How Green is Your Grass?

It is every homeowner's dream to have a lush green lawn. But who hasn't, at some time or another, had a lawn that looks less than that? Not all lawns are the same and it is likely to have different requirements depending on soil condition, drainage, moisture, and such. 

Read on to learn some practical tips on how to avoid common lawn dilemmas:

Even for grass, the winter months are a time of hibernation. But once spring arrives and the temperatures get warmer the lawn will start to grow again. Spring also marks the time for you to take pro-active steps toward a lush and healthy lawn. 

De-thatching will benefit the grass

The benefit of de-thatching the lawn is that it will remove dead turf and leaves, and miscellaneous other particles preventing new growth. However, it isn't necessary to eliminate all the dead grass. Leaving a bit behind will provide all-natural plant food in the form of vitamins and minerals. Leaving behind about 10mm is plenty. It's best to do this in the springtime before the lawn has started to grow.

Aerate the soil

Over time the dirt below a lawn comes will be become compacted and hard. This makes it hard for air, water, to penetrate. It also makes it harder for worms to travel through the soil to distribute necessary nutrients and dampness. A solidly compacted lawn has a more difficult time to grow, although weeds, being hardier than grass have no problems growing.

By aerating your lawn in the spring -- using a garden roller or yard fork -- you'll be separating the compacted dirt and also allow air to penetrate and keep the grass healthy. 

Re-seed and cross-seed as necessary

No matter how great you are with your overall lawn care regimen, not all areas of a lawn are going to be growing rich and lush. Even the best of lawns sometimes have grassless areas or areas that are taken over by weeds. In some cases, you will find brown spots caused by the urine of family pets or wildlife. Spring is the very best time to start re-seeding these areas with seed or re-sod. Just rake out any kind of dead turf, or remove weeds and re-seed or re-turf. You might also consider cross sprinkling grass seed all over to yield a thicker growth. Just be sure to keep the new seed moist for better germination. 

Level out uneven areas

An uneven lawn surface will create a multitude of problems.  If there are ups and downs in your yard, a normal lawnmower is going to shave this area much too thinly compared to the rest of your lawn, and water can pool in these in locations, creating drainage problems. Depending upon your particular situation, you ought to fill dips as well as squash bumps. This will quickly improve the look of your lawn, and make it simpler to care for.

Cut the grass at the ideal height

A great deal of the nutrients in the grass are stored closer to the tip. By cutting away way too much can influence the health of the turf. Furthermore, the shorter you cut the grass, the more you expose the soil to the hot sunshine providing weeds a chance to grow. Longer grass blades will choke out weeds.

Leave the yard cuttings on your lawn

We all like a "manicured" lawn but consider leaving some grass cuttings behind as they serve as a natural fertilizer for the rest of your lawn. 

Fertilize

Just as your body needs vitamins and minerals, so does your lawn. At least, give your lawn a good fertilizer application in the spring to foster growth and one in the fall to encourage deeper root development.  You can also consider applying an additional dressing during the summer, depending on your situation.  Always follow the fertilizer manufacturers' instructions.

These are just the most practical, common-sense lawn care maintenance tasks to follow if a healthy-looking lawn is important to you. Of course, you could do this yourself or if you rather outsource it.

Shamrock Landscape in Benicia, Vallejo, and American Canyon has been providing lawn care services for 30+ years and can assist you with all of your lawn care needs. 

Best Lawn Care and Maintenance Guide

A healthy lawn can add beauty, add value to your home, and be a functional part of your landscape. Lawns can provide a relaxing space to play and entertain. A lawn also filters out dust and pollutants thus helping the environment, and provide oxygen to us. Here are a few tips that can help you maintain a beautiful lawn with minimal effort and time.

Watering your Lawn

How often one should water the lawn is the question that is often asked. There is no one size fits all answer. It all depends on several factors pertaining to the type of soil, seasonal rain patterns, outside temperature, wind exposure, type of grass, and general lawn maintenance. In the Summer and early Fall water at least twice a week, with occasional extra watering during very hot periods. During the winter months, you may not need to water at all as long as it rains every couple of weeks. In the Spring, you may need to water once or twice a week depending on the temperature and the amount of Spring rains. If you have a timer, it is important that you understand how it works so you can make adjustments to your watering schedule as the seasons change.

Watering deeply and less frequently is more beneficial to your lawn as it will encourage the roots to grow deeper into the soil and will make your lawns less susceptible to changes in the weather. The goal is to find the balance between watering as little as possible while maintaining a green lawn. Sometimes a little experimenting is required until you find that balance.

Mowing

Lawns look at their best and stay healthiest if mowed regularly. The duration between mowings will depend on the time of year and the growth rate of your lawn due to season, fertilizing and watering. In the summer, you may need to mow weekly whereas, in the winter month, you may not have to mow for a month or more because grass generally grows slower during the cooler periods. If you have dwarf fescues, you may only need to mow every 10 to 14 days in the summer. We recommend raising your lawn mower settings one or two notches during the summer months. This will help retain moisture better in the lawn. In the winter months, it is a good idea to lower the mower to one or two settings to keep the lawn from getting fungi due to the colder and wetter days. 

Fertilization Schedule

The main reason to fertilize is to maintain a healthy, green lawn which can be achieved by fertilizing at a minimum of 3 times per year. We recommend once in the Spring, once in the early Summer, and once in the fall. Two additional applications may be needed to provide optimum health. Depending on the time of year, different types of fertilizers are recommended for optimum growth and health. 

Consult with the chart below for some of the options to consider to keep your lawn happy and healthy. Remember to water after applying fertilizers unless applying on a rainy day.

When to Fertilize	Type of Fertilizer	Benefits
Late Jan to mid Feb	Master Nursery Fall & Winter Feed	Formulated for cool weather and provides nutrients needed for a green healthy lawn
Alternative choice	*Prohibit Pre-Emergent Weed Preventer & Lawn Food	Greatly reduces the recurrence of annual bluegrass(poa annua) and crabgrass while feeding the lawn
Organic Alternative	E.B. Stone Nature's Green Lawn Food	A natural blend of feather meal, blood meal, bone meal, sulfate of potash, and humic acids.
Late March to early April	Master Green Lawn Food	Formulated for warm weather conditions and provides a good balance of nitrogren, phosphorus, and potassium.
Organic Alternative	E.B. Stone Nature's Green Lawn Food	A natural blend of feather meal, blood meal, bone meal, sulfate of potash, and humic acids.
Late May to early June	Master Green Lawn Food	This application will help carry the lawn through the summer months.
Organic Alternative	Milorganite	Great source of iron and doesn't burn lawn in the summer heat
September	Master Green Lawn Food	Last application of the Master Green for the season
Alternative	*Prohibit Pre-Emergent Weed Preventer & Lawn Food	2nd application for the season to prevent weed seed from sprouting in the fall.
Organic Alternative	Milorganite	With 4% iron and slow release nitrogen, this will feed your lawn all fall.
November	Master Nursery Fall & Winter Feed	Cool-weather fertilizer that will give the lawn a boost as it heads into the winter months
Organic Alternative	E.B. Stone Nature's Green Lawn Food	A natural blend of feather meal, blood meal, bone meal, sulfate of potash, and humic acids.

*Use Prohibit Pre-emergent Fertilizer instead of the Fall & Winter Feed or Master Green Lawn Food if you have trouble with weeds in your lawn.

Insect Control

If your lawn starts turning brown in patches your lawn may be under attack by insects that often attack the grass at the root. If this is the case, you will want to inspect your lawn for grubs, cutworms, or other critters that might be doing damage. Most of the damage seems to be in the late Spring and early Summer and then again in the Fall. If you are having issues with these insects, you can apply Sevin® granules to your lawn. Apply Sevin® in late May and again in September. Additional applications may be necessary if you have a severe infestation of insects.

We hope this article was useful in your lawn maintenance regimen. Wishing you a healthy green lawn all year long.