Lawn Maintenance Programs
- Like every living thing, grass needs air and water
to grow and thrive. Simple lawn maintenance can make
all the difference.
- During the summer months in particular, lawns
suffer from continual use - be that children, sports,
or BBQs - these all combine to cause surface
compaction. Lawn maintenance is crucial to prevent
damage.
- This compaction impedes drainage and it is harder
for air, water and fertiliser to penetrate into the
roots
- As such, lawn aeration during the Spring and
Autumn, helps allow the soil temperature to rise more
quickly and the surface to literally 'breathe'.
- Good lawn maintenance requires very simple
aeration by driving a fork into the lawn at regular
intervals. For a small lawn this can be done simply by
hand, or there are many implements for sale in garden
centres that can do the job for you on larger areas.
Watering
- Sounds obvious, but lawns really do need watering,
particularly during the dry summer months. Prolonged
dry spells will slow up grass growth if the lawn
maintenance programme does not include proper
watering. Deeper-rooted weeds will survive and outgrow
grass struggling in drought conditions.
- The new lawn seeds will remain green even
during drought - a valuable asset when all around is
fading! However, it will still need watering to keep
the grass healthy. Try the 'footprint test'. If the
grass fails to spring back after standing on it, you
should water it.
Controlling Worm
Casts
- Worm casts on the lawn smother fine leafed grasses
and produce ideal conditions in which weed seeds can
grow.
- Dormant weed seeds buried deep in the soil are
brought to the surface in these tiny mounds of soil
which need sorting as soon as they are detected.
- When they appear scatter them with a brush before
mowing and remove the clippings by using a grass box.
- If necessary, your lawn maintenance programme
should include the use of a worm killer. Apply this in
a warm, showery period in autumn, just after the lawn
has been cut.
Trimming the
Edges
- As far as possible, make sure your mower can reach
right to the edges so that manual trimming is a quick
and final task.
- Investing in a good sharp pair of long-handled
edge trimmers will make light work of the task.
- Trimming round the edges of your lawn after mowing
is the final flourish and will give you a neat,
attractive finish.
Scarification or
Raking
- Scarification removes thatch, the accumulation of
dead and decaying organic matter at the base of the
living roots and leaves.
- Scarifying or raking in your lawn maintenance
programme should be done in Spring and has several
benefits - preventing the build up of thatch and
getting rid of surface debris.
- A second rake in Autumn is essential to remove all
the fallen leaves, ageing grass plants and debris. The
lawn is then ready for re-seeding.
Top Dressing
- This lawn maintenance technique is really for the
perfectionist gardener, top dressing is usually the
preserve of the professional greenkeeper.
- Top dressing is the application of a mixture made
up of peat, loam and sand that literally fills in all
the minor hollows that develop on lawns naturally.
- Top dressing is best applied in early autumn and
results in denser grass growth, a flatter surface and
improved drainage.
Lawn
mowing
Fertilization
Basic care and
maintenance
Lawn
problems |
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