I’m all about ‘lawn love’ – the key to successfully growing lush, green grass, you need to embrace going ‘less but deep’
A LAWN expert has five tips she swears by for a successful green lawn.
She revealed a common gardening mistake people make that increases their weed count.
Sarah Butler, a writer for Lawn Love, shared the advice in a post.
When it comes to water, she said, less is more.
"One of the best ways to encourage a healthy lawn is to encourage the development of a deep root system. You can achieve this by watering less often, but more deeply," she said.
"If you water your lawn in short, frequent bursts, then all you’re doing is encouraging your lawn to grow a shallow root system so it can get as much water as possible.
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"This also has the side effect of encouraging the growth of weeds, ultimately making your lawn more susceptible to disease.
To help train your grass, she recommended watering your lawn over longer periods of time to develop deeper roots.
The method, she revealed, increased its durability and health.
"This helps it stay green even during periods of high heat and drought," she said.
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"Aim to deliver about one inch of water per watering session. Simply put a can or some sort of small container out on your lawn as you water to help you gauge when you’ve reached an inch."
Another mistake, Butler said, was mowing grass in the same direction and pattern during every maintenance session.
"When you mow your lawn [in] the same direction every time, you’re creating a kind of mowing memory for your lawn," she explained.
"That means it may start to lean to one side based on which direction you mow.
"Soil compaction can also become an issue if your mower’s tires are constantly running over the same spots."
Butler added that the fix was simple as lawn caretakers can easily switch up their mowing direction.
A sharp blade solves this problem, so make sure to sharpen your blade at the beginning of every mowing season and check it throughout to make sure it’s still sharp.
Sarah Butler
The expert also stressed the importance of sharp mowing blades, conservative cuts, and mulching your clippings.
"A dull blade may cut the grass, but it’s not providing a clean cut. Instead, it’s tearing the grass and causing water loss, which can lead to discoloration and susceptibility to environmental stressors," she said.
"A sharp blade solves this problem, so make sure to sharpen your blade at the beginning of every mowing season and check it throughout to make sure it’s still sharp."
While cutting, she followed a "one-third" rule that prevents over-trimming.
"Never remove more than one-third of the grass height when you mow, or you could weaken the grass, making it more susceptible to disease, weeds, drought, high heat, and pests," she advised.
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To encourage the cycle of water and nutrients back into the soil, she recommended leaving lawn clippings out on the lawn to decompose.
"It’s like free fertilizer for your lawn – so leave those clippings! You don’t even need a special mulching mower to do it, the mower you have should work just fine," she said.
