First aid for compacted and clayey soils
If the grass in your garden is not growing well, there could be a number of reasons for this. In Germany, many gardens have clayey or heavily compacted soil. This leads to lower water permeability, which can affect the growth of your lawn.
By sanding regularly, you can counteract this and loosen up the soil. Many people also use sand to even out small bumps on their lawns. In this article, we will show you exactly what to do when sanding your lawn and in which cases it makes sense. You will also find out which sand is suitable and how best to spread it.
Sanding the lawn: What is it?
When sanding, you spread sand over your entire lawn to loosen the soil.
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When should a lawn be sanded?
You should sand your lawn if the soil in your garden is very compacted or clayey.
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Which sand should I use?
When sanding your lawn, you should use sand with the smallest possible grain size.
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How do I apply lawn sand?
After you have prepared your lawn, spread the sand evenly over your lawn and water it.
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Sanding the lawn: What is it?
Lawn care is a broad topic that involves various measures around your garden. This also includes what is known as sanding. As the name suggests, you apply sand to your lawn. But what is the point of that?
If you apply sand to heavily compacted or clayey soil, this will create a looser topsoil. To do this, spread sand evenly over your entire lawn. This will then be washed into the soil by rain or watering. There it will loosen the soil, allowing water to penetrate the lawn better and reducing waterlogging.
In addition, the sand creates more large pores in your soil. This gives the roots of the lawn more room to grow and also better supplies them with nutrients. At the same time, more air reaches the roots, which also has a positive effect on growth.
When should a lawn be sanded?
Sanding the lawn is not necessary in all gardens. Before you spread the sand, you should take a look at the condition of the soil. Sanding is always necessary when the soil is very compacted or clayey. This is because these conditions make it difficult for water to sink into the soil and the grass roots cannot develop properly: Lawns grow best in loose soil.
The first signs of soil that is too compacted are poor growth, lots of moss and weeds, and a brownish color to the lawn. If you take good care of your lawn and fertilize it regularly, you should be suspicious if you see the symptoms described above and take a closer look at the condition of the soil.
If you have determined that your soil is clayey or heavily compacted, you should add sand regularly. Ideally, the top layer will then remain airy and permeable to a depth of 10 to 15 cm.
Why does moss grow so well in heavily compacted gardens?
Are there a lot of weeds growing in your garden? Despite regular scarification, are you seeing more and more moss? This could be an indication that the soil is very compacted. Grass seeds grow best in loose soil and their roots need a lot of air. Moss is different: it needs very little air and has hardly any demands on its location. This makes it particularly robust and adaptable.
Which sand should I use?
If you want to spread sand on your lawn, you shouldn't choose just any sand. There are different types, such as quartz sand or play sand. We recommend choosing sand with the finest grain possible. A grain of up to 2 mm is ideal.
Fine sand can seep into the soil better and therefore penetrate deeper layers of soil. If you were to choose sand with a coarser grain, it would probably just sit on the surface of your lawn and have no effect.
When buying sand, make sure to choose a sand that is low in lime. This will not affect the pH value of your soil, which could lead to new problems.
Have you already determined the pH value of your soil? This value can tell you whether the poor growth of your soil is perhaps caused by over-acidification.
How to spread lawn sand
If you want to add sand to your lawn, you shouldn't just start. Firstly, your lawn needs to be prepared and secondly, certain guidelines for spreading the sand need to be observed.
In our instructions we summarize for you how to best spread the sand:
Choose the right time
In principle, you can sand your lawn all year round. It is advisable to start in spring. This is when the lawn starts growing and you provide it with the best conditions for it to do so.
Mow your lawn
To ensure that the sand can seep into the soil as effectively as possible, you need to mow your lawn before spreading the sand. It is best to choose a height of 3 to 4 cm and spread the sand over the area on the same day.
Scarify your lawn
You should then scarify your lawn. This will remove weeds, moss and thatch. This gives the sand a chance to seep through the turf into the soil.
Spread the sand evenly
Now spread the sand on your lawn to a height of about 2 cm. You can spread it by hand or use a spreader. Make sure to spread the sand evenly.
Water your lawn
To ensure that the sand doesn't simply blow away, you should water the lawn after sanding. This will allow the sand to seep into the soil particularly quickly and will hopefully have a positive effect on the lawn's growth within just a few weeks.
You have to prepare your lawn correctly before adding sand so that you can see an effect. Once you have done that, you have to wait a little while after adding sand: it is difficult to predict how quickly the sanding will have an effect on your lawn. Watch it carefully and see when it reacts to the sand.
Should you sand the lawn before fertilizing and scarifying?
If you have been taking care of your lawn for a while, you know that mowing, fertilizing, scarifying, etc. are important and should always be done in the right order. You are probably wondering how you can integrate sanding into your lawn care.
Generally speaking, mowing and scarifying are essential before sanding. Both ensure that the sand can seep into the soil. It is therefore not a good idea to sand a lawn that has not been mowed or scarified.
If you want to aerate your lawn, this should also be done before sanding. To do this, you use a suitable device to punch holes in the turf. If your lawn is aerated, this also loosens the soil and can have a positive effect on sanding. Fertilizing is also best done before sanding. We recommend applying the fertilizer about two weeks in advance.
If you want to reseed your lawn, this should also be done before sanding. After sanding, wait about two to three weeks before sowing your lawn seeds. As you can see, sanding is the last step in your lawn care.
Frequently asked questions about lawn care & suitable measures
In this article, you have learned a lot about how best to sand your lawn and what you need to consider when doing so. In this chapter, we answer questions that arise around the topic of sanding the lawn.
In most gardens, it is sufficient to sand the lawn once a year. Spring is the best time for this. However, if your soil is very compacted, a second sanding in autumn may be an option.
You need about 4 to 10 kilograms of sand per square meter. The most important factor is the quality of the soil. You should always make sure that the blades of grass are still visible when you spread sand on the lawn.
We recommend using quartz sand if you want to work sand into the lawn. Play sand is also a good choice. It is important that the grain size is particularly fine, between 0.5 and 2 mm.
Sanding is especially important if the soil in your garden is particularly clayey or heavily compacted. If a lawn is subject to heavy use, regular sanding can also be helpful.
Conclusion: Start sanding your lawn now
If the lawn in your garden is not growing well, you can make some changes by adding sand. After just a few weeks, you will see that the soil appears looser and the lawn grows better. If you add sand to your lawn once a year, you can significantly improve the growth of the lawn. Make sure to prepare the lawn thoroughly and spread the sand evenly.
To all who can and want to do it themselves,
Your RasenExpert Team