A healthy, vibrant lawn makes the perfect complement to any home. Besides adding to a property’s aesthetic beauty, a well-kept lawn serves as a point of personal pride for many homeowners. However, not all of us are equally adept at lawn maintenance. Despite trying our best, we can’t make our lawns flourish in the way we desire. Fortunately, proper lawn care doesn’t have to be an uphill battle. Putting the following pointers into practice can help keep your lawn looking its best for years to come.
Don’t Mow Too Short
Many of us won’t think twice about placing the blades in the shortest possible setting when mowing our lawns. After all, the shorter the grass, the less frequently we’ll need to mow. While this line of thinking is certainly understandable, it’s not exactly good for your grass. Furthermore, it may actually result in more maintenance instead of less. When grass is cut too short, it becomes unable to properly retain and soak in certain nutrients, leaving it weak and discolored. While it’s true that certain grass – i.e., the grass outside of business and golf course greens – are kept perpetually short, these lawns typically receive a much higher degree of maintenance than most homeowners are willing or able to provide.
To nip this problem in the bud, adhere to the ideal mowing length for the type of grass that makes up your lawn. This may mean having to mow more often than you’d like, but it will ultimately save you several headaches down the line. If you are not sure about buying top rated riding lawn mowers, no need to worry about it because they are already tested each ride-on tractor for Engine Horsepower, Cutting Width, etc.
Stay On Top of Weeds
Weeds are a problem for countless lawns. In addition to negatively impacting a lawn’s aesthetic appearance, the presence of weeds can directly affect your grass’s overall health. Because they take vital nutrients from your grass, weeds stand to leave your lawn discolored and insufficiently nourished. That being the case, keeping a watchful eye out for weeds and eliminating them posthaste are essential steps in helping your lawn look its best.
Luckily, there are some easy ways to keep weeds at bay. For example, changing your watering schedule can help prevent weeds from popping up; instead of watering frequently and lightly, water heavily but less frequently. This will help make your grass more resilient and better equipped to fend off weeds. Additionally, as previously discussed, over-mowing generally isn’t good for the grass. However, if your lawn is beset by weeds, shortening your regular cutting height can prevent sprouting weeds.
Look Out for Lawn Disease
Grasses are living organisms, so they, too, are subject to disease if you don’t take care of them.
Here are the most common grass diseases that can affect your lawn:
- Brown Patch: This is a fungal disease that causes circular patches of dead grass to appear in the lawn. The patches are usually brown or tan and can be up to several feet in diameter. Brown patch usually occurs in warm, humid weather.
- Dollar Spot: This is another fungal disease that causes circular patches of dead grass to appear on the lawn. The patches are usually small, about the size of a dollar coin, and look light brown or yellow. Dollar spot is most common in cool, wet weather.
- Red Thread: Another disease typical in cool, moist weather, this causes red or reddish-brown streaks to appear on the grass blades. The streaks can be up to several inches long and are usually found on the lower leaves of the grass.
- Gray Leaf Spot: Lawns that get warm, humid weather are prone to this fungal disease. It causes small, gray or brown spots to appear on the grass blades. The spots can be up to several inches in diameter and usually appear on the upper leaves of the grass.
- Leaf Rust: Probably the most common and virulent, this fungal disease attacks many valuable plants in your lawn. It looks like red, brown blotches peppering leaves, hence the name.
These problems can be solved by aerating your lawn to regulate moisture levels, applying a safe fungicide, or switching to disease-resistant types of grass. If you don’t know where to start treating your grass, you can always ask experts for help.
Hire A Professional Lawn Care Service
Some of us lack the free time and/or inclination to throw ourselves into lawn maintenance. Depending on your yard’s size and the type of grass that populates it, keeping your lawn in peak condition can prove incredibly draining. If this sounds familiar, consider enlisting the aid of a professional lawn care service. The right service will be vigilant about keeping your grass mowed, nourished, and thriving without requiring you to lift a finger.
To ensure that you wind up with the right company, make sure to exercise discernment when considering your options. For starters, any lawn care service you do business with should be fully licensed and insured. This way, if any damage is done to your property, you’ll be able to rest easy. Furthermore, the company you select should have a proven track record of customer satisfaction. To form a solid understanding of how a business approaches customer service, peruse online feedback from previous clients. Although you’re likely to find a negative review or two for virtually any enterprise, an abundance of bad feedback should serve as a huge red flag.
Wanting your lawn to be its best possible self is only natural. After all, a meticulously-maintained lawn can make your home stand out and project an air of responsible homeownership. Still, despite our best efforts, some of us can’t seem to get the lawns we want. While getting your ideal lawn may seem like an arduous undertaking, the fixes you need may be much closer than you think. Although proper lawn care requires a fair amount of effort, making your lawn look its best needn’t be a drain on your time, energy, or financial resources.