Nothing enhances the appearance of any traditional garden as much as a healthy, well-manicured lawn. But does your oasis of green always look its best?
Summer can take its toll on lawns thanks to long spells of dry weather and an abundance of outdoor living. With the kids back in school and a tinge of autumn in the air, now is the best time to show your lawn some love and get it into shape, ready for next year. Grass will respond best before soil temperatures fall and growth terminates for the season. But as many gardeners know, milder autumn months mean mowing can continue into late October or beyond. Even so, that should not mean delaying recommended lawn-care treatments, and we have a range products to help you keep your grass in tip-top condition all year round. Autumn is the best time to thoroughly rake your lawn using a spring-tined lawn rake. This process, also known as scarifying, will remove old grass stems, dead moss and other organic debris which, if allowed to build up on the surface can hinder the penetration of water and fertiliser into the soil. Aerating (or spiking) should also be done now or in the spring, as this will help the lawn to cope better with both waterlogging and periods of drought. Small areas can be treated using a garden fork, but dedicated aerators are available to treat larger lawns. Whichever method you choose this will aid air and moisture penetration and improve the effectiveness of weed and moss treatments, as well as fertiliser and top dressing. Top dressing means applying a mixture of loam, sand and well rotted organic matter to encourage greater rooting and thickening of the turf. It is particularly recommended as a treatment on well-worn areas and heavy clay soils, and is a great way of putting leafmould to good use. Top dressing is also an ideal method of correcting shallow surface irregularities. A good composter can produce great leafmould which can be put to work all around the garden, not just as a constituent part of top dressing. Incinerators are useful for the safe disposal of other organic garden waste that cannot be composted. It is weeds and pets that damage the appearance of many lawns. Pernicious weeds such as dandelions and daisies can be dug out, but may also be easily treated with selective weed control products. Similarly, brown patches, caused by pet urine, can be resolved with dedicated solutions that repair and regenerate the damaged areas.
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February 2018
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