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Judy Lindsay Team News

Maintaining a Healthy Lawn

August 23rd, 2017

Photo by Noel Lopez on Unsplash

Maintaining your lawn is easier than you think. It doesn’t have to take hours of time and gallons of water to get your grass looking superb. Use these simple steps to ensure that your lawn is healthy and looking its best:

Weed Control

Unless you have thousands of dollars, or are a golf course, keeping a fully weed-free lawn is going to be next to impossible. If your yard is smaller, pull weeds (making sure to get the roots) by hand or by using a tool. If looking at 5 acres of pulling weeds makes your back hurt, herbicide will be your go-to. Make sure it’s legal to use in your area of town and to follow the manufacturer’s instructions – some herbicides will only work truly well in the spring or fall, so make sure that the one you’re using is being used in the proper season, or else you run the risk of just pouring wasted money right into your lawn.

Organic Debris

While lawn clippings can be great for your lawn, too much can cause dead patches of grass. Make sure you rake your lawn in the spring to get it ready for summer, and in the fall to keep it healthy under the snow in winter.

Aerate

Aerating your lawn can help your grass grow fuller and richer. Inspect a square-foot section of your lawn, making sure that the roots are longer than 2 inches. If they aren’t deeper than 2 inches, then it’s time to rent an aerator. Make sure you water the lawn a day or two before aerating, and use compost or sand overtop the aerated lawn once completed.

Seed

Even with a beautifully grown lawn, there can be times when bare spots happen. You may have clipped too low in mowing your lawn, there may have been too much rain in certain lower spots, or the kids may have been playing. Whatever it is, you can bring back lush grass by seeding. Depending on the season, you’ll want to use a different type of grass. Spring or fall: rye, fescue, and Kentucky bluegrass will be your go-to’s. Summer: Bermuda or zoysia will give you that great thick lawn. Be prepared to water, water, water when it comes to seeding. If you seed and leave it for weeks without adequate watering, you’ll have ended up wasting time and money in seeding as grass will not grow from seed without plenty of water.

Photo by Daniel Watson on Unsplash

Mowing

2.5/3 inches will do! That neighbor of yours who cuts their lawn so low and regularly? Not doing himself, or his lawn, any favours. Leaving your grass longer in between mowings will help your grass grow back lush and thick, keeping it healthy. Make sure to keep mower blades sharp as ripping at the blades of grass can damage the blades of grass.

Water & Fertilizer

Grass needs tons of water; however, you don’t have to water your grass so much that your bill skyrockets and you begin to feel the onset of a drought. Watering every so often will keep your grass looking healthy all year long. Spread out snow in the spring months to melt evenly throughout your lawn and use rainwater in summer to ease up on municipal water. Don’t forget to fertilize your lawn in the spring months, and ignore it in the fall. Fertilizing in the late growing-season in Manitoba won’t do anything to help your grass. Don’t forget to always follow the manufacturer’s instructions.