Basic Lawn Care Tips
Lawn mowing is one of the more tedious aspects of yard maintenance. Caring for your first lawn is a great achievement. Still, it has to be done, but there are some perks to mowing your own lawn.. By learning how to care for your first lawn, you can see your plans for lush, thick turf and backyard entertaining come true. For one, you can keep your grass exactly how you like it and take pride in maintaining your property. Take on your lawn one task at a time, and work through these lawn care basics.
If you’ve never mowed before, it’s not that complicated — follow these tips for lawn maintenance.
Choose your mower
Choose the size of the mower that fits the size of your yard.
Many mowers now come self-propelled, making mowing much easier. Before you begin mowing be sure you have the correct amount of oil and gas and that the spark plug is seated firmly in place.
When to mow
Professionals say that mid-morning is the best time to mow. Avoid mowing at mid-day — it’s just too hot. Avoid the evening, too, because lawn mowing is a stressful event for your lawn, and you want to give it time to recover.
Fertilizing
Fertilizers are a great way to give your lawn the essential nutrients it needs while encouraging growth.
Although there are many options to choose from when searching for fertilizer, a slow or controlled release fertilizer is a good option as it will release nutrients to your lawn over time, keeping it healthier for longer.
When applying the fertilizer, it is best to spread the product out as evenly as possible. We recommend using a fertilizer spreader and applying fertilizer in an orderly fashion to achieve an even application. To avoid leaf burn, give the area a good water to ensure none of the product is on the leaf. By doing this it will also help stop curious pets from eating pellets.
With most lawn varieties we recommended that you fertilizer your lawn 3-4 times a year.
Weeding
When your lawn is healthy and has strong lateral growth, most weeds can be prevented as the lawn can stop other plant material from growing. So, by focusing on encouraging your grass to become strong and healthy, fewer weeds should appear.
When hand removing weeds, it is important to remember to remove the entire root system, as the weed can make a comeback if roots are left behind. Using a weeding tool will help make removal easier.
When using a non-selective herbicide such as Round-Up (Glyphosate), extra care will be required upon application to ensure only the weed is treated. When applying a non-selective herbicide, we recommend using a weed wand or a small paintbrush to help ensure the product only goes onto the weed and not plant material that you are wanting to keep.
Watering
Water in the morning before the sun heats up. By watering in the morning your lawn will become less susceptible to diseases as the ground will not stay damp for a long period of time. More water will also be able to be absorbed into the soil profile as there will be less evaporation occurring.
Watering your lawn for longer periods of time less frequently will improve the drought tolerance of your lawn. With this type of watering’s your lawn's roots are encouraged to grow further down into the profile of the soil and help the grass to be able to withstand long time periods without water. So, 30-minute watering as needed is ideal.
Aeration
Aeration is a simple way to allow your lawn to grow a stronger and more established root system. By aerating your lawn, you will be able to help improve the lawn’s ability to better absorb water.
To aerate your lawn, you can use either a garden fork, lawn aerator sandals, or a tyne turfmate aerator. When using a garden fork, we recommend that you drive the fork around 100mm into the soil profile, then wiggle the fork back and forth to help break up the soil.
By staying consistent with your lawn care activities, mowing and watering regularly as required, giving your lawn a feed every now and again, you can ensure you will have a healthy and fantastic looking lawn.