The state of your lawn reflects on you as a person. When people walk or drive by, they’ll instantly judge through the first impressions of your home, and your lawn is likely to be the first thing they see.
Also, if you’re attempting to sell your home or have first-time guests coming over, first impressions really count! Before anyone enters your home, they’ll first be checking out your green lawn.
Keeping a lawn in tip-top condition is somewhat of an art form. But for the most part, there are a number of easy-to-learn techniques and other factors to be aware of that will help you keep your lawn looking fresh and lush-looking.
Here, we’ll run through some essential lawn care tips and tricks so you can ensure your lawn remains healthy and attractive.
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How to Keep A Green Lawn
There are several factors to consider which will help you to alleviate any lawn care problems.
Obviously, watering, feeding, and mowing your lawn regularly are ways to keep your lawn looking great. However, there are some lawn tips and tricks in other areas that we will explore.
These include:
- Weed control
- Thatch and moss removal
- Lawn drainage and aeration
- Overseeding
Weed Control
Depending on the type of grass species you have planted, different weeds can suddenly spring up overnight if you don’t exercise proper lawn care techniques.
If you notice weeds growing, you can, of course, just pull them out by grabbing them firmly at the bottom of their stem and giving them a sharp tug. Your aim should be to lift the weed’s roots out as well.
However, pulling weeds out by hand isn’t going to prevent these types of weeds from appearing once more and in greater numbers.
We advise for weed prevention to use natural homemade weed killers, which are vinegar, salt, or baking soda-based.
A good example is mixing two cups of vinegar with a couple of salt spoonfuls and a squeeze of dish liquid. The salt and vinegar will work to kill any plant you spray or rub it on. The dish liquid allows the mixture to stick to the plant and therefore makes the solution more effective.
Alternatively, you can opt for store-bought herbicides, but be sure to identify the types of weeds in your garden first and then buy a
weed killer that can irradicate them.
Bear in mind; your choice of grass species can drastically affect which types of weeds will grow on your lawn. For instance, Bermuda grass (considered a weed by some) is a tough type of grass, and weeds find it hard to grow when Bermuda is well fed, watered, and thriving.
Thatch and Moss Removal
Thatch is an accumulation of organic matter in your grass which can be detrimental to its growth. The matter is generally comprised of dead leaves, root stems, and dead grass.
All this organic matter tends to become entwined, and so it’s a typical lawn care technique to dethatch your lawn once or twice a year. It isn’t advised to dethatch any more than this because it can be a harmful process, and your lawn needs time to recover.
The simplest way to dethatch your lawn is to use a standard garden rake and drag it over your entire lawn in one direction, pulling up a lot of the thatch in the process. Then you can attempt a second pass of the lawn but at a 90-degree angle from your previous direction. Keep doing this until you are satisfied that you have removed a good amount of thatch.
One useful tip is to gather up all the pulled-out thatch and pile it up as compost.
Moss thrives in damp areas on your lawn and in your garden. Moss also appreciates the shade and low-quality soil. If you leave moss to grown continually, it may overpower your grass, making for an ugly unkempt looking lawn.
You can hand remove moss by digging and pulling it out. But it’s best to identify why it has sprung up in that area. It may be that you need to provide better drainage in that area of your lawn so that it doesn’t remain damp all the time. Or, you might need to improve the soil quality for your grass to overtake the moss growth.
Lawn Drainage and Aeration
Improving your lawn’s drainage annually gives your grass a chance to flourish, and it’s a good preventative measure against weeds and moos too.
The easiest way to improve your lawn’s drainage is through aeration.
To aerate your grass, use an ordinary pitchfork and make two to three-inch deep holes throughout your lawn. If there are particularly damp areas, you might want to add more holes there.
With these drainage holes added, you allow water to enter the grass’s root structures more efficiently, promoting faster and healthier grass growth.
Another tip is to assess the topography of your garden. If there is excessive waterlogging in some areas, you should try to make some drainage channels and gutters to allow water to run away from the problem areas.
Overseeding
Overseeding is best carried out once you’ve thatched and aerated your lawn. Your grass may be damaged from these processes, and so applying a mixture of grass seed and fertilizer over the entirety of your lawn can be helpful.
Any areas that are looking bare with minimal grass growth will benefit from overseeding. Plus, healthy areas will have a chance to really flourish and grow to their greenest.
We advise you to mow your lawn and water it well before overseeding it too.
The Takeaway
There are various methods and techniques you can employ to keep your green lawn healthy and revitalized. However, we’ve discussed some strategies that should stand you in good stead for keeping your lawn in excellent condition.
Thanks for checking out this post, and good luck in your future lawn care efforts!
