Caring for your lawn is a very important investment and asset to your home. You may have the most beautiful house on the block, but if you have dried out grass or a lot of weeds, this can take away from that beauty immensely.

While there are many different lawn care products available for you to use, be careful what you use. Using chemicals on nature to make it look like you have a healthy piece of nature is not the way to go. (See other Going Green articles)

Simple green lawn care tips for a healthy lawn:

Set your mower as high as it will go (3 to 4 inches).

The sun is food for grass and weeds. If grass is too short, weeds will shade the grass and the grass cannot get the sun. If the grass is longer, it will shade the weeds, allowing the grass to receive the sun, while the weeds lack it.

Many people think that the lower you mow your grass, the longer it will be until you have to mow again. This is a MYTH! The fact is your grass needs grass blades to do photosynthesis, which is converting sunshine into sugar, which feeds the roots. When you chop off the blades, the grass grows even faster to make more blades to make sugar. When it grows super fast, this grass uses up the stored sugar and weakens the plant; therefore, making it more susceptible to disease and pests. Taller grass is healthier and uses the extra sugar to make more grass plants, which thickens the turf.

Leave the clippings on the lawn. These clippings add organic matter and nutrients back into the soil. Not leaving the clippings will make your soil start to look like dirt, instead of soil.

Only water when your grass seems like it is dry.

When you do water, do it heavily. Put a cup in your sprinkler zone and make sure it is at least an inch of water. If you water less frequently, your grass will have to go deep into the soil. If you water frequently, but not deeply, your grass turns into a “thatch” above the soil rather than grass plants under the soil.

Use organic fertilizers in the fall and spring.

Use a third of what the package recommends every three weeks in the spring and fall. At the beginning of spring and fall, use half of what the package recommends. Do not fertilize in the summer, as the cool season grasses lie semi-dormant in the summer and fertilizer only feeds the weeds.

Consider having your pH professionally tested

If it is below 6.0, add lime. If it is above 7.0 add gardener’s sulfur. Do not rely on a kit, as they do not always give you an accurate reading.

Tips for successful fall lawn care

It is important to fertilize your grass for the winter because lawns have significant underground root growth during the colder months. Use organic fertilizers high in nitrogen and potassium to feed them during the fall. Continue watering to saturate the fertilizer. Rake dead leaves, as they will cut off vital sunlight while the fertilizer is moving down into the root system.

Take care of your lawn properly and you will enjoy the benefits of a beautiful lawn.

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Comments (1)

• |2009-01-24 17:24:51 George  - Excellent Grass Tips
  I always wondered why my mower was at 2.5" I will definitely try 3+ inch setting this spring & summer. I think people cut short to have a more manicured lawn but everything you say makes sense and is good and green so I will try it!
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