How to save your lawn without watering: 6 steps to ‘promote growth’ in patchy grass
LAWNS can suffer during the summer months and may need extra maintenance to help keep it looking nice and green. A gardening expert has shared seven steps to help gardeners look after their lawns this year.
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Hot weather can cause stress to the garden, including the lawn. Gardeners may need to water their lawns more and mow less often. To help protect it, an expert has shared top tips on steps gardeners can take to look after their grass without reaching for the hose time and time again.
Chris Bonnett, founder of GardeningExpress, said: “Everyone wants gorgeous green grass this summer, especially if you’re entertaining.
“The lawn is an important part of the garden and when it’s taken care of, tidy and green, it can automatically make the garden appear neater and more presentable.
“There are a few routine things you can do to keep your grass looking healthy and bright like adding fertiliser, leaving grass clippings and top dressing.
“If you do all these things consistently, you’ll notice change in your lawn.”
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Fertiliser:
Gardeners should fertilise their lawns a few times throughout the year.
This includes at the beginning of spring, once in the summer and once in the early autumn.
Chris said: “Mow your lawn and lay down your fertiliser with a spreader which will ensure you have an even coverage. Leave this to settle in the grass for around 24 hours then give it a light water.
“After that, avoid watering the grass for a few days so that the fertiliser can do its job. Once you’ve done this you can get back to watering your grass as normal.”
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Top dressing:
Top dressing can be done a couple of weeks after using a fertiliser.
Chris said this is good for those who are “really” keen for their grass to grow.
He added: “Mix together materials like sand, soil loam and peat and apply this to your dry grass.
“The materials will transfer nutrients back into the soil and promote growth.”
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Use grass clippings:
The expert said: “Similar to top dressing, an easy way to promote grass growth is to leave the remaining grass clippings on your grass after mowing.
“This way, the clippings decompose and transform healthy nutrients that promote growth back into the soil, keeping your grass healthy.”
Leave the lawn long:
Cutting the grass too short can actually do more harm than good during the summer months.
Shorter grass means less photosynthesis, which means less growth.
Chris continued: “Really, you want to keep your grass two to three inches long.”
Some gardeners may also choose to leave areas of their grass wild for insects.
Aerate the lawn:
The gardening expert explained: “Aeration is creating small holes in your lawn to allow it to breathe and allow air and nutrients to access the roots.
“It’s also important to avoid a build up of thatch.
“However you must ensure that you do this in correct weather conditions, it shouldn’t be too dry or too wet.
“Simply dig a garden fork into different sections of the grass or you can purchase a lawn aerator, either is fine.”
Overseeding
Sometimes areas of the lawn can go bare and patchy during the summer months.
To help get it back to its healthy state, Chris recommended overseeing.
He said: “This is a great way to sow new seed over existing lawn and can lead to fuller looking grass.”
Water the lawn:
Finally, the expert, said gardeners should water their lawns for longer and less often, especially when the weather is so hot.
Chris explained: “Instead of watering your grass everyday for short periods of time, try and give your grass a longer and deeper water a few times a week in order to penetrate right down to the roots. Leaving it for a couple of days will give the grass plenty of time to soak it up before the next watering.”