I can't get grass to grow in my very shady yard where my dog plays. What else can I put there so I won't have mud?
Hardiness Zone: 5a
By Sheila Douglas from Westminster, CO
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Put down creek rock or plant a ground covering that's not poisonous to pets.
I had the same problem, so I shingled the back garden. Just incase the translation isn't the same, that was 3 tonnes of pebbles! Works a treat and no muddy footprints!
Here's several ideas:
MOSS: How to "Grow" it Yourself = Take green moss from your yard, or buy several packs from a dollar store (like Dollar Tree) or from a Craft Store (the green kind, not the hanging-down brown kind). Then put a hand full of it into a blender with water & several Tablespoons from an 8 ounce container of PLAIN yogurt. (The yogurt gives the moss nourishment & helps it grow faster) Make a bunch of "batches" then pour them into a non-metallic bowl or a large plastic pitcher. Now simply pour this concoction where you want moss to grow. The spoors in the dried moss will make it spread & before long (depending on the season it may take several months) you'll have some nice soft, springy moss. (Of course, it's easy for me because I live near Seattle where moss grows EVERYWHERE naturally!)
FREE RECYCLED CONCRETE CHUNKS: I was watching "Look What I Did" on HGTV & saw the coolest yard ever! They used 100% recycled concrete chunks which they got for free from the city breaking up old sidewalks (of course you'd have to pay for delivery or rent a heavy-duty truck). Anyway, the old sidewalk chunks were done like you'd do a huge mosaic piece but instead of grout, they used grass or moss. I can't tell you in words just how cool this looked, but it was really, really nice!
PEA-GRAVEL: I was recently talking to a woman buying food at my local pet store & she has several dog runs for her large dogs. She used Pea-Gravel in them because she said that's what the Kennel she takes her dog to (when she travels for work) uses. She says that she can simply hose the pea gravel down to remove the dog pee. She hoses it down once a week after removing the "solids" with a kitty litter scoop. Pea gravel is usually multi-color and very pretty. You have to frame-in the area it's to go in with 2x4's or something like that to hold the gravel in. The cheapest way to buy it, is to have it delivered from a place that sells gravel. It's much, much cheaper than buying it in bags from Home Depot (about 1/8 the price!). It's called "Pea gravel" because it's usually the size of peas, but it's also good for dog "pee".< *grin*>
Here's another idea, a tip I posted last year:
LOW COST RECESSED STEPPING STONES:
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