If you have a lawn, you must be aware of some lawn maintenance routines you need to perform to keep it in good shape. Routines like mowing, watering, and eliminating weeds might seem simple, but you might be making mistakes that affect your lawn's health. Such mistakes could be the reason why your lawn looks unkempt and patchy despite the efforts.
Read on to discover some lawn care mistakes you should avoid in order to have a lush green lawn.
Cutting Too Short
Plants use their leaves to generate the food they need to grow. Therefore, if you have been cutting your grass too close to the root, you might prevent it from getting enough nutrition. When you cut your grass too short, weeds can outgrow the grass and spread all over your lawn. Never cut more than one-third of your grass's length, no matter the season.
Overwatering
Plants need water to grow, but that does not mean that your lawn sprinklers should always be on. According to the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), the preferred ratio for watering your growing grass is one inch of water to 12 inches of soil. You should also prefer deep lawn watering to shallow lawn watering because the former nurtures the grass's roots.
To avoid confusion about how often you should water your lawn, you can install an irrigation system with smart controllers instead of a garden hose. This development will also cut your water bills by 15 to 20 percent.
Using Dull Mower Blades
Dull mower blades not only increase your mowing time but also affect your grass's appearance and health. Instead of cutting the grass, a dull mower will tear the grass blade and leave behind a brown appearance rather than a clean cut.
Adding Too Much Fertilizer
While fertilizer is essential for healthy, green turf, adding too much can be detrimental to the grass's health. For example, too much fertilizer can burn your grass due to high nitrogen levels, turning parts of your lawn brown.
Another common fertilizer mistake many homeowners make is adding it at the wrong time. Before you use any fertilizer on your lawn, you should read the instructions to determine how and when to use it. Also, conduct a soil test to ensure that you have purchased a fertilizer with the minerals lacking in your lawn.
Using Too Much Herbicides
Sometimes, you may need to use herbicides for weed control. However, you should not use excess herbicides, as you will be poisoning the environment. Use herbicides sparingly and only at the spots where you need them. If the weed spread is not severe, you can pluck them with your hand or use a hoe.
Failing to Conduct a Soil Test
Most homeowners skip the critical step of testing the soil before planting grass in their yard. If you fail to conduct a soil test, you may end up purchasing the wrong fertilizer because you don't know the nutrients lacking in your soil. You can use an at-home soil test kit or send samples to a local extension service for analysis.
Watering at the Wrong Time
To avoid losing too much water to evaporation, you should water your grass is in the early morning hours before the sun is too hot.
Lawn care requires additional knowledge and skill than just mowing, planting, watering, and weeding. To maintain a healthy lawn, you should mow properly, plant the right grass, water correctly, and use the right fertilizer and tools. At Novasack Turf Farms, we offer professional turf care advice to help you maintain an enviable lawn. Contact us today to learn more about our products and services.
