My 1st lawn 2 years mature and it's patchy

[AnthonyMeath]

Hi guys.
Total amateur here and I started my lawn 2 years ago in an area that's know to have terrible compacted clay soil without a worm in sight. We also get a huge amount of rain here in Ireland.

I raked in top soil, laid the lawn, kept it watered, fed once a year and used a combination of Hyundai power aerator/power rake and a hand held aerator that removes plugs of soil.
I also drilled random larger holes around the garden and put dinner scraps into it to encourage worms into the garden (you tube tip).

I've just mowed the lawn today and have attached pics to show the problem I'm having.
Some sections are gorgeous and others are pretty lame and grow slower than the good parts. When I get my fingers into the bad parts, the grass seems to be growing flat on the surface of the soil, rather than straight up?

I'd really welcome your advice.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Jersey Devil]

Same soil you have, same problem with grass laying low. I was advised to aerate my lawn. You stated your soil was hard clay which makes me think nutrients are not getting down in the soil. I was too lazy to aerate my lawn like I was told to do, but this year I spread rich topsoil and compost all over my lawn and it looks so much nicer. I bet the experts will come here and tell you to aerate Good luck

 

[AnthonyMeath]

Thanks for the reply Jersey.
I've aerated several times in the last 2 years. Maybe I'll concentrate on those bad areas and do it again.

 

[DirtMechanic]

That grass looks like it is building a thatch layer. Have you dethatched? What type grass did you plant? It seems to be a fescue group of some sort at first glance? How high is it being cut actually? I have found mowers where the settings were not set to blade height but rather the deck surface and a too tall grass can blow over. Also are you sett for P and K? P is for roots and K all around so I was wondering have you tested the soil?

 

[AnthonyMeath]

It's a blend of Ryegrass and Red Fescue.
I've tested the soil and it's alkaline.
I cut to 3cm (just over an inch).

I'm afraid I don't know what P and K means?
Thanks for replying.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Ahh the red fescue is a very fine blade that will lay over naturally. It clumps too, and requires overseeding to some degree here. N-P-K the fertilizer designation may be remembered as up-down-all around. By asking about the P and K, I was trying to understand that the roots and general blades of the plants had what they needed. It certainly looks healthy. It looks longer than 1 inch as well. There are 2 types of grass and they are not the same exact green naturally. One saying about N is that N equals Green. Iron chelates help color deepen also

 

[AnthonyMeath]

After the replies here, I raked in some top soil and compost, fed with Evergreen lawn feed and watered every 2nd day unless it was raining.
It's looking so much better now.

 

[DirtMechanic]

After the replies here, I raked in some top soil and compost, fed with Evergreen lawn feed and watered every 2nd day unless it was raining.
It's looking so much better now.View attachment 104022

That really is looking nice!