6 Lawncare Tips for Beginners
Taking care of your lawn is important. A healthy, verdant yard makes a great impression on visitors and enhances a home’s curb appeal. If you’re looking to sell your home, or you simply want its exterior to look as excellent as possible, you need to know how to care for this prominent feature. If this is the first time in your life that you’ve had to make this a conscious effort, the ins and outs of lawncare can be perplexing. You need some tips to help you get started – and that is exactly what we are going to do today. Continue reading to learn 6 helpful tips to get your yard into its best possible shape (and how to keep it that way).
How You Can Best Care for Your Growing Lawn
It can be intimidating to tackle lawncare on your own, without the aid of professional landscapers. But you don’t have to be an expert to have a lush and beautiful lawn! With the advice that we’re about to give you in mind, you can easily maintain your yard.
Understand the Condition of Your Soil
Just like your home has a foundation, your lawn has a foundation of its own, and it’s called soil. Healthy soil translates into a healthy lawn. You should go to your local agricultural office or county extension office to get information about soil testing equipment. There are soil laboratories that sell do-it-yourself soil testing kits. These kits are straightforward and easy to use. They’ll detect important traits in the soil, such as present nutrients and its pH level.
With these results now in your hands, you can act to fix the problem. Contact an expert to determine what the results mean and what can be done to rectify the issue.
Fix Current Problems
Unfortunately, your lawn might have existing issues. Before you can work to create the luscious lawn of your dreams, you need to address and fix these issues. Bare or tough spots in the lawn are commonplace problems that will make it difficult to cultivate a yard the way you want it. If there are pH or nutrient concerns that you’re not sure how to address yourself, or if you want to inquire about the use of seed, fertilizer or mulch, don’t hesitate to get some help from local professionals who know the soil of the area.
Seed Your Lawn Properly
To get the best results, you should seed your lawn in sync with local seasonal grass growth. You should also become acquainted with the company that sells the seed you’ve chosen. The seed you’ve chosen should come with no surprises. Open-sourced seeds (which are commonly found in gardening supply stores, for instance) can contain surprise components that won’t do your lawn any favors. Understand how to read a seed tag. This is where you’ll find all of the information you’ll need.
Combat Weeds
You might feel compelled to use a pre-emptive weed preventative. But these products can actually cause harm to grass. Weeds compete with grass for nutrients and sunlight. They can become an eyesore and populate your yard seemingly overnight. Instead of preventative maintenance, be reactive when you see weeds flourishing in particular places. Use a safe and effective spot treatment to kill weeds where they grow. This will keep them away in the future by killing their seeds.
Mow in Accordance to Your Grass Type
It might be tempting to create a schedule that you rigidly stick to when it comes to mowing your lawn. This is an effective strategy for most chores, but not for mowing. Instead, mow according to what works best for the yard. Some grass types are best maintained at a short length, while others thrive when longer. If you are experiencing a heat wave and/or drought, longer grass is going to be preferred for all grass types.
Cool season grasses, for example, do best at up to three and a half inches in height. Warm season grasses, on the other hand, do well at one to two inches. Never cut off more than 1/3rd of the grass’ length at a time. And always make sure to mow when the grass is dry. Wet mowing results in wet, heavy grass lumps all over the lawn.
Mowing in alternating patterns is another good practice. This prevents the formation of ruts, which are caused by repeated movement of the mower over the same, exact tracks.
Nurture Your Grass Well
There are certain nutrients that grass needs to grow healthy and vibrant in color. Nitrogen is one essential nutrient that no well-manicured lawn can do without. How much nitrogen your lawn needs, however, will depend entirely on the results of your soil testing. Soil testing will reveal how many pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet are required. There are many considerations that will go into this calculation, as much can affect the composition of your soil.
Your soil tests will also reveal how much of other nutrients are contained within your soil. Clearly, soil testing is an essential part of having a healthy, beautiful lawn. Additionally, the lawn should be fed at least four times per year, not just once during the spring season. When, exactly, to feed your lawn will be heavily dependent on the region of the world you’re living in.
Keep Your Lawn Hydrated
Many homeowners think that it’s best to water grass in small amounts and often, but this isn’t the case. Grass should be watered deeply and less frequently – but not dripping wet. A deep watering helps to encourage root growth and adequate hydration all at once. This is really helpful if you live in a drought-vulnerable area.
How can you tell when to water the lawn? It’s time to break out the hose or sprinkler system when the grass is less vibrant in color and the springs don’t bounce back when walked on like they usually do. During the colder seasons you will have to water less frequently, as little as once per week. During the summer, however, you might find yourself having to water three times a week.