The All Time Top 7 Lawn Care Tips

Lawn MowingTaking care of your lawn doesn’t have to be all-consuming, expensive or difficult. More often than not it just needs a little bit of effort on a consistent basis to keep your lawn lush, healthy and the envy of the neighbours. Here at Harden Park Lawns we have compiled our all-time top lawn care tips to help you take care of your lawn.

Keep on top of weeds, pests, diseases

To maintain the health of your lawn and reduce the amount of herbicides, insecticides and pesticides applied to the lawn, it’s important that you deal with any issues as soon as they appear. Undertake at least a weekly inspection for weeds, pests and disease. If you see an issue in one part of the lawn, treat as soon as possible to avoid the problem affecting the entire space. Small amounts of weeds can usually be eradicated by hand before they invade the whole yard.

Regular Mowing

Mowing your lawn on a regular basis will encourage a dense mat which will, in turn, help to stop weed invasions. Mow more often during the growing phase to ensure that the lawn stays healthy but don’t cut the lawn too long – a slightly longer lawn will protect the soil from the sun and will be healthier.

Correct Watering

Too much water will weaken the stems and leaves and can even drown the roots if they become water logged. Aim for deep but infrequent watering that will provide the water needed and encourage a deep, strong root system.

Regular Fertilising

Applying fertiliser every few months will ensure that your lawn receives the nutrients it needs to stay strong and healthy, as well as maintaining it colour.

Lawn Compaction

Avoid leaving heavy objects on the lawn and using the same path over and over in the yard – this will just lead to soil compaction which will then stop water, oxygen and nutrients penetrating the soil and reaching the root system. This will eventually lead to damage to the lawn plants.  Fixing soil compaction is possible by either using a garden fork to create air holes or a coring/aerating machine which will remove cores from the soil and open up the pathways for the much needed nutrients, oxygen and water.

Sunlight

Obviously lawns need adequate sunlight in order to survive and thrive. As a guide:

  • Couch, Kikuyu and Queensland Blue varieties of lawn need direct sunlight for the majority of the day – they won’t thrive in shaded areas
  • Zoysia, Durban, Soft-leaf Buffalo varieties of lawn are able to survive with less direct sunlight and don’t mind a bit of shade.

Depending on the type of lawn you have, you can let more sunlight reach the lawn by trimming back any overhanging branches and shrubs.

Thatch

While thatch is the natural layer that ensures lawn is durable enough to be walked and played on, and protects the soil below from water evaporation, it will build up over time and make it difficult to mow. If you find that your lawn is thick and spongy to walk on then it may be time to dethatch or vertimow your lawn – this process will remove the excess thatch and let the lawn regenerate from its own runners. You can remove thatch by strongly raking the lawn with a stiff, metal garden rake, or hire a vertimowing machine for larger areas.

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