Grass is really quite a resilient plant, so with some very simple lawn care, it's usually quite easy to keep your lawn's "health" good. You'll need to water it often, fertilise and use a lawnmower to hinder the growth of weeds.
If you've disregarded the lawn care (people have jobs, kids - it can be hard to find the time), the grass quality will no doubt suffer. When this has occurred, it's time to start the lawn restoration.
Unless the lawn is completely ruined, with some intensive lawn care, you should be able to fix most problems. It just may take a little time.
If there's no way to save the lawn (if the damage is too intensive), it's usually best to start from the beginning. Start by rotating the soil by digging into the grass and turning it slightly with a shovel. Then apply new grass seeds and cover them with a layer of soil.
If you're regrowing the lawn, you'll really need to care for it over the next few months. Give it enough water and always use a fertiliser. After it has grown back, continue with your normal lawn care system.
OK, so if you've not reached the stage where you need to completely regrow the lawn, the most regular lawn-care complaint is that people have let the grass grow for too long. When this occurred, moss and fungus can spread quickly.
People's initial reaction to this, when they finally come to mow the lawn, is to simply cut it back to its normal height. However, this can be a mistake. What will happen is that the sudden mowing of the weakened grass to a short length will end up damaging it further.
There's only one safe way to deal with the lawn in this kind of circumstance. That's to grab a strimmer and cut just a bit off the top. Keep going back to it every few days until it's back to a good height.
You should really be fertilising at least a couple of times a year. If you haven't done this, you may start to see the grass turning a different shade. Most commonly it will turn a yellowy-green due to a nitrogen deficiency.
You should pop down to your garden center and buy a step-system fertiliser. Not only are these really simple to use, they're incredibly helpful for getting the grass just the right nutrients.
Weeds can spread extremely quickly, so always remember to rip them out of the ground (thus completely killing the roots) as soon as you notice them. Fail to do this, and you'll just cause more work for yourself in trying to get rid of them later when they've spread all over the lawn.
After you've mowed the grass back to a good height and started to fertilise the lawn again, you should inspect it for any dead or brown patches. The way to deal with these is to dig up the area (only slightly) and rotate the soil. Then spread grass seed and cover with a thin layer of soil.
After you've done this, keep the area fertilised and watered whilst the grass seeds take root. As the growing season commences, the new seeds should fill out the area.
There's not much else to it, and it certainly isn't rocket science. When the lawn is back to a great condition just make sure you stick to that lawn care routine. Always use a lawnmower and strimmer regularly and keep the grass well watered. - 30228
If you've disregarded the lawn care (people have jobs, kids - it can be hard to find the time), the grass quality will no doubt suffer. When this has occurred, it's time to start the lawn restoration.
Unless the lawn is completely ruined, with some intensive lawn care, you should be able to fix most problems. It just may take a little time.
If there's no way to save the lawn (if the damage is too intensive), it's usually best to start from the beginning. Start by rotating the soil by digging into the grass and turning it slightly with a shovel. Then apply new grass seeds and cover them with a layer of soil.
If you're regrowing the lawn, you'll really need to care for it over the next few months. Give it enough water and always use a fertiliser. After it has grown back, continue with your normal lawn care system.
OK, so if you've not reached the stage where you need to completely regrow the lawn, the most regular lawn-care complaint is that people have let the grass grow for too long. When this occurred, moss and fungus can spread quickly.
People's initial reaction to this, when they finally come to mow the lawn, is to simply cut it back to its normal height. However, this can be a mistake. What will happen is that the sudden mowing of the weakened grass to a short length will end up damaging it further.
There's only one safe way to deal with the lawn in this kind of circumstance. That's to grab a strimmer and cut just a bit off the top. Keep going back to it every few days until it's back to a good height.
You should really be fertilising at least a couple of times a year. If you haven't done this, you may start to see the grass turning a different shade. Most commonly it will turn a yellowy-green due to a nitrogen deficiency.
You should pop down to your garden center and buy a step-system fertiliser. Not only are these really simple to use, they're incredibly helpful for getting the grass just the right nutrients.
Weeds can spread extremely quickly, so always remember to rip them out of the ground (thus completely killing the roots) as soon as you notice them. Fail to do this, and you'll just cause more work for yourself in trying to get rid of them later when they've spread all over the lawn.
After you've mowed the grass back to a good height and started to fertilise the lawn again, you should inspect it for any dead or brown patches. The way to deal with these is to dig up the area (only slightly) and rotate the soil. Then spread grass seed and cover with a thin layer of soil.
After you've done this, keep the area fertilised and watered whilst the grass seeds take root. As the growing season commences, the new seeds should fill out the area.
There's not much else to it, and it certainly isn't rocket science. When the lawn is back to a great condition just make sure you stick to that lawn care routine. Always use a lawnmower and strimmer regularly and keep the grass well watered. - 30228
About the Author:
Peter writes about gardening, including lawn care and advice on tools such as the petrol strimmer, at the Petrol Strimmer Guide.
