Question

We have shady lawn, and a lot of trees surrounding our property. My question is that our lawn has so much moss or algae above the ground, our grass doesn’t grow well. How do you get rid of the moss and have more grass? Thank you, Mai C., OK

Answer

Everyone has questions. And BASF Professional Turf has answers.

Dear Mai: Moss and algae in the lawn is the indication of a couple things.

1. The soil is compacted

2. May not have good water drainage due to the compaction

3. The soil is out of balance from a soil pH standpoint. This means you need to take a soil sample - CALL your local County Extension Office that is part of your state university system - and submit the sample and then follow the directions once the soil is analyzed. You probably have a very low pH meaning the sample may come back and state you have pH of 5 or less.

You can buy one product that I know of called Quicksilver- but it is not from BASF so I asked you Google it or go to the FMC website for Turf and Ornamentals and look at this label.

It is not our product so I do not know if a homeowner is allowed to buy and use it.

You also may try using baking soda on top of the moss or algae and see if this works for you on a temporary basis. However, remember you must change the conditions in 1, 2 and 3 above to get rid of your problem and finally have a soil that will accept growing a healthy stand of turfgrass.