| |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Basic Lawn Care - Mowing, Scarifiers, Aeration, and Watering Tips
The arrival of summer heralds a time of increased wear and tear for the average garden lawn. Children's yard games, barbecue parties, outdoor sports and generally more activity in the garden means your lawn is set to come in for something of a beating and without a little TLC is likely to start showing more than a little worse for wear. Stomp all over any living thing and it doesn't respond too kindly but with a little help, your lawn can remain looking great all through summer and beyond! Fertiziler For a lusher, healthier, faster-growing lawn you can't beat a bit of fertilizer. Test your soil type and choose a fertilizer to compliment this for best results. Most lawns will benefit from around three to four fertilizer applications through the year, with the first around a month before the start of the growinf season to give your grass a kickstart and then up to three more with approximately a two month gap in between applications can give good results. You can either spread the fertilizer by hand if you have a smaller lawn area to cover or use a specialist spreader tool for more even coverage, using a drop spreader for small lawns or a rotary/broadcase spreader for bigger areas. After fertilizing it is generally a good idea to water-in the fertilizer or plan on adding fertilizer before an expected rainfall unless otherwise stated in the usage instructions. The important thing with fertiliser is to follow the manufacturer guidelines and not be tempted to over-do it. An excessive application of fertiliser is not a good thing and can lead to fungus, over-growth and weakness. Keep to the guidelines and you'll get that lush, thick green grass you wanted. Watering If you live in a hot climate or dry region, and particularly during the summer months then regular watering of your lawn is important. The best time to water a lawn is early in the morning or late in the afternoon to achieve the best results. Avoiding evening watering is advised as soaking grass over night can increase the risk of lawn diseases and mid-day watering when the sun is hottest increases evaporation and water wastage. Excessive watering is also something to avoid and ensure if you use a sprinkler you do actually get out there and move it around rather than allowing large puddles to form whilst other regions of the lawn area remain dry. Too much surface lying water can starve the roots of oxygen and lead to the same symptoms (leaf rolling) as lack of water. It is important to know when to water rather than just watering because you think a lawn needs watering. There are a few basic tests you can do to know if your lawn needs irrigation. Look for leaf rolling and curling and the slightly blue/purple tinge which comes when grass is being starved of moisture. Also, try the foot print test. Stepping on a healthy lawn should see it spring back into position quickly but if your lawn is slow to react then it's time to add more water. Lawn Mowing The key thing to remember here is that the object of mowing a lawn is lawn "mowing" not lawn "scalping"! To take good care of your lawn you need to make sure you are mowing with sharp lawn mower blades so you cut rather than rip at the grass and ensure you do not set the blades at too low a level as you do not want to cut it back lower than is recommended for your particular species of grass. Cutting too low on a regular basis is the easiest way to do lasting damage to your lawn. If your lawn has become too overgrown then do two or more passes with your mower rather than trying to take it right down to a desirable length straight away and never cut grass when it is wet. Grass clippings may be left or raked as you please if you do not have a lawn mower with a grass collector. Left clippings do not automatically lead to thatch, this is only occurs when there is too much dead organic matter to be broken down and a few clippings actually add nutrients back into the soil. Edges are something lawn mowers can not handle but a simple pair of long handled shears will make short work of tidying them up. Strimmers are a simple solution for cutting around obstacles such as trees and immovable garden structures. Aerating Your Lawn Grass is a living thing and like all living things it flourishes better when it is able to breath easy and get easy access to food and water. Aeration of your lawn is important as it allows water, oxygen and fertilizer to penetrate more easily through to the roots and improves drainage. If your garden is being regularly used then the ground will begin to suffer from soil compaction. When this happens, drainage is reduced and it becomes more difficult for roots to dig down deeper into the soil. The natural activities of earthworms and other subterranean insects and wildlife help break up the soil but compacted earth can always do with a helping hand. Basic lawn aeration is very simple to achieve with the help of a simple garden fork. Just drive the fork into the earth at regular intervals to do the job. For bigger garden areas or for more effective aeration you can buy or hire specialised lawn aeration tools which are basically spiked or bladed rollers either motorised or hand driven. An aerator should be used in the autumn months to loosen compact soil after its summer beating. Dethatching and Scarification Scarifying or raking your lawn to remove dead and decaying matter which may choke and hinder water and nutrients reaching the soil is an essential part of a good spring and autumn lawn maintenance routine. Raking removes thatch, the accumulation of dead and decaying organic matter like leaves and old grass clippings from around the base of the grass stems. This scarification improves drainage and enables increased amounts of water and air to penetrate down to the roots as well as reducing the chances of lawn disease occuring. Before detatching a lawn you should ensure there is no moss growing there as this process will only help spread the moss around. Kill the moss first with a specialised moss killer found at good garden centers and then scarify the lawn. Scarifying a lawn may be performed manually by raking whilst for larger lawns it might be recommended to use a power lawn scarifier machine which can be hired or bought for the purpose. Removing Worm Casts Worms are the gardener's best friend...unless your lawn is your pride and joy. Worm casts are those unsightly piles of mud which appear on the surface of your lawn and left to their own devices may encourage moss and weed growth. Removal is simple during dry weather, just wait until they are dry and brush or rake them away but during prolonged wet periods you may just have to put up with them. Use of acidic fertilizers may discourage worms from coming to the surface but for most gardeners just consider worms are your friend, they help aerate the soil and drag organic matter from the soil surface into their burrows thus making the soil a richer growing environment. Article copyright Mark Falco, webmaster of ukgardeningsupplies.co.uk where you can find lawn care and gardening equipment including lawn mowers, lawn scarifiers, garden tools and lawn care accessories available for UK delivery. Reproduction of this article is permitted so long as this resource box is included, it remains unchanged and all links remain active and clickable.
MORE RESOURCES:
landscaping gardening - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How to Attract Birds to Your Backyard Paradise For Less Than $100 Like many Americans, you may find bird watching to be a fascinating hobby. At the same time, perhaps you wonder how you can attract regular visitors to your yard without busting the bank by purchasing expensive foliage, feeders, and food. Tips On Caring For Your Cut Flowers Imagine it's a special occasion and you've just received a glorious bunch of roses. You put them in your best vase and you stand back to admire them. All About Hybrid Tea Roses Hybrid tea roses and the original tea rose are the worldâ??s favourite roses and are available in many gorgeous colors.Hybrid tea roses are among the most beautiful flowers in the world. The Heralded Teak Furniture Manufacturer: Kingsley-Bate With an average lifespan of 75 years, teak wood has long been commended as the ideal choice for outdoor furniture. It has qualities unlike any other wood in its ability to withstand the rigors of adverse climates, yet weather attractively. Tarragon: A Favourite of French Chefs Long a favourite of French chefs, the herb Artemisia dracunculus, known as French tarragon or dragon herb is an essential ingredient in Béarnaise sauce, tarragon vinegar, and certain Dijon mustards. A perennial herb, tarragon grows 2 - 4 feet (60 - 120 cm) and has dark, shiny, narrow grey-green leaves about 3 inches (8 cm) long with smooth edges. Introduction to Aquaponics Hydroponics and aquaponics are very similar in every way except hydroponics requires the addition of fertilizer and there's no fish in the nutrient solution.In aquaponics, plants and fish live a symbiotic life with the fish feeding the plants, and the plants cleaning and filtering the fish's environment. Seeding Flowers Indoors: An Inexpensive Way to a Beautiful Summer Garden Every year you plan that THIS will be the year you have pots and pots of lush plants on your balcony or deck. Then you visit your local nursery in the spring and reality hits -- the cost for your fantasy is just outrageous! Sound familiar?But you can have the planters of your dreams at a fraction of the cost and with a choice of varieties far beyond what the local garden center offers. Lawn Care Business Owners - Dont Buy Yourself A Job Most businesses consist of the owner only or the owner and a few employees. The owner continues to do the same activity whether it is labor or crew management for many years. How to Raise House Plants from Seeds Easily The principal house plants which are easy to raise by sowing seeds are Aloe (succulent plant), Asparagus species, Begonia semper-florensundB. rex, cacti (many kinds), Clivia, Cyclamen, Eucalyptus, Fuchsia (varieties), Grevillea robusta, Opuntia, Passijiora, Phoenix (palm), Primula malacoides and P. Basic Lawn Care - Mowing, Scarifiers, Aeration, and Watering Tips The arrival of summer heralds a time of increased wear and tear for the average garden lawn. Children's yard games, barbecue parties, outdoor sports and generally more activity in the garden means your lawn is set to come in for something of a beating and without a little TLC is likely to start showing more than a little worse for wear. How to Grow Asparagus Asparagus is a perennial plant with erect, edible stems and tiny branches that bear even tinier flowers that become red berries that contain the black Asparagus seed. Formerly in the Liliaceae family, botanists have realized that Asparagus is in a class by itself and have repositioned its 120 species in the Asparagaceae genus. How to Grow Strawberries In addition to the traditional strawberry patch, there are as many ways to grow strawberries as there are to eat them! Grow strawberries in a bed, hydroponically, as a ground cover, as an ornamental patio plant, or in a hanging basket.Strawberry CategoriesAn important part of knowing how to grow strawberries is understanding how different types of strawberries grow. The Care of Cattleya Orchids Cattleya Care: a bit more in-depth.This month we are going to go into some detail about the care of cattleya orchids. How to Grow Basil Today there are sprays, scented candles, plug-ins, and even discs that promise to freshen your air by putting a variety of aromas into your home. However, when you know how to grow basil, you can have enough variety of fragrance to package your own potpourri! The most commonly grown basil is the annual, ocimum basilicum that carries a minty fragrance that smells like? well, it smells like sweet basil. Tillandsia Airplants - Dont Plant These Plants! Watch out, it's a tillandsia! Have no fear, I said "Tillandsia," not Tarantula. Although several species of this plant genus have taken on the appearance of the ominous eight-legged spider, you can rest-assured that these plants do not bite. Grow Organic Vegetables There are more reasons than ever why anybody with access to a few square feet of the outdoors should grow their own organic vegetables.You may be shocked at how much of the produce at your local supermarket has been genetically modified. Fall is the Time to Get Your Garden Trees and Shrubs Ready for Winter: Heres What to Do Tips for winter care of trees and shrubsWith the garden season drawing to a close, it's awfully tempting to forget about your plants. But you should continue to water all woody plants - especially newly planted trees and shrubs and all evergreens. Who Sells Flower Bulbs? Flower bulbs offer some of the most distinctive, unusual flowers around. Gladioli, lilies, crocus, lilac, daylilies? all are instantly recognizable. Greenhouse Calamities - Thoughts from a Novice Gardener Greenhouses are a great addition to anyone's garden. They come in all different sizes and you can nestle them right where you want them and with smaller versions of greenhouses you can move them quite easily. A Bit About Bare Root Roses... Scents from the rose garden filling the air as you walk by..
|
