How long does it take for a lawn to recover so a garden will grow?

[Tonya in TX - Duck]

About 4 years ago my parents bought a place "in town". The lady they bought it from had the front and back lawn sprayed heavily every year for weeds. My assumption is 2 times per year, but I know it was for at least 20 years.
Now my parents are trying to grow a veggie garden, but it's not doing very well. My dad has grown gardens in the past, and had success. He even grew a few tomato plants a couple years ago in an area that was never sprayed and they did really well. He is watering it enough, but not too much. He has put an appropriate amount of Miracle Grow on it (according to directions), and the tomatoes and peppers he is trying to grow are just barely hanging on. So now we think it's that the soil has too much poison from the weed spray.

Does anyone know what we can do to neutralize it, or how long it takes for it to dissipate naturally? He's looking for an inexpensive method if one is available.

 

[65% water]

I completely sympathize. So many people make chemical wastelands of their lawns. Any solution is going to take time, probably years. I would start with not putting any chemicals on the lawn of course, and with leaving all grass clippings on the lawn. In areas where your dad intends to start a garden, grow a cover crop this fall of something like crimson clover or alfalfa. These crops open up the soil and add nitrogen.

In regard to short-term organic growing, your dad will be better off growing the plants in pots, or if he feels very industrious constructing raised beds on top of the existing soil.

Other than physically replacing all the soil and waiting for it to settle down with its own micro-organisms, there just isn't any other way.

 

[Kay]

Could it be our crazy weather? ;-)

I'd try adding compost and new clean soil and tilling it in. I totally sympathize with them too... my previous neighbors sprayed every dang thing growing in their yard for about 25 years. They've been gone for about ten years now but it's just been the past couple years that I've seen weeds actually come back.

 

[walts_photos]

herbacides (weedkillers) used for lawns break down in a few months(4-9). If they used Ground clear herbacides (something that kills plants for 1-2 years normally used on driveways and foot paths) it might take years to fix the soil. in that case it's faster and better to dig it up and start over.

Contact your local county extention service and ask about soil tests. Some extention services fill test your soil for free or for a small lab fee (usually less then $30).

You may have a problem called sodic soil. basicly the soil has too much free "salts" (soluble substances) from the herbacides, fertilizers, Miracle Grow, etc. or the ph of the soil might be off. The soil test from the extention service will give you the answers to what your problem is, if it is soil related.