Do not mow your grass short. A healthy lawn is produced when they are cut to a higher height.
This depends on soil conditions. For soil types that are more clay based water less frequently but water deep, this is typically 1/2 to 1 inch in depth. This will soak to an 8 inch depth. For coarse soil types that are sandy you must water more often and less deep.
Mowing with a dull blade will tear the grass and therefore develop a brown appearance at the top which will make it more susceptible to stress and disease. Using sharp blades will help the grass heal faster.
Never remove more than one-third of the grass height at one time. This will keep your lawn cooler and have less change of burning out in extreme heat.
Thatch causes trouble for your lawn when it exceeds 1/2 inch thick. Cutting through and removing thatch will improve your lawn's health.
Mowing your lawn on a regular schedule encourages dense growth. Do not mow when the lawn is very wet or during drought conditions in summer.
The lawn care industry has been claiming for years that clippings are actually beneficial to the lawn, as they act as a slow-release fertilizer for the plant as they decompose. Which is actually returning a small amount of nitrogen back to the lawn. Todd Graus, a lawn care professional for 35 years, claims that this is a myth. In Turf Magazine's July 2016 article, Todd claims that he has never seen a visual difference between lawns mulched and lawns bagged. He adds that mulching can promote thatch buildup and also increase the possibility of lawn diseases because disease spores on clippings can re-infect emerging grass blades. Are you bold enough to wait for your clippings to decompose in order to give your lawn the amount of nitrogen it needs?
Many people seem to forget or don't know that aerating is one of the most important steps in keeping a healthy lawn. Aerating is the process of perforating your lawn with small holes to allow for more water circulations and oxygen flow to the soil and roots. It helps fix lawns with poor drainage, compacted soil and lawns with heavy thatch. It's one of the most important steps you can do to your lawn and is essential in restoring a worn out lawn.
There are some really simple rules to following to maintain your lawn when the temperature is hot out. They are:
Getting and keeping a healthy lawn starts with your soil. So to create a healthy lawn you should first improve your soil. Topdressing is a technique used to do that.
The process of topdressing a lawn consists of adding soil or other organic matter directly over the top of your lawn. This technique also helps smooth out rough or uneven spots in your lawn, which can also help in seeding those bare spots in your lawn.
The three benefits of topdressing a lawn are:
When adding a topdressing be sure to only spread 1/4 to 1/2" across the lawn. Adding too much can create poor growing conditions. Make sure to water the soil after topdressing.
Testing your soil will indicate your soil’s current pH and nutrient content, and will tell you what to add to achieve the correct pH and nutrient levels. Soil samples are taken from your lawn and sent to a local university that has a soil lab. Test results are sent back indicating the current status of your soil which in-turn is used to determine what needs to be done to get a healthy lawn.
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