Who doesn’t want a healthy and beautiful lawn? It is one of the most desirable things of those who have eyes. But it is impossible to achieve a clean, thick, and green lawn without regular care and maintenances.
Don’t worry! you don’t need to spend all your time maintaining a lawn. Only you have to know what steps you should take and when?
In this article, I have discussed how to take care of a lawn and also have added a lawn care calendar that will help to tell what work you have to do all year round.
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9 Lawn Care Tips to Maintain a Healthy Lawn
1.Cleaning Lawn
Rake your lawn to remove the yellowed grass and leaves. This will allow a faster recovery or greening of the lawn. The very beginning of spring (usually in April, depending on the year) is a good time to weeding and cleaning the grass.
- Manually(by hand): after putting on a pair of gloves, go hunting for moss or weeds and pull them out manually
- A Weeder Knife: Ideal for small areas and short grass.
After removing weeds, sometimes the foam appears on the lawn. Why does foam appear on the lawn? It may be moss. Here are the factors that promote the appearance of moss in turf :
- Shadow and lack of sunshine;
- Poorly ventilated soil;
- Soil low in potash, magnesium, or calcium;
- Excessive acidity.
How to eliminate the foams?
– Apply a defoamer on the affected areas.
– Leave for 10 to 15 days then scarify the grass.
Eco-friendly option: Why not leave it in the most remote places? It is a plant like any other. The presence of foam reveals dense and acidic soil. Make holes with a pitchfork every 50 cm, fill them with coarse sand.
2.Grass Scarification
It is a barbaric term, but essential work for the good health of your lawn. For aeration, nothing like better than the scarification. It refers to removing thatch (loose, intermingled, and dead parts of grasses) and aerating the surface layer of soil; it facilitates rootwork. Note that scarification is also an excellent way to fight the proliferation of moss.
Best Time for Scarification
Mid-April and September is the best time to scarify a lawn. Don’t scarify when the grass is not thriving. It damages your lawn.
3.Aeration of Lawn
The roots of the grass need air to breathe and grow properly. The soil of a lawn is not sandy enough to allow the roots to get enough air (oxygen), which delays the growth.
Aeration refers to perforating the soil with pony holes to allow air, water, and nutrients to penetrate the grassroots. It should be done for the roots to grow deeply and produce a stronger, more vigorous lawn.
Importance of Soil Aeration
This practice allows:
- Better infiltration of water and nutrients.
- Increase the level of oxygen in the soil.
- Better decomposition of organic matter and enhance the activity of soil micro-organisms.
- It helps to root the development of grasses.
How to Aerate Lawn?
- Apply 1 inch of water to soften your lawn.
- Push a mechanical aerator on your lawn when the soil is slightly wet.
- Make holes in the lawn and insert coarse sand.
- Leave plugs of soil on the ground so they can be used as topdressing. It is recommended to break them up and distribute the soil evenly on the grass with a rake.
You can buy a best-rated aerator or use the services of a professional.
What Are The Ideal Times For Aeration?
Spring and autumn ideal time for aeration. Avoid aeration on the frozen or soggy ground.
4.Topdressing Lawn
Topdressing involves a thin layer (1 cm or less) of soil mixture that is spread to the surface of the lawn. Topdressing improves the texture of the soil, promotes the work of earthworms, improves the microbial activity in the soil, and makes the grass more resistant.
Why Should We Topdressing Our Lawn?
- To gradually improve the quality of the soil.
- Repair damaged areas.
- Increase the density of the lawn.
- Stimulate the decomposition of organic matter.
- Change the soil structure.
Which Substrate to Use for Topdressing?
Compost, garden soil, sand, and peat moss can be used together.
Ideal Times for Topdressing
Spring and autumn are good times for topdressing.
Resource: How to Topdress a Lawn
5.Renovate or Replenish a Lawn
Sowing can be done in the spring, from March to May. It’s also an excellent time to replenish a damaged lawn. To repair areas where the lawn is damaged, we use a re-grinding turf. It allows easy and quick replacement of surfaces where the earth appears.
Renovation of the Lawn with Turf
- First, you have to prepare the soil, scratching the soil slightly where you want to sow. You can easily do with hand claw (small areas) or a rake. Remove the dead and surplus lawn.
- If necessary, adjust the ground level and apply some peat moss
- Sowing the seed
- Water the renovated area thoroughly and keep it moist for the first 15 days.
- Mow when your lawn reaches 7.5 cm for small areas.
Note: Average 65 to 100% of the water needs of a sustainable lawn are filled by natural precipitation. Lawns require only about 2.5 cm of water per week.
The turf grows very fast. In a few weeks, the bare areas start to become green. Your lawn should look better! Let pass a few more weeks before mowing.
This process can be done at any time of the season. If you think about additional watering, The ideal times is spring and autumn.
In prolonged periods of drought, grass goes dormant and turns yellow but not dead; they do not need extra watering. Once the precipitation returns, it will return to regular appearance.
Resource: How To Renovating the Lawn
6.Mulching The Lawn
Mulching is the distribution of a special fertile mixture of organic matter or inorganic substances on the surface of the soil to improve the availability of nutrition and reduce the evaporation of moisture from the soil.
Mulch mixtures generally contain sand, peat, and fertile soil mixed in different proportions, sometimes with the addition of leaf humus. Though it varies depending on the soil type.
Why It is necessary to maintain a healthy lawn?
- Mulching prevents the evaporation of moisture from the soil.
- Protects roots from freezing in the winter cold.
- Regulates the level of acidity of the soil.
- Enriches the soil with useful substances and nutrients.
- Prevent weeds from growing in the lawn.
When to mulching the lawn?
Once a year, usually at the beginning of autumn, after mowing and cleaning. It is equally important to add the soil to the lawn once every five years in spring or autumn. Sprinkling soil with organic fertilizers(7-10 kg per 1 m²) that will improve the tillering of herbs.
7.Mowing the Lawn
Mow at 7.5 cm (3 in.) or even a little higher and leave residues in place. It works as food for the lawn. Do not always pass in the same direction. Change directions each time you mow. Never mow in hot weather. If possible, mow every three days (or at best once a week) to invigorate the lawn.
For areas of 150 to 200 m2 manual mowing is preferable, because the motorized mowing destroys 90% of the life which is nestled (insects, snails, lizards, shrews).
How often Mow The Lawn?
Mowing the lawn is done once every 1-2 weeks so that the grass gets the time to grow and transmit energy for the development of the root system.
Resource: How to Mow a Lawn
8.Fertilize Lawn
Mowing the lawn eliminates all its nutrients, nutrients that need to obtain optimal growth. So from the beginning of spring, you must fertilize the lawn every four or five weeks. Nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus are needed, and special lawn fertilizer blends are readily available in the fertilizer stores. It is advisable to use a spreader to ensure even distribution of the fertilizer.
Resource: How to Fertilize a Lawn
9.Watering The Lawn
If you want your lawn to stay lush and green all summer, watering is essential. How often to water your lawn depends on the temperature and humidity. When the grass needs water, its color starts to be blue-grey and the oldest limbs begin to curl or fade. If you have planted a new lawn, you usually need to water it once a day to allow the seeds to germinate and well root development. Watering the lawn is now possible with a minimum of hassle. You can water your garden manually or using automatic sprinklers.
What Is The Best Time Of The Day To Water My Lawn?
You should water your lawn in the early morning, between 5 am and 10 am, or in the early evening. Don’t water your lawn at night. It causes many diseases. Remain the wet lawn for a long period to enhance the growth of fungus.
The best time for watering in the early morning. Because lack of evaporation, low wind, high humidity, and morning dew helps to prevent some diseases and quick dry of your lawn.
Resource: How To Water Your Lawn
How to Take Care of New Sod Lawn
Sod lawn needs more care because of its developing shallow roots. Without proper care of the new sod lawn, it turns yellow. Here is a video that will help you to learn how to take care of new sod lawn:
Lawn Care during Drought
In extreme heat conditions, with prolonged periods without precipitation, it is important to remember that your lawn is stressed. In this situation, it is best to let the grass become dormant.
Several types of grass survive in hot, dry weather, including Manila grass, Bermuda grass, St Augustine grass, Bison grass, Bahia grass, and Fescues. They become dormant in dry weather, no longer needing food or water. When the rain and cooler temperatures come back, your lawn will turn green and healthy.
Remember the following tips during a drought:
- Do not apply herbicide, fertilizer.
- Do not cut more than one-third of the grass height. When grass height is higher, it provides more shade on the ground, allowing your lawn to develop deeper roots.
- Leave the cut grass on your lawn as mulch that maintains the moisture of your lawn.
- In arid regions, where every drop of water is valuable, consider planting drought-tolerant grass species. Also, you can cover the lawn as much as possible with drought-tolerant plants.
After Drought Yellowed Lawn Turn Green Again?
YES. During a period of drought, grasses stop growing due to dormancy. The lawn may be completely yellowed for a few weeks, but after sufficient rain or as soon as the weather returns to normal, it will turn green again. However, during this period, avoid any unnecessary traffic on the lawn.
Bonus: Best Practices to Take Care of Lawn
Fertilize
Try to apply a blend of 100% natural or organic fertilizer in spring or late summer. Watch your lawn first. If you like it, no need to add fertilizer
Mow High
A lawn cut to 8 cm (3 in.) Prevents the germination of most weeds, makes watering more efficient, and promotes root development. Mow the lawn regularly with sharp blades and never cut more than one-third of the height at a time.
Do Not Pick Up-Cut Grass
Leave the residues in your lawn for a few days. Mowed turf contains a lot of minerals, which can reduce the amount of fertilizer by 30%.
Do Some Testing
Inspect your lawn and find the cause of the problems you are having. Know that 90% of insects are beneficial and can naturally control occasional parasites. Do not hesitate to inform yourself before taking any action to eliminate these insects.
Lawn Care Calendar for a Beautiful Lawn
How to take care of your lawn in the winter, in fall, or in summer? It is the burning question to the homeowners. Because good practices help reduce insect and disease and limiting weed growth.
Here’s a practical calendar to tell you what work to do year-round.
April
- Remove the trash and dry grass.
- Do not walk on wet grass.
May
- Level the land with good garden soil.
- Perform aeration and ventilation.
- Renovate the lawn.
- After the first or second mowing, feed with complex fertilizer.
- Water the lawn immediately after top dressing. Do not feed the lawn in hot, dry weather.
June
- Get rid of weeds.
- In the middle or at the end of the month, carry out the second top dressing.
- Water 1-2 times in a week.
July
- In dry weather, Water 2-3 times in a week.
- In the middle of the month, apply fertilizer.
- If signs of fungal diseases are detected, treat with fungicides.
August
- In the first half of the month, top-dressing your lawn if necessary.
- Remove the weeds.
- At signs of the disease, re-treat with fungicides.
- In dry weather, regularly water the lawn.
- Carry out aeration, sanding, liming.
- Remove fallen and dry leaves.
The autumn-winter season is a time of complete rest. At temperatures below 5 ° C, the grass stops growing. So, don’t walk on the lawn until it is covered with a thick layer of snow.
Conclusion
Whatever the condition of your lawn today, maintain the tips that we discussed. I wish you were a beautiful lawn. And someday your colleague will ask you how your lawn is so green, healthy, and beautiful. Don’t forget to mention the “How to Take Care Lawn” article with your friends.
Stay Green! Be Green!
You got me when you said that you must consider watering your lawn during the morning because watering it at night can cause many diseases. This sounds too difficult for me to fulfill because I have a very busy schedule during the day. My goal is to have a green lawn, and I’m getting worried because of the dry grasses around my lawn. I will make sure to hire a lawn care professional that can properly address all my lawn’s needs.
You can use automatic sprinkler
I like how you mentioned that you should pull out weeds and moss in your lawn. My husband and I just moved into a house with a lawn, and want to make sure we take care of it properly. I will definitely keep your tips in mind when trying to maintain the health of my lawn.
Thanks for appreciating
This is really helpful, thanks.
Thanks to the great guide
I spent a lot of time to locate something similar to this
My sister wants to make sure that her lawn will be in perfect health because it’s summer. It was discussed here that when cleaning the lawn, it can be done by hand or by use of tools. Furthermore, it’s recommended to hire professionals when in need of quality lawn care services.
It makes sense that you would want to get a professional service for your lawn needs. My sister is thinking about getting a lawn installation. It might be wise for her to know that a professional can look for insects and get rid of them.
Sounds cool. You should recommend our blog to your sister to get basic and advance knowledge about lawn.
One of the important things to keep in mind when it comes to lawn care is mowing the lawn itself since it helps keep the grass healthy for as long as possible. The reason for this is that you should always cut down the grass when it grows too long–but don’t take the cut grass and throw it away since the cut grass can serve as “food” for the ground and help it regrow. If I had the chance to try mowing the lawn then I would make sure not to overdo it especially when it comes to mowing it in the same direction.
Thanks, Adrian Jones for your valuable comment
You made a great point when you said that you should remove weeds from your yard so that your lawn can have more sunshine and fewer shadows. My wife and I just moved to a new house, and we want to try and clean up the yard a bit. Once I rent some equipment, I will get right to work on removing all of the weeds.
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My sister can’t clean her lawn because she’s pregnant. I think I’ll tell her to hire a lawn care service to help her aerate her lawn. Thanks for sharing that she can hire them to fertilize her lawn as well, so I’ll make sure that she’ll hire the right people for the job.
I am happy to help you and your sister through my writing.
I love what you said about aeration and how it is defined as perforating soil. Mowing your lawn is a great idea in order to keep it looking healthy. My best friend wants to get his lawn mowed on a regular basis, so I’ll help him find the best landscaping company.
Thanks for your kind word.Stay connected!
Useful information. Lucky me I discovered your web site by accident, and I am surprised why this accident didn’t happened in advance! I bookmarked it.
You’ve got great tips for taking care of my lawn. I love how you said that it’s smart to do grass scarification. I don’t want to mess that up, so I’ll probably hire a pro to help me.
This was very interesting, but I wanted to ask you something though… I’m curious your thoughts on using vinegar in my homemade organic cleaner. Have you tried that? I’m looking for something that cleans really well but isn’t expensive to make. I think this is something you can answer. 🙂
Sometimes I use vinegar as a cleaner for clean car stains
I never knew that mowing lawns removed nutrients required for growth and because of that fertilizing grass is very important! I always believed that fertilizing yards was a good thing to do but it isn’t a necessity. Having a healthy lawn is important for the local environment.
I had no idea that roots need to get oxygen for grass to live. I thought that since they were under the ground, they didn’t need any. I’ll definitely think about aerating my lawn this year.
I just bought my first house, and I want to keep my lawn in good shape. It is good to know what I might want to think about getting my soil ventilated. That seems like a good thing to for me to understand because I want to keep my lawn looking nice as I have BBQ’s this fall.
I liked that you mentioned a factor that promotes the appearance of moss in turf are shadow and lack sunshine, poorly ventilated soil, or excessive acidity. My husband and I are thinking about remodeling our landscape, and we are looking for advice. I will let him know about the factor that could cause moss on our landscape to try to prevent it.
It’s my first time to own a home that comes with a lawn. Thanks for informing me that I should have my lawn fertilized every beginning of spring. I think I’ll hire someone to do this for me since I don’t know how much fertilizer I need to put on my lawn.
It advisable to hire an expert if you are not confident.
Throughout the rest of winter, the grass becomes mostly dormant and only in extended periods of milder weather will the grass start to grow and may need a very slight trim to keep it in check. If so, raise the blade height up to just cut the tips.
We just recently bought a new home with a lawn. I’m glad you shared that through raking the lawn, it can remove yellowed grass and leaves. These are great tips, but it’s best if we’ll just look for a lawn maintenance service.
I never knew that mowing lawns separates nutrients that the grass requires. My mom has been taking care of her garden all year, and I want to give her some more tips. I will call a landscaper so she can get more help on lawn maintenance.
It really helped when you recommended watering your lawn between 5 and 10 am or earlier in the evening because it prevents the water from quickly evaporating. My husband and I were talking the other day about how we could improve the quality and color of our lawn. I think a good option would be to have a sprinkler service stop by and help us set a timer to water for the early morning, as well as check up on our system.
It’s interesting that excessive acidity can cause moss to grow when it kills most other plants. I’ve been looking up ways to maintain my lawn so that it’s not as yellow this coming summer. It looks like I’ll have to make sure that my soil is ventilated well.
Thank you for pointing out that soil aeration is important for better infiltration of water and to increase the oxygen level in the soil. My husband and his brother have been trying to see what they can do about their dead yards. I think they should find a good lawn care professional who can help them know what to do to get their lawns in shape.
It was interesting to read that when mowing the lawns, it removed the nutrients required for growth. My best friend wants to get his lawn mowed regularly, so I’ll help him find the best landscaping company. Thanks for sharing all of these useful tips on lawn care maintenance.
Ah, thanks for the tip to use a weeder knife to try to get of weeds. I’m thinking of getting artificial turf put into our front yard. I think it’ll help save me time on maintaining it.
I’ve been trying to come up with a good way to keep my lawn healthy.
I’ve got kids with friends and a dog, so I don’t want to have it get trampled.
I’ll see what I can do to get it to aerate! Thanks for sharing.