10 EASY WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR LAWN

 

1. RECYCLE YOUR GRASS CLIPPINGS

Grass recycling improves lawn quality. When grass clippings are allowed to decay naturally on the lawn, they release valuable nutrients, add water-saving mulch and encourage natural soil aeration by earthworms.

When clippings decompose they release their nutrients back into the lawn. The clippings contain nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, as well as lesser amounts of other essential plant nutrients. When you leave them on the lawn, clippings are rapidly broken down into these nutrients. Grasscycling obviously also saves you time!

2. ADD COMPOST/COMPOST YOUR GRASS CLIPPINGS

Composting your grass clippings is also a fantastic way to reduce waste and help your garden and lawn to grow. 

Adding compost to your soil is one of the best ways to green up your grass, and all your garden plants. Compost has a number of other benefits, including:

1. Compost improves water drainage in clay and sandy soils.
2. Compost creates a slow release of plant nutrients and stimulates root growth.
3. Compost helps reduce problems with soil-borne plant diseases and garden pests.
4. Compost prevents erosion of precious topsoil.
5. Composting recycles yard and kitchen waste instead of sending it to landfill.
6. Compost balances the pH levels of most soils.
7. Compost attracts beneficial insects, worms, and other organisms
8. Grass recycling and composting are easy and rewarding;
9. Read more about grass recycling here and composting at the Compost Instructions web site.

3. HAVE THE CORRECT LAWN WATERING STRATEGY

How much should you water?  How often? Let’s face it, most people think they are watering their lawn by running their sprinklers for a few minutes every day, if you are doing this, then you are unlikely to be giving your lawn the correct levels of water it needs to survive and thrive. Proper watering is crucial to having the best-looking lawn on the block.  Here are some key points:

1. Your lawn needs at least 1”-1 ½” of water per week, year-round, during the winter, too.
2. Water deeply 2-3 times per week, rather than daily.
3. Water as early in the morning as you can, when possible.
4. If you can’t push a 6” screwdriver into your lawn, you’re not watering enough.
5. You will need to water more in the heat, especially if you have a fescue lawn.
6. Don’t water so long that it runs down the street. 
7. If you have automatic sprinklers, check them regularly to be sure you’re getting complete coverage.
8. If a brown area doesn’t respond to watering, look for another problem.

How do you know if you’re watering your grass with 1 inch of water? You can use this simple test. Place a series of shallow containers throughout your lawn and turn your sprinklers on. Keep watering until you measure 1 inch of water in the majority of the containers.

This simple test will also help you determine if your sprinklers are watering your grass evenly. If the depth of the water in the containers varies widely, this may explain patches of dried grass in your lawn. In this case, you’ll need to adjust your sprinkler heads. It’s also important that you don’t over-water your grass.

Remember, the best time to water your grass is the early morning, and when there is no wind. This will help reduce problems with evaporation. Here is more information on How To Water Your Lawn. 

4. MAKE SURE YOUR SOIL IS NOT OVERLY COMPACTED BY AERATING YOUR LAWN

Most lawns see a lot of traffic, from kids playing, pets running around and even the task of mowing your lawn can result in the soil becoming compacted over time.This results in poor air circulation, reduced water absorption, and nutrient absorption. It is also more difficult for essential earthworms to establish themselves in overly compacted soil!

All of this results in reduced lawn quality. If you want to achieve your goal of a greener, lush lawn, then adding aeration to your lawn management protocol is a great idea. If your lawn is small, or if you have plenty of time on your hands, then aerating your lawn with a machine aerator is unnecessary because you can complete the task with hand-operated tools. Aeration breaks up compacted soil by creating holes in it, helping the grass grow vigorously and reducing thatch, moss and other lawn problems.

An overview of the lawn aeration process. Source 

Push a hand aerifier, which has tube hollows that are 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter, or a spading fork through your lawn grass, and into the soil, to about 3 inches deep. 

How often should you aerate your lawn?  Each lawn varies based on how much foot traffic takes place on the lawn, how much thatch is present, etc. If your lawn looks good, aerating every 3-5 years is sufficient. If there’s a lot of activity it might be worthwhile to consider aerating every two years or even annually. 

You can read more about how to aeriate your lawn here. 

5. CUT YOUR GRASS CORRECTLY AND TO THE RECOMMENDED CUTTING HEIGHT.

Knowing what height to cut your grass is an important way to get your grass to grow healthy and strong. Setting your lawnmower to the highest or lowest setting is not necessarily the best thing for your grass. In fact, different grass species have different needs in terms of grass cutting height. 

This table outlines the ideal height to cut your grass.

The proper height for mowing your lawn depends on the type of grass, the season, and the growing conditions. For example, Bentgrass can be mowed under 1/2″ while Tall Fescues should be 3-4 inches high. Choosing the correct mowing height is important since:

Proper mowing creates a low-maintenance, drought-tolerant lawn.

Mowing discourages undesirable grasses and weeds while encouraging your chosen grass type. For example, mowing Fescue higher will discourage Bermuda grass which is low-growing.

Additionally, you should keep the blades on your lawnmower nice and sharp so that it cuts your grass effectively.

6. COMPOST YOUR KITCHEN AND GARDEN WASTE FOR GREENER GRASS

7. MAINTAINING YOUR SOIL’S PH LEVELS

If you have a pool at home, I’m sure you are familiar with the concept of maintaining your pool PH levels. Well, your lawn is no different! Lawn pH balancing can be equally as important as inspecting your pool.

In order for your lawn to continue to grow and develop it must be kept at the appropriate pH level. Many people neglect to maintain this balance in their soil and their lawns suffer. If your lawn’s pH level is too acidic (low) or alkaline (high) your grass can have difficulty obtaining the necessary nutrients from the soil. Without the proper lawn pH, your lawn could lose its healthy green appearance you have worked so hard for. pH ranges from 1 acidic to 14 alkaline with a neutral pH of 7 which is neither acidic or alkaline. Maintaining the appropriate pH balance (approximately between 5.5.-7) is important to achieve your best looking lawn. 

Grasses like a pH between 5.5 and 7. The low end (slightly acidic) is preferred by your fine lawn grasses (bents and fescues) whilst your broader leaved grasses (rye and meadow grasses) like a more neutral pH at 6.5.

So how can you test your soils PH levels? Well, it is actually pretty easy. You can purchase a home soil testing kit from any good local garden centre. Take a sample from 2-3 inches deep from the lawn. 

If you find that your lawn pH levels are too low, lime will adjust the pH from acidic to alkaline. Do not use it unless absolutely necessary – once on you can’t take it off! If you need to raise the pH use ground limestone or ground dolomitic limestone. Your supplier should be able to advise on the amount required to raise the pH by the required amount. As a guide only I have used it at 100grams per square metre to raise the pH by 0.5.

For more information about managing your lawns pH levels read this.

8. USE A SHARP BLADE.

Ensure you cut your lawn cleanly and evenly, make sure you use a sharp and balanced blade. A blunt blade will have the damaging effect of tearing the grass rather than cleanly cutting it, meaning the ends of the grass blades may turn yellow but will grow out leaving no lasting effect. 

To maintain a sharp blade, avoid mowing over any stones as much as possible, making sure to sharpen and balance your blade ideally 2 times a year. Naturally, this is something you need to do carefully and follow a safe protocol. 

9. USE MYCORRHIZAL ROOT BUILDER TO IMPROVE YOUR SOIL

Mycorrhizal fungi are beneficial soil organisms that provide a sort of secondary root system for your garden plants and grass. They attach themselves to the roots and help plants and grass make better use of water and organic nutrients in the soil.

With a Mycorrhizal fungi root builder, you can get mycorrhizal fungi to work more efficiently. Mycor Root Builder is an excellent product that will work great on all the plants you grow, not just your turf grass.

10. USE NATURAL LAWN FERTILIZERS TO PROVIDE ESSENTIAL NITROGEN TO YOUR LAWN.

Why use natural fertilizers instead of synthetic lawn fertilizers? Because they are better for your grass, the environment, and they are proven to work better than synthetics and in the case of GuanoBoost, the all-important nitrogen Levels are extremely high for organic fertiliser. This is because it is made from 100% Guano Bird Fertilizer. Seabird Guano is one of the best organic fertilizers in the world today. 

The seabird guano used in GuanoBoost is sourced sustainably using environmentally friendly methods from Namibian Islands.  Grow Bang Lawn Fuel is produced locally in South Africa and contains 100 % natural ingredients.

All growing plants need 17 critical elements to grow to their full potential and of these, nitrogen is the most important. Nitrogen is so vital because it is a major component of chlorophyll, the compound by which plants use sunlight energy to produce sugars from water and carbon dioxide (i.e., photosynthesis). It is also a major component of amino acids, the building blocks of proteins.

Nitrogen is essential in making sure lawns are healthy as they develop. That’s because nitrogen is essential in the formation of protein, and protein makes up much of the tissues of most living things. If you want the best possible lawn you can have, then you need to apply natural fertilizer, high in Nitrogen levels.

A recent study by Austin’s Watershed Protection and Development Review Department, with the collaboration of Texas A&M, showed that organic and natural lawn fertilizers actually produce greener lawns than synthetics. Moreover, natural fertilizers are healthier for your family and for the environment! 

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT 100% ORGANIC GUANOBOOST.

So how often do I need to apply?

The last thing your lawn needs is constant overfeeding. It does nothing to benefit your turf grass and can be damaging to the environment. For most lawns, applying fertilizer 2-3 times a year is enough to keep your grass green and healthy. Precisely when you apply fertilizer depends partly on your climate, but mostly on the type of grass you have. The key is to fertilize during the season when your grass is doing the most growing.

If you want the best possible 100% organic, Natural Fertilizer to get the best results for your lawn, CLICK HERE to buy GuanoBoost on a special offer.