TURF/LAWN/GRASS/SOD GROWING IN A TRAY - ‘SOIL’ FALLING APART DURING TRANSPORT- HELP PLS

[Alexandrarogers]

Hello everyone

I am based in Hong Kong (where it is around 34 C all year round) and am trying to hydroponically grow some hot weather grass (fescue, Bermuda) in a tray and plan to use it for my dog’s pottying purposes. My sister also has a dog and has asked me to send her a tray as well.

I have managed to grow grass (being a newbie gardener), however my problem is that the hydroponic growing medium I am using or the ‘soil’ won’t stick together / falls apart whenever I try to take the grass out of the tray. Can’t imagine it would ever survive transport via post/delivery in a cardboard box… would make a huge mess

Any ideas on how to make the ‘soil’ stick together better so that it is like a piece of carpet when I pull it out? Have researched and found stuff about soil stabilisers but not sure these are readily available in small quantities as they are used for industrial purposes. Have thought about bird netting but this is mostly made out of plastic and I want to use only biodegradable materials.

Are there certain grass varieties that would grow a thicker root mat that would hold the ‘soil’ together, by any chance?

Thank you!

Maybe you just aren't leaving it to grow for long enough so the roots knit together? It could also be that the hydroponic medium is so efficient and nutrient-rich that the roots don't need to grow very much to seek out nutrients as everything they need is right there and immediately available.

Forgot to mention - how about hessian sacking? That is a natural product.

What 'soil' are you using?
And how are you using the hydroponic medium - are you trying to float the turf in the solution - is so it will likely fall apart as mud.

Hi guys,

re growing medium - am using coconut coir which i think is inert/nutritionless.

re hessian - yes have looked at these type of open weave mats. However having trouble finding one that has the right size holes - you either get (1) the really big holes 15cm x 15cm or (2) tiny holes that it just looks like one solid hessian mat. Ideally the holes would be round 1.5cm x 1.5cm - have seen green plastic bird netting that is that size but I really don’t want to use plastic.

thank you!

Hydroponically grown grass won't form a turf. It needs a soil with structure. You'd be better off using a mix of compost, sand, and perhaps a bit of bentonite cat litter, as a growing medium in a shallow tray with drainage. And you'll probably need to roll it several times as the grass grows.

Thank you!

Re soil with a structure - so thats why i thought coconut coir would work (I’m using the powdery type that looks/feels like dirt)… Is there a particular reason why compost/sand would work better pls? Open to trying it for sure.

Sorry what do you mean by roll it as the grass grows? As in, mow it?

thanks

Am happy to try compost, but haven’t worked with it before - is there a chance there could be bugs in it/ bugs could be attracted to it during the growing process or after? That was what i was trying to avoid by using something inert like coco coir instead

Bugs? Really? You're trying to grow grass for a dog to urinate and defaecate on.

By roll I mean roll, to compress it. Have you seen a roll of turf before or dug turf from a lawn? It's quite dense. Where they grow turf locally they're rolling it and mowing it several times as it grows.

There seem to be several websites online with instructions for growing turf/grass in a tray. Have a look at these. I don't think hydroponics is the right approach.

Two different articles I've read this morning suggest a solution - mineral wool matting. It won't be 'turf', but it will hold together with a degree of extra support from a tray.