LAWN CARE TIPS

LAWN CARE TIPS

Best Lawn Guy wants your lawn to be healthy, lush, and beautiful. There are many things we can do to care for your landscape but there are also a few very important things you can do to ensure the best possible result. Some of the tips may seem simple, but they can make a big difference to your lawn.

Watering

The rule of thumb is 1” per week during cool temps and up to 2” during the dry hot months. Remember, that it is more beneficial to your lawn to water for a longer period of time, but less often per week (3 times a week for 30-45 minutes, instead of 5 times a week for 15-20 minutes). More importantly, the optimum time to water the lawn is early morning between 4am and 7am. This will allow the top growth to dry reasonably quickly and reduce the risk of disease. Watering during the heat of the day can also be good because it reduces the temperature of the lawn, but this is less efficient and some communities regulate what times watering can be done.

Proper Mowing Height

You may want to cut shorter to minimize the frequency of mowing but this is not a good idea. Turf that is too short may develop inadequate roots which can make it sparse and more susceptible to turf diseases. During the heat of summer, it is even more important to leave the grass a little longer. During spring and fall you can cut the grass down to 2 ½” inches but during summer it should be a minimum of 3” to 3 ½ ” tall. We recommend a height of 3 ½”.

The One-Third Rule

Never remove more than one-third of the grass plant in a single cutting. If you cut more that, you risk removing all the leaves from the grass stem, leaving only the stem which makes it difficult for the grass plant to thrive.

Sharpen That Blade!

If Best Lawn Guy is mowing your lawn, you need not worry. We sharpen our blades every day and we even bring an extra set of blades with us just in case a blade gets damaged. If you are one of our customers that is mowing their own lawn please remember to sharpen your blades monthly. Dull blades tear the grass blade, leaving it ragged. This will mean a less attractive lawn because the tip of each blade will brown, giving the turf a brown appearance. More importantly, it causes the blade to lose more moisture and also makes it more susceptible to disease.

Fertilization

We hope you will allow us to do this for you but here is some interesting information if you chose to do it yourself. The use of slow release fertilizers allows application any time, even in the middle of summer as long as there is sufficient watering of the turf. Applying fertilizer several times a year will help give your lawn the nutrients it needs to look green and healthy.

Thatch/Core Aeration

For our lawn mowing customers we use mulch kits on all of our mowers throughout the entire season. Using a mulching mower at regular intervals will generally not cause excess build-up of thatch (more than ½”). If you are concerned about excess thatch, we recommend a dethatching of the lawn in the spring and core aeration in the fall. Core aeration reduces compaction and is best done in the fall prior to seeding. Power raking will remove thatch but it also removes many good grass plants too and doesn’t help with compaction. Important: Companies offering low priced core aeration generally use less effective equipment and try to do the job quickly to get onto the next one. The goal of core aeration should be to get as many plugs in your yard as possible.

Lawn Use

Many people don’t realize how fragile their lawn can be. Heavy traffic areas from people and pets can be a real problem for a lawn. Be aware of areas that are high traffic points including steps and landings to grass, driveway and walkway corners, swing sets and dog runs. Simple things like not placing the garbage can on the corner of your lawn. Or letting your dog out in different areas of the lawn to reduce constant wear can make a big difference. Finally, we would recommend you take a few minutes each month to survey your property for insects, disease, or other issues. Please call us to come out and look at anything you find. We are happy to provide this service free of charge.

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