Ask Gerry

I have recently moved and in a certain area of the lawn it seems to be slightly boggy when you walk on it you sink but only just so boggy would seem not the right word more extremely soft. The rest of the lawn is perfect i know we havent had much of a great deal of sun this year but my neighbour who has lived in this area has been here for 8yrs and she said that its always like that grass grows well in that area but is there anything that i can do to make if a bit firmer have only been here 4wks and have mowed the lawn twice since moving in.

Whats the difference between Round up and Round up pro Biactive. which is best as a general weedkiller?

I have a beech hedge planted about 1 year ago.What is the best type of weed killer to use and when is the best time to spray . If I top it will it thicken.

We moved to our property four years ago but haven't had the funds to deal with the garden. I'm determined to do a start myself this year but funds are limited and our garden is very water-logged. I know drains are needed but what ground work can I do to get started before we hit this step? There is a weedy lawn covering the 1acre site would I have to kill it off first? At the moment we can't even walk on the grass as every step you take sees you sink into a watery quagmire. It doesn't help we're located at the base of a sloping hill and our site slopes down to the road as well but we need our green space!

I'm living in Riverchapel and our back garden garden have a layer of surface water that stays for days at a time if it rains. We only get sunlight to the very back of our garden which helps with drying it off also the grass is very patchy. It is a 2 year old house and we have no experience of gardening so haven't a clue what is could be or where to start resolving it.

I am starting a rural garden on an acre site which had heavy machinery compacting some of the soil while the house was being built. Parts of the grassed area shows where the compaction is worst. Will this ease with time? Our soil is clay.

can i grow ash and copper beech trees from cuttings?

I have a drainage issue, water not draining through the ground. What I have done is drove a steel bar down 20 inches into the ground and filled up with drainage stones(about 12-14 in). I filled up with water and only drained 1 inch in 4 hours. My intention was to have these holes about 18in apart throughout the whole garden. But not sure this is going to work.The garden is 85 sq mtrs. Do you have any suggestions.

I have a Karcher power hose cleaner which is loosing hydrolic fluid, where can I get it serviced? Purchased in Woodies approx. 15 months ago but they are unable to advise. Tks.

I have this growing profusely between the block paving around the house We are surrounded by trees. Is it a weed or a moss and how could I treat it ?

I am new to gardening and have a large garden of which we have done little with over the last 12 years. I want to plant shrubs and perennials in a large bed which is approx. 4.5 metres by 1.5 metres and is at the front of my two storey house. Please give me tips on how to prepare bed/grass before planting. I hear mixed reports on using mypex, fine mulch? What is best?

I successfully propagated a number of hydrangea and roses from stems last year, however they all got destroyed in the winter storms when my small greenhouse was damaged. I'd like to get an early start on the season by propagating them again as early as possible and heard somewhere that taking cuttings from the underground roots of the plant is the only way to propagate at this time of year. Do you have any tips for this type of growth?

I need to build up the level of my garden by 0.5m, how do i do this?I'm starting my garden from scratch and want to plant a lawn, shrubs and veg.

Can you use Wood Briquette ash in the border?