Self-thickening grass Substral. Opinion whether it is worth sowing and how it grows

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Substral self-thickening grasswent on sale in spring 2019 and immediately became a hit! According to the manufacturer's declaration, it was supposed to thicken itself thanks to underground runners, from which new tufts of grass grow.Opinions about self-thickening grass , also on our forum, were different. So I decided to checkhow the Substral self-thickening grass growsand sowed it in my own garden. I show the effects in the pictures.


Self-thickening grass Substral. I sowed seeds from this packaging in my garden
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

The report on the effects of sowing self-thickening grass Substral was prepared for you by Rafał Okułowicz, the publisher of PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl, who has been helping gardeners solve their problems on plots and home gardens for over 15 years.

Let's start with what this self-compaction grass is all about. Well,the phenomenon of the new Substral grass is that it produces underground stolons, from which new clumps of grass grow . This makes the lawn thicker over time.
This feature distinguishes self-thickening grass from ordinary grasses , where the tufts can grow out, but the number of the tufts does not increase. When some of the tufts die over time, e.g. due to drought or pests, the lawns become thinner. Then it is necessary to sow new grass seeds to fill these losses. This difference is illustrated in the graphic below.


New grass of Substral is thickening by stolons
Fig. Substral

Additionallyself-compacting grass is very resistant to unfavorable conditions and intensive useYou can walk on it a lot and mow it often. It reacts to the damage caused by … creating subsequent underground runners, from which new tufts of grass grow. As a result, the lawn becomes more compact and it becomes more and more beautiful.
It sounds like a fairy tale? Exactly… For me it also seemed unreliable. So I decided to check it personally andsowed the self-compacting grass in my own gardenWith full awareness that I do not have good soil for my lawn, and the attempts to regenerate the old lawn have been unsuccessful. So my testing ground was excellent. Only really hardy grass can do this!

What was my lawn like before sowing self-thickening grass?

Let's start from the beginning. I started the rescue operations on this lawn 1.5 years earlier, before sowing the self-compacting grass.It was then that I came into possession of this dubiously beautiful piece of greenery, founded by the developer. The photos below show what the lawn looked like. If it can be called a lawn at all … Just don't laugh: -)


Photos from my garden taken when setting up a discount. By the way, you can see the terrible condition of the lawn
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


The photo taken from the window clearly shows the losses in the turf
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

As you can see the lawn was much thinned and it was actually hard to tell what was more - grass or weedsAs for the latter, there was a wide variety of vegetation here, from dandelions , through plantain and plantain, to clover, horsetail, nettles and a few other specimens that I have not identified.


There were more weeds than grass
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

What did I do before to save the lawn?

The lawn got into my hands in the fall, but then I only made the first mowing and sowed autumn fertilizer on the lawns.
I started working with enthusiasm in the springI sandblasted the lawn, because the ground was very compact, clayey (after rainfalls, numerous puddles remained for a long time, and during hot weather the soil became a hard, compact lump). Then aeration, i.e. aeration (piercing the grass surface with long spikes). I gave up scarifying because the lawn was too young for it, and thanks to aeration, the grains of sand could get deep into the ground. Finally, I sowed new grass. Some there, bought in a garden center, i.e. a standard seeding: -)
Of course, I also used fertilizersAlternating with mineral fertilizer for the lawn that displaces weeds and organic fertilizer for safe lawn (produced on the basis of compost).The latter to fertilize and loosen the soil all the time.I also helped myself by using a liquid lawn aerator (microorganisms and aerobic bacteria contained in this preparation loosen and aerate the soil). I also did a soil pH measurement. The pH of the soil was good at 6.0. And that was one of the few things on this earth that was beneficial for the growth of grass.


pH 6.0 is correct for the lawn
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

Another problem that I identified, apart from weeds and too heavy soil , was the presence of grubs in the ground under the lawn. This explained why the tufts of grass were very easy to tear from the ground (grubs nibble at the roots).
I found grubs while digging holes for newly planted plants. On the other hand, unfortunately, leaf bites quickly appeared on the plants, which were the work of adult beetles. In the first year, I gnawed strawberries, while in the second year of having a garden, I discovered their activity, among others.in on the bumblebee.


The holes in the leaves of the euonymus have been bitten by beetles. Their larvae, or grubs, gnawed at the grass roots
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

These symptoms convinced me of the need to spray all the soil in the biological garden with P-Drakol, the task of which isnatural elimination of voracious beetle larvae feeding in the ground under the lawn .
I did not spray herbicides against weeds . Due to my ecological beliefs and the relatively small area of ​​the lawn, I only removed the weeds by hand.
Unfortunatelythe lawn did not look much better in the spring of the following year . Although the grass was thicker, the ground beneath it was more fertile, and the weeds were definitely less,holes and gaps in the grass stung the eyes .

How I sowed self-compacting grass

And then it wasthat I got Substralself-compacting grass seed to try. Since the lawn still didn't impress, I didn't have much to lose. I decided to sow new seeds and see how much they are really worth.
I decided to sow them in two ways.I spread some of the seeds all over the lawn as additional seed , which was supposed to fill numerous gaps and thinning out as well as holes created after weeds were pulled out.The second part of the seeds was sown around the newly created terrace .
The excavation for the terrace was slightly larger than the planned area of ​​the terrace, so there was a band of soil and grass left after the terrace was established. I filled it with new fertile soil for lawns andsowed the seeds of self-thickening grass from Substral .


Seeds of self-compacting grass sown at the edges of the terrace
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

I sowed the self-compacting grass in April 2019 Before sowing, the lawn was properly prepared. First, I did spring scarifying and aeration. Thanks to scarifying, furrows were formed in the ground into which the newly sown grass seeds could fall. I decided to grab the places around the terrace, where there was fresh soil, so that grooves for new seeds would also be created here: -)

How did I care for the self-compacting grass?

After sowing, I provided the lawn with intensive wateringI watered from the sprinkler with a finely divided stream of water so as not to flush the newly sown grass seeds from the ground.
Initially, however, the effects did not appear. The night frosts, which occurred despite already very warm days, were not conducive to the germination of grass. In addition, there was a spring drought, which was a bane for probably all gardeners this year. Farmers also complained and demanded help from the government (it was loud on TV).Finally, after a few rainy days in May, the first new blades of grass appeared It was a joy!


I use simple hand tools for lawn care
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

I watered all the time, although not so intensely, and also used fertilization according to the scheme from last year ( alternating with mineral and organic fertilizers).The following weeks did not seem to bring any special results.However, we must take into account that this summer was exceptional. Still heat and drought. For comparison, I had roll lawns set up by my neighbors last fall and this spring. Beautiful at first, despite irrigation, turned yellow and thinned. My heart was cut because I know how much a roll of lawn costs.It's just that in such heat every grass gets to the bone
And finally at the beginning of August it cooled down and it rained heavily. I complained a bit, because I was just on vacation… the weather changed to anger.But when I got home, what a joy it was to see the lawn!

The end result is fantastic !!!

Finally, the self-compacting grass is on the move.We had to wait 4 months for the effect, but it looked greatAnd with the following weeks it was getting better.
The band around the terrace was overgrown with grass, as if this band had never been empty .The entire lawn shimmers with lush greenery and is dense like a carpetThe few remaining weeds seem to be more and more hidden among the densely growing grass.
The whole family also benefited and … the floor in our living room !Finally, the children run around the lawn happily barefoot and return home with their feet not dirty from the groundAs if they were running on a grass carpet. Playing football, flips and rolling on the lawn is now a pleasure: -)
Below photos of my lawn taken in September 2019The grass is not perfect yet, but incomparably better than what I had before.After 5 months of sowing the Substral self-thickening grass, I can say that my dream of a beautiful lawn has just come true: -)Despite the presence of grubs, heavy clay soil and exceptional drought this summer.


Self-thickening grass changed my lawn
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


Empty spaces around the terrace are thickly overgrown with grass
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


Comparison of the lawn before and after sowing the self-thickening grass
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


The effect obtained thanks to the self-thickening grass of Substral
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

I hopethe photos show well the effect I achieved thanks to the self-thickening grass of Substral . My opinion about this grass is absolutely positive. It is a grass that makes dreams of a beautiful and dense lawn come true: -)

The grass is thickened after one year of use

The photos you saw above were taken in the year of sowing the grass. In the spring of 2019, I sowed, and in the summer, I enjoyed the effects and took photos. It's timeto assess how the lawn has wintered over the winter and how it is doing after a year of use . I will add this fragment a year later - in summer 2020.
This year has been unusual. It was (or is actually still) under the sign of the coronavirus. In March, schools were closed, and until the summer holidays they studied at home with a laptop. There was also the time of the so-called lockdown, when it was impossible to leave the house without a justified need.It was very important for the lawn, because we used it very intensively in our house
In order for the children to keep their physical shape, we decided that during the breaks between lessons we would all go out to the garden to play football and we invented various other sports and movement games.I thought we would trample the lawn, but this one was doing very well .
What I especially appreciate the sown Substral grass for isnot only its durability, but also the fluffiness effect- it's pleasant to walk (or run) barefoot on the lawn. It is soft as on a fluffy carpet: -)
And finally, for the first time, in spring, I did not have to do additional seeding. Formerly, I thought that there would be no end to seedlings.And here please,no cavities, the lawn compacts itselfThis is really cool!Below are photos of my lawn taken in summer 2020.


A year after seeding my lawn is still doing well
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


The grass tolerates intensive use very well
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl


Just mow and fertilize and the grass is doing great: -)
Fig. © PoradnikOgrodniczy.pl

If you also want to have such lawns, I invite you to order self-thickening grass in the store of our guide. Of course, we sell different types of grass from different producers, but it is worth choosing the Substral self-compacting grass described here.Based on my own experience, I can recommend this product with full conviction

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