wettasoil?

[cruisindub]

Hi swaggers,

Trying to get my garden established, (in between fitting the new kitchen)  forecasted ffr rain tomorrow, south west WA.

Was in Bunnings earlier to get some wettasoil, I was told that wettasoil was just soap.?
what so you guys use, liquid /granules or other?

Have about 300m2 garden. (Grass)

Cheers in advance.

[Burnsy]

Speaking as an ex landscaper who has spent plenty of time dealing with Perth's hydrophobic sands.

Use the granules, easier to get a good even coverage.

Yes it is a type of detergent, the detereant changes the charge of the sand particles allowing water to penetrate.

Cover sand with a good layer of organic rich mulch and keep it irrigated, once it dries out you are back to the beginning.

If grass, keep a decent amount of length in it and mow without a catcher so as to return the clippings evenly over the lawn whenever possible (try every second mow).  Kyikuyu is the easiest to keep green and maintain, couch looks great when green but needs lots of water to stay that way, buffalo needs special care or you end up with patchy dead areas.

Run your washing machine water out onto your lawn and move the hose each wash, great for getting water penetration in the grey sand.

[liney]

Burnsy- as being a local and enjoying gardening etc I found that post of yours bl@@dy helpful- thanks for that.

[Kalebjarrod]

Weta soil works but it changes you ph over time

Your just breaking the surface tension of the soil, so detergent does the same job, it's just way harder to get the right ration because there all different

Hydraflow from Scott's is better as it does not change your ph, it's just really expensive

Cover sand with a good layer of organic rich mulch and keep it irrigated, once it dries out you are back to the beginning.

If grass, keep a decent amount of length in it and mow without a catcher so as to return the clippings evenly over the lawn whenever possible (try every second mow).  Kyikuyu is the easiest to keep green and maintain, couch looks great when green but needs lots of water to stay that way, buffalo needs special care or you end up with patchy dead areas.

Run your washing machine water out onto your lawn and move the hose each wash, great for getting water penetration in the grey sand.

Sort of right

Grass clippings when left on the lawn form a thatch, like a thatch roof, which will replel water, BUT if you collect your lawn clippings and compost them then return the compost to the lawn that is way better

When you run your grey water out onto the lawn the water will contain heaps of phosphorus, this will kill natives, especially west Australian natives.

[Burnsy]

Grass clippings when left on the lawn form a thatch, like a thatch roof, which will replel water, BUT if you collect your lawn clippings and compost them then return the compost to the lawn that is way better

When you run your grey water out onto the lawn the water will contain heaps of phosphorus, this will kill natives, especially west Australian natives.

If your lawn is so long that it is layering like a thatch you want to collect the clippings. If you mow weekly then it should not be long enough to thatch. What you want is small clippings spread evenly over the lawn that will wash down to below the lawn leaf.  I have Kik at home and mow only with a mulching mower, no clipping removal ever and my front lawn generally looks like a well manecured caravan park.

And I forot to add, weed the gastolobiums out of your lawn before the phospate kills them   In all seriousness though many if not most laundry powders have reduced phospate these days and unless you are pouring your washing water regularly out onto a native garden you will have no problem

[cruisindub]

Thanks for the info guys,much appreciated

More helpful advice from knowledgeable swaggers.   (Looks like others also appreciated the time to respond)

Cheers

[making tracks]

Both ways are right to some degree, every lawn and every way they are maintained will have a pos/neg affect. Did the lawn need to be bowling green perfect or is it one that gets mowed every three weeks or so just to be looking good with minalnal help because he/she doesn't want to chained to turf. If the latter,Parvollive or morning fresh will suffice and at 3 monthly intervals if soil/sand is so hydrophobic. There are afew products around (Scott's) which incorporate a well balanced macro/micro nutrient and wetting agent for a healthy happy looking lawn. Water,water,water,plus nutrients are the basics. Morning fresh in a watering can at any rate and all is good. 20 years in horticulture  and  saved $$$ in the process. Use with confidence and WATER...