Growing a perfect turf lawn poses several challenges. While I’ve never felt like I needed the perfect lawn, many gardeners are chasing that flawless expanse of green. One of the challenges in many yards is the presence of moss.
Over the years, I have tried various strategies to get rid of moss in the lawn and garden, researched what it takes to grow a moss-free yard, and ultimately figured out how to strike the right balance. I’ll let you in on the secrets to a moss-free lawn that I learned, but wish I had known years ago.
Identifying & Understanding Moss
Learning how to get rid of moss in the lawn starts with first understanding moss. If you see areas of low, green, spongy growth in your lawn, you’re probably looking at moss. While there are many types of moss, most are a different shade of green from your grass, so it stands out.
Moss is an ancient type of non-flowering plant, making it different from most of what we normally grow in our gardens. Mosses reproduce by spores, like ferns. They grow low to the ground or on other surfaces without true roots. Instead of roots, they have rhizoids that anchor them to surfaces.
There are thousands of species of moss and all of them are pretty tough. Since moss has existed around for hundreds of millions of years, this unique plant has adapted to growing in varied and difficult conditions.
Many mosses grow and thrive in shade and moisture, so look for it in these areas of your lawn. If you're interested in embracing the moss, you can even grow a moss lawn as an alternative to traditional turf.
What Happens if You Don’t Take Action
Initially, I ignored the moss in my lawn. At least it was green, which was better than bare or brown patches. The problem, though, is that moss is a lot tougher than grass. Especially in areas with ideal conditions, moss will grow more readily than turf grass, taking over more and more of the lawn.
We ended up with some pretty big patches of moss and, as the grass turned brown and died around it, even more patches of brown dirt. The issue is that moss grows steadily and readily, but it also grows slowly. It was going to take time for it to fill in the areas of dirt where grass wouldn’t grow.
How To Get Rid of Moss in the Lawn
My first approach to eliminating the moss (after ignoring it) was to pull it out. Without roots, it’s easy to do. Rake the area to pull it up and dispose of it. Then, left with bare patches in my lawn, I had to grow grass. This is where I ran into an issue. Moss was growing in these areas because the conditions were right, which means they were wrong for growing grass.
To help the grass grow, I had to make some changes. The areas where moss was thriving were shady. I had no desire to take down trees, but I did get them trimmed to let in some more light. You can also plant different types of full shade grass that will grow in areas where moss thrives.
The next problem was that the soil was too acidic, heavy, and compacted. I started by aerating the lawn to reduce compaction and adding pelletized limestone to raise the pH. You can either hire someone to aerate, like I did, or purchase a plug aerator, like this one from Amazon, to do it yourself.
I wasn’t prepared to do anything more extensive, but this seemed like a good start. I seeded the area with grass and added a starter fertilizer, like this one from Scotts on Amazon. Improving the soil this way favored grass growth over moss growth.
What Kills Moss in the Lawn?
Killing moss in the lawn seemed unnecessary at first, but ultimately it was the best way to help the grass grow better. In areas where the grass was interspersed with small patches of moss, it became very difficult to pull out the latter without harming the grass.
Once I had good grass growth from overseeding, I looked for a product to kill the remaining moss. Most home and garden centers carry one or two anti-moss products, which contain iron sulfate. It kills moss quickly, as I found out, but it doesn’t harm grass. Try this Scotts brand anti-moss spray from Amazon that’s safe for lawns.
Is It Possible To Stop Moss From Coming Back?
Knowing how to treat moss in the lawn effectively can help you reduce its growth significantly. But if you had a lot of moss growing, as I did, it’s very difficult to eliminate it all or keep it from coming back altogether.
The best long-term strategy is to keep maintaining your grass with good lawn care practices that encourage strong growth. That means making sure there's enough sunlight, good drainage, plenty of fertilizer, and doing dethatching and aeration.
For me, balance is key, rather than striving for perfection. I have tried to favor grass growth, but in some areas I let the moss take control. In one particularly shady and moist corner of my lawn, I have embraced the moss and even added ferns, which thrive in similar conditions.
