A lush, well-maintained lawn is the perfect green base for colourful herbaceous borders, a great setting for summer picnics and even a foraging ground for birds and other wildlife. Read on for our top lawn care tips on you how to keep your lawn looking its best all year round.
Lawn care in Spring
We don’t officially enter spring until the end of March, but there are things you can be doing all year round to ensure your lawn is the best it can be throughout the warmer months. What route you take all depends on your final goal. Do you want the picture-perfect striped lawn, or are you aiming for a wildflower meadow bursting with wildlife?
Mow your lawn regularly
Cut your lawn at least once a week in the summer months, and once every two weeks during the spring, autumn and warm winters. Regular trimming encourages the roots to spread, which will help fill any unsightly gaps and block out unwanted weeds.
In summer, it’s a good idea to raise the cutting height of your mower to leave the lawn a little longer, around 5-10cm, as this will make it less prone to going brown in dry weather. Keeping your mower well maintained and the blades sharp is important for optimum performance.
Feeding your lawn
In mid-spring (late March to early April) use a spring or summer fertiliser at the recommended dose. Feeding the lawn will increase vigour and help prevent weeds and moss from establishing. Applying the fertiliser when the soil is moist, or when rain is expected, will ensure it gets washed down to the roots and stop it from burning the leaf blades.
Top tip: Do not apply spring or summer lawn fertilisers, chicken manure pellets or sulphate of ammonia after August. They contain too much nitrogen for autumn use, encouraging green leafy growth at the wrong time of year when it could be damaged by winter cold or pesticides.
Fill bare lawn patches
Rather than letting bare patches spoil the look of your lawn, it’s easy to sow grass seed over the raked soil. Alternatively, you can make fillers from unused turf. When reshaping your lawn, collect up the remaining strips and place them 5cm apart in a compost filled tray, then grow them in a cold frame.
To replace the bare patch, cut out a square or rectangle around the bare area, and dig up the soil to whatever depth your new turf strip is. Gently lay the turf, cut to fit and firm it down so that there are no gaps.
What about growing a wildflower meadow?
Lawns can be converted into wildflower meadows, but it can take several years for the balance between grass and wildflowers to be established.
- Stop feeding and weedkilling the turf
- In the first year, continue mowing weekly to weaken the grass
- Some wild species will establish and thrive
- Raise others from seed, introducing them as one- to two-year-old pot-grown plants planted into holes in the turf
- Many wildflower suppliers offer plug plants that are ideal for planting into an established lawn. For a natural look, plant in small groups of the same plant.
Do you need help with your lawn care?
If your lawn is looking a little sorry for itself after the harsh winter, and you’d like to start getting in back on track in time for summer, we’re here to help. We offer residential and commercial grounds maintenance services throughout Surrey, so give our team a call on 07393 821797 or get in touch by filling out the form.
