How to Give your Lawn a Boost
Is it like your favorite tee shirts? That one with all the holes, patches, and stains that you just can’t bear to toss away? Is there any bare spots on your lawn? Are there brown spots on your lawn? Then you’ll see what steps you can follow to give your yard a boost .
How to begin:
See: What is Dethatching
Thatch is the accumulation and smothering of grass stems. Thatch can prevent air, moisture and nutrients reaching the soil.
You should mow your lawn to a minimum of 1 in. The task of dethatching or surface preparation will be made easier by shorter grass. Next, use an automatic or manually operated dethatcher to remove the grass. An automatic dethatcher can be used to achieve the best results in large yards or yards that have a lot of itch.
Put your soil to the test
Any lawn that is healthy and looks good will be built on the soil. Lawn problems can be caused by poor soil. You have the option to hire a lawn-care service or to conduct the soil test yourself. Testing can be done at your local lawn care provider or USDA Cooperative Extension Service Offices. The results will inform you of any deficiencies in nutrients and suggest what you can do to restore your garden.
It’s easy to take a soil sample from your garden and then send it off for testing. It’s as easy as that! A soil test will tell you the amount of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium that is in the soil. It will also tell you if there are any missing nutrients or if your soil has been leached. If you don’t test your soil, you might be putting fertilizers down the drain without knowing it. Soil testing can be a great way to ensure that you fertilize your lawn the right way.
Add Nutrients on Your Lawn
For soil testing results, follow the fertilizer recommendations. Your lawn may be even more damaged if you add fertilizer after your results are returned. It is important to not add too much fertilizer. This could lead to rapid growth and thinning, which can make grass more vulnerable to disease. Avoid adding too much fertilizer to your lawn.
After you complete the soil test, you should put down a heavy application of organic mulch. Organic mulches will not only protect your grass from weed seeds, they will also help regulate the temperature and moisture levels within your soil. Most weed seeds don’t survive long in the presence of rich organic fertilizer. If you add thatch, however, it will provide shelter for the weeds and turn them into root-bound.
You should wear gloves and protective clothing for fertilization. This will keep the fertilizer away from your skin, eyes, and skin.
Let Your Soil Breathe
It allows your lawn to absorb the nutrients you have applied.
Aeration is when you poke holes in the soil with hollow cylindricals known as tines. This allows compacted earth to breathe, absorb nutrients, as well as allowing new grass to grow more quickly. There are manual, pull-behind and automatic aerators. It is up to you to choose which one works best for you. We have a great article about aerating that will help you understand all the benefits associated with aerating your soil.
If needed, Grow New Grass
Reseeding may be required for damaged, thin, unhealthy, or bare patches of grass. Select the grass that best suits your location, soil type, climate and needs. This can be determined from soil results.
Here is a complete list of types of common grass:
- Where there is cold winters and high summers, cool season grasses may thrive. They can tolerate prolonged drought. These include Kentucky Bluegrasses, Rough Bluegrasses, Red Fescues, Bent grasses, Red Fescues, Annual Ryegrasses, and Perennial Ryegrass.
- Where cool and warm season grasses are ineffective, Transition Zone grasses can work. These include Kentucky Blue grass and Tall Fescue.
- Warm Season Grasses need warm weather all year. These grasses turn brown when the temperature drops. These include: Bahia. Bermuda grass. Buffalo grass. Carpet grass. Centipede. St. Augustine grass. Zoysia.
Water, Water and More Water!
After you have completed all these steps, the crucial and most important step is to water. The most important thing to do is keep the newly-sown soil moist. If there is no rain, water your soil at least twice a days for 15 minutes. For the seeds to germinate, the soil must stay moist. It is recommended to keep the soil damp until the new grass reaches 2 inches in height. Watering your lawn is essential to give the seeds time and space to grow.
Conclusion
In the coming weeks you should notice a big difference in your lawn’s appearance and health. This will prevent you from having to replace all of your turf. It can also save you money. Not only will it make your lawn beautiful, but it will also improve the quality of your environment. You have taken good care of your lawn. Now it is time to throw out that old tee-shirt.
