How to make your lawn the best in the street
First impressions of your home start from the outside. By following these simple, effective techniques provided by Joe Rogers of Lawn Solutions Australia, you can have a lawn that will be a cut above the rest in your street!
Water twice a week an hour each time
You don’t need to water your lawn every day! It can actually become a bit dependent and needy. Any changes to this consistency can be detrimental to your lawn. Instead of watering every day, do it once a week for an hour. This will encourage deeper root growth which helps to make it more drought tolerant.
Water in the morning
Watering in the morning is actually more effective. Water in the morning (preferably before 10am), so the water has time to penetrate the roots before the heat of the sun simply evaporates it.
Fertilise accordingly
There will be parts of your lawn that gets full sun for most of the day, and then there will be parts that are shaded and may get only a couple of hours of sunlight. The amount of water and fertiliser required for each of these areas will be different. Grass in shady areas needs less water because less evaporates, and it also needs less fertiliser because with less sun it doesn’t grow as quickly.
Especially heading into the warmer months, your lawn will be hungry after dormancy. Joe recommends you use a granular fertiliser such as ‘Lawn Solutions Premium Lawn Fertiliser’ to get nutrients into the base of the plant.
Leaf debris, yay or nay?
A heavy layer of leaf debris is detrimental for your lawn. This coverage blocks your lawn from getting the water & sunlight it needs to thrive, basically smothering it. BUT – a moderate to a light layer of leaves can be beneficial. It will actually be mulched back into the lawn as you mow, providing nutrients for your lawn, encouraging growth. This layer of lawn clippings must be very fine, and applied sparingly. Your lawn must also be dry. If your lawn is wet, it will leave clumps of grass clippings which will block air and light. It can also cause disease and the growth of moss and fungi.
Top dress it
Applying Top Dress is essential, particularly heading into Spring. This can be very effective if your lawn is uneven, or lacking soil volume. Joe recommends you apply a light layer of ‘Lawn Top Dressing’ – never covering more than a third of the leaf. But, don’t do this until the lawn is back to full growth/normal mowing cycle.
Weeds & disease tend to develop during the change in season. Getting on top of this is essential as Spring arrives to ensure your lawn is healthy and will be able to withstand the Summer heat.
Weeds are essentially sucking the life out of your lawn. Using a natural weed killer to regularly remove these will enable rapid growth all year round.
Aerate, aerate, aerate
Try not to mow your lawn in the same direction every time. Shake it up a bit. When you mow in the same direction all the time you can compact the soil into actual ruts. Both compact soil and ruts can lead to grass that’s less healthy, followed by weeds that thrive in compacted soil.
Stay on top of your weeds
Weeds & disease tend to develop during the change in season. Getting on top of this is essential as Spring arrives to ensure your lawn is healthy and will be able to withstand the Summer heat. Weeds are essentially sucking the life out of your lawn. Using a natural weed killer to regularly remove these will enable rapid growth all year round.
Laying new turf? Test your soil quality
Start by testing the PH level of your existing soil. There are a wide range of Soil PH test kits at your local gardening store or online. Your lawn should range somewhere between 5 and 7. If not, you’ll need some underlay, preferably one with a good mix of nutrients to ensure your new turf will survive.
The best turf for your poolside retreat
Any type of lawn turf should be able to survive near your chlorinated pool if you ensure you dilute it. If you have a saltwater pool, Joe recommends the ‘Sir Walter DNA Certified turf’ as a good fit being very salt-tolerant compared to other varieties. Whether your pool is chlorinated or salt, your pool side lawn is always going to be protected if you remember to give it a regularly water to cleanse the chlorine/salt.
Discover more tips via our interview with Joe from Lawn Solutions Australia.
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