8 Things You Should Know About Lawn Care

• Do not mow your lawn when it’s wet.
• Set mower blades to 3 ½ to 4 ½ inches. One of the most common mistakes a homeowner can make is mowing the lawn too short. You should always mow high and mow often!
• Mow often to avoid removing more than ⅓  of the grass height each time.
• Maintain sharp mower blades to avoid shredding your grass instead of cutting it. We recommend sharpening your blades every 3 to 6 mowings. If you cut your grass with dull blades, it will begin to appear yellow in color from a distance.
• Do not allow clippings to “bunch,” because it will suffocate the grass underneath.
• Check out more helpful tips about mowing from the professionals here!

Grass cycling is an easy way to reuse the nutrients from the grass you have cut and reintroduce it to your growing lawn. Instead of bagging your grass clippings we recommend leaving the clippings on your lawn which will release valuable nutrients into the soil helping the grass that remains while reducing the amount of outside fertilizers needed to stay healthy and green.

• When: Watering should be done in the early hours between 5:00 am and 10:00am. Watering in the evenings will prevent the water of the surface from drying properly and increase the chance of diseases being drawn to your lawn, especially during periods of high humidity. If you water your grass in the middles of the day, the sun will burn through the water on the surface of your grass and damage the blades.
• How Much: When watering, be sure to completely moisten the soil 4 to 8 inches in depth. This will help to ensure a healthy root system.
• How Often: Watering should occur two to three times a week, depending on the amount of rainfall.

A healthy lawn is your best defense against weeds. As grass strengthens and thickens, it actually helps prevent crabgrass, dandelions and other weeds from growing by blocking out the sunlight and using up the moisture that weeds need to germinate.

A healthy lawn can take some time to develop. Until your lawn has reached this point, you can still fight weeds naturally by mowing your lawn no shorter than 3 ½ – 4 ½ inches and removing any weeds that already exist to prevent them from spreading.

Too little water and too much salt from fertilizers will cause your lawn to turn brown and, in severe cases, can kill the roots. Chemically-derived synthetic fertilizers can burn lawns if over-applied because they contain a high levels of salt. Applying more synthetic fertilizer than the label suggests can actually damage plants. Follow the directions on the package to avoid problems.

Using heavily synthesized, water soluble fertilizers often release more Nitrogen into your soil than many organic products. While this method can have quick results on the green appearance of your lawn, forcing this Nitrogen into the roots of your grass can put strain on your turf having a negative long term effect. Look for a slow-release or water-insoluble fertilizer that releases nitrogen at a natural rate for your grass to promote optimum, long term growth.

When fertilizing lawns, homeowners often tend to spread the product too close to their shrubs and beds. Often times these plants do not require as much Nitrogen as your grass does and can easily be over fertilized.

If your soil pH is not maintained properly, your lawn will not be able to fully utilize the nutrients from applied fertilizers. Most weeds and moss love acidic soil. Proper pH is essential to keep the enemy out and your lawn beautiful. We can test your soil to find out what is needed and treat your lawn accordingly.

The way to a healthy lawn is through its soil. The ideal soil for gardening contains a mixture of sand, silt, clay and organic matter. The level of acidity can also impact the growth of your lawn. It is important to keep your soil neutral, or around 7.0 on the pH scale. As part of our Lawn Care program, Blades of Green will test the pH level of your soil and create a customized treatment plan to help neutralize your soil.

Various causes of acidic soil:

• Acidic rain water
• Fallen leaves and pine needles
• Irrigation systems that have acidic water levels

Solutions:

• Remove the leaves and other acidic organic material from the lawn
• Soil testing to monitor the pH levels
• Application of appropriate amount of lime or sulfur to adjust soil pH