Lawn Care Advice

Lush green grass does not appear on its own. Getting the most out of your grass takes time and work. You’ll have a lovely garden to enjoy in no time if you employ a combination of our lawn seasonal treatments and our lawn care advice. Continue reading to learn more about lawn care from Premier Lawn and Weed Expert.

Mowing

How to mow a lawn

Make sure you mow your lawn in a different direction every time you cut your lawn. The grass will be strengthened and improved as a result of this. Each time you mow the lawn, remember to remove any clippings or debris since this might encourage thatch buildup and moss growth.

Frequency

Depending on the season, lawns grow at varying speeds. Your lawn grows more grass in the spring and autumn, and your mowing schedule should reflect this. After the snow melts and the weather improves, begin mowing regularly around the end of February. In the spring and autumn, once a week should suffice, gradually mowing more frequent as growth progresses. During the winter, from November to January, you can reduce this to once a month. In general, mowing should be done in small increments and your mower blades should be sharpened at least once a year.

How short should I mow my lawn?

Cutting the grass too short will cause it to dry up, loose its nutrients and lose its colour, so never cut it shorter than 25mm (1 inch). We recommend removing no more than one-third of the leaf as a rule of thumb.

Top mowing tips

  • Try to alternate the direction of your cut.
  • The first cut of the year in spring you should use a high setting.
  • Never cut the lawn shorter than 1 inch.
  • Remember the 1/3 rule of lawn mowing: never cut off more than a third of the grass’s height in one go.
  • Make sure the mower blade is sharp and consider purchasing a second blade so that you always have a sharp blade to use.
  • Do not fill the mower with petrol while it’s on the lawn – petrol spills can damage the grass.
  • Try to avoid mowing on frosty or wet days.
  • Get your mower regularly serviced (including sharpening the blades).

Brown / Yellow Patches

Your grass may turn yellow or brown owing to a variety of factors, including illness, dormancy, animal urine or simply nutrient deficiency. If not kept in check, this disease will cause yellow or light brown patches to scatter across your formerly green lawn.

We help you can diagnose the source of brown lawn patches or weak, sparse grass, and we will recommend a suitable treatment programme to cure the problem.

Book a free lawn analysis, or treatment now.

Watering

When to water lawn

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for watering your lawn. However, if at all feasible, watering a lawn in direct sunshine should be avoided. The best time to water your grass is in the morning rather than early evening when there is less likelihood of direct sunshine and not allowing the grass to become wet overnight risking disease from cooler temperatures. Please keep in mind that any amount of water applied to your lawn will aid in its recovery.

You should water your lawn once or twice a week during the average summer month, but if there has been heavy rainfall you may not need to water at all. 

A golden rule is to aim for around 1.5 inches of water a week (about the amount to fill an empty tuna can) whether through natural rain fall or utilizing a hosepipe or sprinkler.

Following lawn care treatments

Following scarification, your lawn must be kept moist by rain or irrigation regularly.

The grass must be kept moist regularly if an overseed treatment has been carried out. Watering for a few minutes each time is all that is required.

Overseeding

Overseeding is adding grass seed to your existing lawn. This adds more colour to your lawn, helps create thicker grass, and introduces enhanced varieties of grass to your lawn. Overseeding your lawn can also help to reduce the invasion of weeds and moss.

When to overseed

The best time to overseed an existing lawn is in spring and autumn, with germination taking 7 to 21 days in ideal conditions. Typical daily soil temperatures need to be more than 8ºC for grass seed germination to be successful.

Overseeding is usually done in conjunction with scarification or aeration, and it not only improves the appearance of your lawn, but it also improves the quality of your grass by enhancing shade tolerance, drought tolerance, and disease resistance.

For professional overseeding service, please get in touch with Premier Lawn and Weed Expert.

Spring

This is the time of year that your lawn will jump into action following the cold winter months. As the grass grows, it’s a great time to feed and condition, kill moss, get rid of lawn weeds and begin mowing.

Spring tips to achieving a great looking lawn

  • Moss treatment
  • Spring is also a good time to overseed any sparse areas of lawn.
  • Scarification to remove mosses and thatch
  • Aeration to improve drainage and fertiliser efficiency
  • Balanced of fertiliser to allow for healthy grass growth

Controlling weeds

Apply herbicides to control weed growth in your garden. Managing the thatch layer through scarification and aeration will also assist in keeping the lawn weed-free.

Achieve a great lawn in spring by calling Premier Lawn and Weed Expert for an expert spring treatment service.

Summer

Summer is the best season to appreciate your lawn and reap the rewards of your prior winter and spring labours. The good news is that it will require less upkeep during the hotter, drier summer months, allowing you to spend more time with your family and friends.

Quick Summer Lawn care tips

  • Apply the correct fertiliser. Feeding in early summer helps strengthen the lawn so it can better withstand the heat and drought condition
  • Maintain the grass height between 1.5 and 2 inches
  • Water during the cooler part of the day to prevent evaporation ideally the morning
  • Once summer comes to an end, overseed any bare patch areas of your lawn.

Mowing

During hot conditions, we also recommend increasing the cutting height slightly as leaving the grass a little longer will help trap moisture by reducing evaporation along with storing nutrients within the grass blade.

Pests

Chafer Grubs and Leatherjackets, the two most frequent lawn pests, can cause severe damage to lawns. Check for signs of grubs eating on the grass roots. If you observe patches of yellowing or grey grass areas, birds eating within the lawn or check if patches of lawn come away from the surface.  

Achieve a healthy and lush looking lawn in summer by calling Premier Lawn and Weed Expert for an expert summer treatment service.

Autumn

Autumn is an essential season for lawn maintenance. It’s critical to employ the remaining few months of the growing season to strengthen and prepare the lawn for the upcoming winter months. The time and effort put into a lawn in the autumn will improve its quality and health well into the following spring and beyond.

Quick Autumn Lawn care tips

  • When mowing, it is a good idea to raise the height of the cut as winter approaches. Reduce the frequency of mowing to only once a week as autumn progresses.
  • Remove all excess debris including fallen leaves from the lawn, this helps prevent the conditions which can lead to thatch and moss.
  • Scarifying will also help to prevent many lawn issues such as moss and by removing thatch which in turn will allow nutrients to be taken up by the soil to benefit your lawn.
  • Depending on the state of your lawn, you may want to overseed in early autumn giving a thicker, denser brush to your lawn ahead of winter.

Feeding

At this time of year, your grass may be prone to various diseases such as Fusarium. Applying an autumn lawn food in early autumn will help combat these by strengthening the grass plants as well as giving your lawn an attractive green colour.

Winter

Winter is a fairly quiet time in the garden, however, there are still a few things you can do to help keep your lawn in the best possible condition, here are a few tips and advice for looking after your lawn in winter.

Moss Control

Moss control is essential over winter, it helps prevent diseases that are more common over winter due to damp conditions, and helps with hardening the grass.

Mowing

Only mow the lawn if necessary; this will depend upon weather conditions and temperatures at the time. Do not mow if the ground is very wet. Alternating the direction of the cut helps the grass to stand upright and will help air move between the lawn.

Aeration

Aerate combined areas of the lawn with a fork, this will relieve compaction, improve drainage and allow more air into the root system leading to a healthier lawn.

Targeted Winter Lawn Feed

A winter feed involves applying a liquid product to your lawn that, as well as targeting moss, contains essential plant nutrients and can keep fungal disease activity at bay. Our seasonal treatments ensure that your lawn receives the best care over winter with everything you need. Please get in touch with Premier Lawn and Weed Expert.

Premier Lawn and Weed Expert

Our Lawn Care Service is available in Hinckley, Lutterworth, Market Harborough, Coalville, Ashby de la Zouch, Measham, Tamworth, Atherstone, Nuneaton, Bedworth and surrounding areas. Contact us today to arrange your FREE lawn care consultation.