How to restore natural strip lawn and tree?

[Ahmed_ELSHAHAWY]

After completing the construction of my house, I have observed that the natural strip is in poor condition. Although I watered it regularly for a few months, I now see more weeds than grass. Additionally, the tree on the property is showing signs of distress with yellowing leaves and a thin trunk compared to the healthier trees on the street. I have also noticed hard concrete and small stones in the soil. I am seeking assistance to restore my natural strip completely.

 

 

  

 

[JacobZ]

Hi @Ahmed_ELSHAHAWY,

A warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community and thank you for your question.

The first thing I noticed about your nature strip is how compacted the soil is. With large residential construction projects where the earth is cut and filled, this is pretty common. I would suggest you start by addressing this compaction. This can be done by aerating the soil. The best tool you can use for this is a Lawn Corer, which can be hired through our partnership with Coates Hire. Alternatively, you can use a Trojan 2 Prong Coring Lawn Aerator.

Once your soil has been aerated, you should top-dress it with a mix of high-quality topsoil and fine sand. Apply a thin layer of the mix, around 5-10mm thick across the whole nature strip and level it with a soil spreader. Check out How To Aerate and Top Dress Your Lawn for some guidance.

You may need to repeat this process a few times to get things nice and level and allow plenty of air into the root layer of your soil.

You can then apply a lawn fertiliser to your lawn to promote further healthy growth. Have a read through How To Use Lawn Fertiliser for some information and guidance.

Weeds should be expected during this process and can be addressed gradually with manual removal or chemical applications. Check out How To Weed Your Lawn for some guidance.

Make sure you water consistently and mow regularly at a consistent height to promote lateral growth.

Have a look through the Lawn section of our D.I.Y. advice page. There is a wealth of information you can use to get your lawn thriving.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

[Ahmed_ELSHAHAWY]

Thank you so much, Jacobz. I really appreciate your advice and will definitely follow it. Do you also think that the tree’s weak condition is due to the reasons mentioned earlier? also What could be the best fertilizer you would recommend for the tree, as it looks miserable?
Once again, thank you for your advice.”

[EricL]

Hello @Ahmed_ELSHAHAWY 

It is possible that the compaction of the soil hindered the flow of water to your tree. I suggest using Scotts Osmocote 1kg All Purpose Controlled Release Fertiliser for your tree. It provides continuous balanced plant feeding for at least 12 months. Nutrients are released as the plant requires it, providing optimum plant performance with less fertiliser, and very little excess or leaching, keeping the environment cleaner and healthier. My best advice is to aerate around the tree base but make sure not to hit the roots themselves.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric