sparse grass in shade

by Marion Liscombe
(Hamilton, Ontario, Canada)

We laid new sod last June..it was beautiful until end of July when it all turned brown..have been told too much shade..so went and bought a few weeks ago "shady hollow" grass seed..not much happening...I really do not want to cut down that old maple tree. Can I do anything? Hamilton, Ontario Canada

Doug says that growing grass in the shade of a maple tree is one of the toughest places to do it. The maple is greedy - taking all the water and the shade under the tree is dense - taking all the light. Generally speaking - it just isn't going to ever give you a good lawn.

Don't cut down the tree - it's giving you a ton of summer cooling.

Instead use a mulch under there or use some ground covers that will survive under there.

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sparse grass in shade

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forget the grass, keep the tree
by: Kate Harries

Grass under trees is usually hard on the trees because it competes. Maples are the exception - they compete better. What belongs under trees? A nice layer of decomposing leaves provides the exact nutrients the tree needs (if the leaves are from that tree), conserves moisture, buffers the root area against temperature extremes in winter and summer, and is habitat for insects and beetles and worms and bacteria and fungi that are food for birds and other small creatures and often beneficial to the tree. It's a pity that our urban aesthetic cannot see the beauty in leaf litter because it is part of a tree's - and our - web of life... But any mulch is better than grass... And any tree is better than no tree. Trees are necessary to our health in multiple ways - We must treasure every one of them

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Doug Green