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Lots of people find pleasure in taking care of their garden.
For some people, there is nothing more pleasing than a perfectly manicured lawn and tended garden. It can bring back a lot of happy memories from childhood summers spent in the garden and for a lot of us, the first chores we were assigned had to do with taking care of the family garden.
Taking care of your lawn really is a full-time job and it can take a lot of effort. For some people, this is too much effort and they can feel as though they are putting in too much work for little reward.
If this is you, then don’t worry. We are going to help you take care of your garden all year round so you can always enjoy a perfectly manicured lawn no matter what the weather.
Taking Care Of Your Lawn All Year Round
If you want to have a perfect lawn, then you need to be dedicated.
Looking after your garden and lawn is not just something that you can do when the sun is in the sky – it is a year-long project that has to be ongoing. The perfect lawn is not something that can be created overnight, so you need to be patient with yourself and try to spend as much time as you can afford to tend to the garden.
This is going to be the ultimate guide to taking care of your lawn in all seasons. We will be discussing the best ways to maintain your lawn, depending on the weather, as well as some of the things you need to do every month to keep your lawn in perfect condition.
Spring Lawn Maintenance
When taking care of your lawn during the spring months, there are a few things you need to do. Spring is an excellent time of year for gardeners, as this is where we can see our plants come back to life and a lot of color blooming in our gardens.
This is also the time of year when you need to prepare your lawn for the upcoming seasons and make sure that it will look perfect no matter the weather.
1. Test the Soil
If you want to maintain a perfect lawn, you need to work your way up. This means focusing on the soil that you are using and making sure this is good enough to feed your lawn.
Every time spring comes around, you should perform a soil test to see what condition your lawn is in and what you will need to do to it. A soil test will reveal the pH balance of your soil, which in turn will determine how well grass will grow.
Grass grows best in soil that has a neutral pH balance, which will appear as around 6.5 on the pH scale. The soil will also need to have decent levels of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium salts. This will differ based on where you are located, so make sure you understand the region-specific measurements for your garden and lawns.
It is very important that you take care of your soil and ensure that it is fit for purpose, as it can save you a lot of time and money throughout the year. Some people may think that their lawn needs additional support and so will waste a lot of money on fertilizers throughout the year when really they need to change the soil they are using instead.
Fertilizers and other soil amendment products will not work on your lawn if you have soil that is too acidic or too alkaline. With this in mind, not all gardens require regular fertilizers or other products throughout the year. Some people will use lime annually on their lawn in an attempt to make it perfect, but this is not always necessary.
If your lawn soil has a good pH balance and adequate potassium and phosphorous levels, then you do not need to add too many additional products. Professionals recommend using a basic nitrogen fertilizer every once in a while if your soil is in good condition to help your lawn.
This fertilizer is easy to use and relatively inexpensive to purchase, helping you save money on tending your lawn while also seeing better results. Home soil tests can also help you save money and they can usually be purchased for around $10 at garden stores.
2. Jump-Start Your Lawn
Spring is the first time in the new year that you can finally get out into your garden for some proper maintenance. This is why it is a great time to wake up your lawn and kick start the growing process again.
This can be done by mowing and edging your lawn, which will also improve the way it looks after the harsh weather of the winter.
When it comes to mowing and trimming your lawn, there is often a lot of debate about which is the correct order to do things. Professionals in the field and other expert gardeners claim that it is actually best to trim your lawn before mowing it, as this will ensure that you are also capturing the trimmings for an overall neater appearance.
If you have a very dense lawn, then you may need to spend a full spring season dethatching it. This process will allow the soil to breathe and can improve the way that the grass grows back next time.
It is recommended that you either purchase your own power dethatcher or hire one for the season so you can get your lawn into good shape without hurting yourself using a rake or other manual tool.
3. Take Small Steps
Taking care of your lawn and making it perfect is a process that requires a lot of patience. You will not see results immediately and it may take a few springs before you notice any kind of positive change in your lawn.
It is recommended that you start taking care of your lawn before weeds start to appear. Depending on where you are based, this could be February, or it could be April. It is recommended that you treat any weeds that do appear separately from the lawn for more precise removal.
The more that you practice taking care of your lawn, the more seasoned you will become in it. You will be able to learn what your lawn actually needs and how to tailor these routines to suit your garden’s unique needs.
No matter what kind of routine you develop, make sure that you take some time to clean up after yourself. Sweep or blow away any access fertilizer into the grass to keep it away from public freeways.
Summer Lawn Maintenance
The summer is one of the best times of the year for having a perfect lawn. This is the time of the year when all of the family can be outdoors and enjoying your perfectly manicured lawn, but that doesn’t mean you still shouldn’t take care of it during this time.
1. Water Regularly
When the temperatures increase, lawns can become stressed and dehydrated, which will ruin its appearance and quality. In normal weather conditions, most garden lawns will need to be watered around once a week, but during the summer, this will need to be more frequent.
If you live in a location that has hot and dry summers or hot and windy weather, which is even worse for your lawn, you need to make sure to water it regularly. You will need to be able to replace the water that has evaporated from your lawn to keep it hydrated and in good condition.
The number of times that you will need to water your lawn will differ based on your location and the kind of weather you experience. This includes the rainfall that you experience, which can majorly help out your lawn. Based on these factors, you may need to water your lawn every five to six days or every four to five days.
To keep up with the needs of your lawn, you should purchase a water gauge. This is especially important for those who live in a house that uses municipal water systems instead of wells. This is because you will likely experience lower water pressure during the summer as it is being used more often throughout your neighborhood.
In order to hydrate your lawn properly, you need to give it time to soak into the roots. Every time you water your lawn, you should try to provide around an inch of water to your grass and soil. This means that you should avoid brief watering sessions, which will contribute to shallow rooting, and instead take your time when watering the lawn.
To make this a more accurate process, there are a lot of equipment and tools that you can purchase.
2. Adjust the Height
Scientists and expert gardeners claim that when the temperature rises, so should your lawn. A freshly mowed lawn at heights of around two to two and a half inches is what most gardeners should aim for during the summer.
It is also recommended to avoid cutting more than one-third of the leaf tissue in your lawn in one mowing, as this can seriously damage the quality of it.
The reason why longer grass is a great option during the summer months is the fact it is more protective of the soil and can also hold more water. As the grass is longer, there is more plant tissue available to hold water, which in turn can keep it hydrated for longer.
Longer grass can also produce more chlorophyll and will also shade the soil underneath. This will prevent it from drying out.
3. Battling the Bugs
Most gardeners will purchase a fertilizer that also contains an all-around insecticide to prevent bugs. However, this actually isn’t the best idea as these kinds of insecticides are designed for a full spectrum of bugs and are not specifically tailored to one region. This can mean that they may not be effective in your location.
It is recommended for you to use a separate fertilizer and insecticide that is specially tailored to your location and the weather conditions you face, as each will have their own bugs to deal with.
Autumn Lawn Maintenance
Autumn is the time of year when the seasons change once more and all of nature gets ready for winter. This is the time of year that you should expect to spend cleaning and protecting your garden, so it will be ready for the harsh weather of the winter.
1. Remove The Thatch
Before the summer is completely over, you will need to take some time to remove any thatch that has developed in your grass. Thatch is a mat of yellow dead grass that can block moisture and air, making it very damaging to the rest of your lawn. This is an excellent opportunity for you to improve the detaching efforts that you made during the spring.
However, it is important that you do not go at your grass too aggressively when trying to remove thatch during the autumn. If you use tines that are too deep when using a power detacher, you could damage your lawn and ruin all of your hard work.
When detaching the lawn during the autumn, it is recommended that you use a rake instead of a power tool. But if you do decide to use a power tool, make sure it is clean to prevent the spreading of disease and bacteria into your garden.
2. Get Ready To Reseed
Autumn is the perfect time of year to reboot your lawn and get in back into a good condition. This is the time of year when you may need to reseed your lawn to fill out any dry or bald patches that have appeared over the summer.
When you reseed your grass, you need to make sure to keep the soil moist. Once a seed has dried out, it will dry out for good, which will impact or even stunt the growth of your grass.
3. Keep It Clean
There is a lot of cleaning that needs to be done during the autumn, as there are a lot of falling leaves and other debris that can appear in your garden. These will all need to be removed, so they do not block out the light and prevent photosynthesis.
Even when you are not using your lawn, it still needs to be taken care of.
Make sure your lawn is being properly fed by using a winterized or stage four fertilizer, which should see it through the season. This will ensure that you will see good results in the spring.
Winter Lawn Maintenance
There is not a lot of physical care that you can give your lawn during the winter, but that still doesn’t mean you can’t show that you care.
1. Start Studying
You should use the winter to study up on lawn maintenance so you can start planning for the upcoming spring.
This is the only time of year when you cannot physically take care of your lawn, so you have no excuse not to bunker down with some books and learn everything you need to about maintaining a perfect lawn.
2. Prepare For Spring
During winter, you should start preparing your equipment and your garden for spring.
Make sure you have everything you need to maintain a perfect lawn and ensure that it is all in good working order.
Extra Tip: Keep A Journal
If you are seriously dedicated to maintaining the perfect lawn, then it is recommended for you to keep a lawn journal.
Like any other journal you may keep, this book will be used to report on your lawn so you can keep track of your developments.
It is recommended that you start your lawn journal in the spring, where you can take notes on the weather and the rainfall that may be impacting your lawn. This is also where you can take note of the chemicals and other products that you have been using on your lawn so you can see which has the best effects.
This is an excellent way for you to keep track of your progress and also the steps that you are taking to maintain your perfect lawn. It can be quite easy to forget everything you have been doing, especially a month or so later.
Keeping a lawn journal allows you to keep track of your progress and can be used to refine your unique routines.
Taking care of the perfect lawn truly is a year-long task and every season comes with its own demands.
