GrassLawnSeed

If you a’re lucky enough to have a grass lawn with a good topsoil base, much of the hard work of keeping your lawn beautiful is already done for you. But many of us do not have this luxury, and besides, even with a good topsoil base, you still have to work hard to keep a beautiful lawn and garden.

1. The best time to mow a lawn is when it is cool and dry. Wait for the morning dew to dry off, and before the afternoon heat takes hold. Alternatively, late afternoon or early evening following a watering in the morning is also a good time.

2. A hedge is a much better boundary divider than a fence. It will provide better privacy and keep pets and children in – or out. It will attract birds to its shelter, and provide a great backdrop for plants and flowers.

3. Bring the beauty of your garden to you; plant hyacinths near walkways and doors. Their magnificent perfume will swamp the spring air and make your garden really come alive.

4. Add your garden to non-garden items, such a lampposts and mail boxes. Surround these items with flowers planted to take advantage of the earliest to the latest flowerings. You could have white snowdrops, purple and gold crocus, blue hyacinths, and various colored tulips. You could also surround the posts with rocks to provide added interest.

5. Simple, but effective weed control can be achieved on your lawn by mowing often during spring. This will prevent dandelions spreading by eliminating the yellow blossoms and preventing seed formation. Mow high during late spring and early summer. This will allow grass blades to shade the ground, and will help prevent crabgrass from sprouting.

Your lawn and garden should be a source of pride and beauty. You don’t need to spend lots of money on expensive fertilizers and herbicides, or fancy lawn furniture and ornaments. A little commonsense and thought can go a long way to making your lawn and garden a much better place.

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If you are thinking of starting a lawn from grass seed, there is some information you need to know before making your decision. The advantages of planting grass seed over installing sod are that it is less costly and there is more variety of grasses to choose from. Whilst there is a lot of labor involved, the beautiful results are well worth your time.

This article will contain many tips to help make the seeding process easier. When starting a grass lawn from seed, be aware that it will take a lot of care. If you are a keen gardener, this probably won’t be a problem for you. If you are replacing a very large expanse of lawn, you may want to hire someone to help you remove old sod, or hire a turf cutter. Seeding results are better if you remove old lawn grass before you begin. This can be done by removing 1 foot sections with a spade. If you are laying grass from scratch you will want to till the area in order to remove old root clumps or debris and rake it till you get the level you desire.

An important decision to be made is what type of lawn grass seed you should purchase. Take your climate into consideration, consider whether the area is shady or wet and also determine what type of soil and drainage you have. Consider also how much traffic the grass will have. This will help you make the perfect grass choice for your lawn. 

If your soil has poor drainage, you will need to add some sand to the mixture before planting the lawn grass seed. This will stop the ground becoming waterlogged. You will also want to check the pH level of your soil. Ideally, most lawns thrive with a pH level of 6.5-7.0, so if yours isn’t in this range you may need to add some amendments to attain this level. If you have decided to start your lawn from seed, one thing you should think about is how much maintenance is required once the grass is established. Some grass varieties need little or no mowing, and others require lawn mowing more often. Some also require more moisture, so watering may be necessary.

Once you have chosen your grass seed it’s time to get the soil ready. The first step you should taking after preparing the site is to add a layer of organic material to your topsoil. Some people choose not to use topsoil. In this case, use peat moss, compost and manure, and make sure this is at one inch thick at a minimum. Leave the mixture loose so that the roots of the grass seed can spread. As you can see, starting a lawn from grass seed does require quite a bit of work – but it is well worth the effort. You may also add fertilizer about a week before seeding. Just follow the manufacturer’s instructions for this step. After all the preparation is complete, you are ready to seed! Again, follow manufacturer’s instructions. They will tell you how much seed to use on a certain size area. You can seed by hand or use a spreader – or both, this is completely up to you. If you have a large area it is useful to divide it into smaller sections and sow a portion of the grass seed into each section. To ensure you have an even spread sow the lawn seed in two directions. After seeding, you will need to rake the grass seed into the soil. If birds are likely to be attracted to the area you can criss cross string about 4 inches above the soil surface. Now, wait for your grass to grow! It should only take about 7-14 days before the seedlings appear.

Keep the soil moist during this time and water preferably in the evening. Use a fine mist so as not to dislodge the grass seeds. Until your lawn becomes established, try to keep pets and visitors off of the grass. Starting a lawn from seed does require effort and attention on your part. To keep you motivated during the process, just picture the lush green lawn you will have in a short time! Your neighbors will be envious.

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