Lawn care is a source of great feelings, especially if you are starting your first one. There had been so much work before the very moment you had lush grass under your feet! Now it’s time to learn all the lawn care basics to keep your yard ready for backyard fun.
Get to Know Your Soil
Knowing your yard’s soil type, you can make the most effective decisions on irrigation and fertilization. For example, you might notice puddling while watering the lawn. This would mean the soil has high clay content, which slows down its absorption capabilities. As a result, such soil requires shorter but more frequent watering. The benefit of this soil type is higher water retention ability than, say, sandy soil. You should send a soil sample to the local lab to have it tested.
Feed Your Grass
Proper nutrition is essential for any plant, and lawn grass is no exception. One of the most important nutrients for lawn grass is nitrogen, which is responsible for your lawn’s vibrancy and lushness. When you have your soil test done, you will see how much nitrogen (in lbs) your soil requires yearly. The number will also let you clarify which fertilizer you need. The rule of thumb is to make up a strict feeding schedule to avoid harming your grass.
Fight Those Weeds
Weed infestations are normal even for freshly planted lawn grasses, but fighting them is essential as soon as you notice an alien. The fact is that weeds steal water and nutrients from the lawn. You should strictly avoid pre-emergent measures and seed-killing solutions as they may affect the grass seeds. It’s highly recommended to stick only to spot treatments. If you apply timely treatment, weeds won’t infect the entire yard.
Mow Regularly
The most important rule about mowing is to learn how fast your grass grows and mow it based on that factor rather than on the day of the week. You also have to adjust the mowing height based on the recommendations for your grass type and the time of the year. For instance, Bermudagrass feels better when it’s short, while other types may require height for health. If you have difficulties keeping up a regular mowing schedule, you may want to look into a robot grass mower, which are like Roomba sweeper for your yard. This can help significantly if you don’t have the time or physical energy to upkeep the lawn yourself, but do make sure to keep a watch on it in some way to be sure it doesn’t get itself in trouble.
Avoid scalping
Regardless of the conditions, you should never trim down more than one-third of the blade length. Scalped turf may quickly become sparse and vulnerable to weeds and diseases. It’s much easier for weed seeds to survive if they reach an exposed patch of soil. Another effect of regular scalping is the underdevelopment of the root system, which may result in grass death in case of a drought or extreme heat.
Consider shade
Shady areas of your lawn require a higher mowing preset. The purpose of that is to provide the grass with a larger surface area of the blades for more efficient photosynthesis. Never forget about it, and you will grow a healthy lawn in shaded areas.
Cutting in the shade is also a much better solution that will help the grass recover from stress faster. If you trim it down right under the aggressive midday sun, the blades will lose too much water and take a lot of time to recover. Wait until the shade from trees falls on the lawn, or the sun goes low, to avoid overstressing the lawn.
Mow dry
Although mowing wet grass is not prohibited unless you need to treat the slopes, it’s not nearly as effective as dry mowing. Wet grass always clogs the mower deck and makes it difficult to achieve an even cut. Clumps of wet grass clippings will just fall out of the deck and then kill the grass underneath if you don’t notice and remove them. If you mow in soggy soil, be ready to tear up the grass and make ugly wheel ruts. In case you have no choice but to cut wet grass, use a silicone spray or oil inside the deck to prevent the clippings from sticking and clogging. It’s also important to sharpen the blade to its best to avoid tearing grass up.
Mow the grass in a different pattern every time to avoid compacting the soil and damaging the grass that eventually occurs in the ruts.
Benefit from grasscycling
If you let dry grass clippings stay on the lawn and don’t remove them at all, you can save a lot of time and money on collecting and disposing of them. The fact is that the clippings can decompose on the lawn and enrich it with up to 25% of its fertilizer needs. You can reach an even better effect if you use a mulching blade to promote quicker decomposition of clippings. To prevent the clippings from spraying through the deck hole, order a compatible plug on Amazon or elsewhere.
Treat the slopes right
Mowing even the mildest slopes, you have to avoid moving the tool up and down as well as trimming wet grass. Both mistakes may lead to serious damage. The best solution would be to use a string trimmer on slopes to avoid difficulties and problems. If you have any slopes that are too steep for both tools, cover them with a special ground cover.
Manage Water Consumption
A healthy lawn grass requires deep irrigation, which is not too frequent. Otherwise, you risk getting shallow, vulnerable roots. As a modern, sustainable gardener, you would like to save water and consider water-conserving grasses or install water-saving sprinkling systems. Combining both practices will help you to dramatically cut seasonal water expenses.
Shades are different
Logically, you have to water shady lawn patches less frequently than the sunny ones, but it’s not always the rule. If there is grass under shady trees, you need as much water as those sunny patches for it to survive in competition with the trees.
Enjoy the Green
Studies show that the green color of natural greens has a positive effect on the human brain. It’s also simply a great pleasure to sightsee a lush healthy lawn in your backyard. If it’s your first lawn, opt for the least demanding grass types to gain enough experience for future experiments. Stick to the tips, and you will have remarkable yields!
