What Happens If I Dont Fix This
There are many side effects if you choose not to fix your drainage problems. Here are just a few:
- Most plants are not adapted to water-clogged soils. So when you plant grass for your lawns, you need to have a drainage system that supports the growth of grass in your garden. Most trees and shrubs are also not adapted to growing in water-saturated soils, and too much water leads to their lack of oxygen.
- You cant enjoy your lawn, let alone walk on it comfortably until the water has completely dried which can take days. Walking on a wet lawn is heavily discouraged because it can cause soil compaction, which hinders the roots of your plants from penetrating deep into the soil. Plus, getting mud on your feet defeats the purpose of going out for a leisurely walk.
- A large puddle of pooling or standing water attracts mosquitoes, which you dont really want on your lawn. Even if the water stays on your lawn for only 2 days, it is long enough for mosquito eggs to hatch. Beyond the annoying biting and itchiness, these mosquitoes may be carriers of the deadly West Nile virus.
- A puddle of sitting water close to the foundation of your house is also a big problem since it can slowly seep into your walls and can cause cracks and mould.
- The biggest side effect of a poor drainage system is property damage. Without a good drainage system, you risk the following:
- Mould growth and wood rot
- Overflowing gutters
- Damage to concrete and asphalt
Use Premium Grass Seed
Theres a saying, You get what you pay for, and that is certainly true when it comes to grass seed. When you use premium grass seed like Scotts® Turf Builder® grass seed, youll know that it will sprout fast, provide even coverage, and stay in place. Coated with WaterSmart® PLUS coating that absorbs 2X more water than uncoated seed, Turf Builder® grass seed feeds to jump-start growth and protects seedlings against disease. Lawn pros know that planting a lawn with premium grass seed allows you to start with a thicker lawn so its easier to keep it looking lush and full.
Problem: Ugly Bald Sports Solution: Start From Scratch
Weeds love bare patches, so if you don’t act quickly, they will. Spring’s cool, wet weather is conducive to growing many types of turfgrass. Start by digging up the damaged section, plus 6 inches of surrounding, healthy lawn, cutting about 2 inches deep. Then level the soil and add a small amount of soil amendment, such as a plant-based compost, and starter fertilizer. If you’re using seed, cover it lightly with straw and keep the ground moist until germination. For sod, which is about 10 times more expensive than seed but tends to work better, cut a section to fit, press it into place, and water frequently until it takes root.
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Core Aeration Gives Your Lawn Breathing Room
A neglected lawn’s recovery should start with a good core aeration. Proper aeration removes cores of soil and thatch . Insects, diseases, and some weed species find thatch an ideal place to live.
It is particularly important to core aerate lawns on clay soils that are prone to compaction from human and pet traffic and from running the lawn mower over the lawn. Aeration increases water and air penetration, stimulates new root growth, and provides openings for fertilizer and pulverized compost to enter the soil. If you need to overseed a thin lawn, the openings left from aeration provide lodging places for grass seed to germinate more successfully.
You’ll get the best results from aerators that remove 3-inch-deep cores that are 3/4 inches in diameter and spaced at 3 to 6 inch intervals. The aerator should cross the lawn at least twice, going in two different directions.
Plugs left from aeration can be unsightly and tracked indoors if left on the surface. Ideally, you should rake up the plugs after aeration and recycle them in the compost pile. If you prefer, you can leave the plugs on the lawn and they will eventually break down after several mowings. Just remember to sharpen the lawn mower blade regularly as mowing plugs will dull the blade.
You Dont Have To Slave Over Your Lawn To Keep It Healthy
If youre an average homeowner , you spend almost four hours a week on yard work and mow your lawn 30 times a year. And while you may not realize it, your lawn pays you back for all this hard work. It serves as a giant air conditioner to help cool your home. It releases a tremendous amount of oxygen and captures tons of dirt and dust to help keep you and your family healthy. It gives you a place to play croquet. And the healthier your lawn is, the better it keeps up its end of the bargain.
The good news is, you dont have to slave over your lawn to keep it healthy. In fact, to a great extent, its not the amount of work you put into your lawn its when and how you do it. The following six ingredients are essential for a healthy lawn. We focus on northern or cool-climate grasses like bluegrass and fescue, but most of the information applies to warm-climate grasses like zoysia and Bermuda grass, too.
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Ways To Naturally Improve Your Lawn
Lawns make your yard look good, but they do more than that. They absorb water, which reduces storm runoff and improves air quality. Lawns have a significant cooling effect, provide oxygen, trap dust and dirt and promote healthy micro-organisms. They prevent erosion and filter the contaminants from rainwater.
As you can see, lawns are very busy and very helpful to our environment provided that we utilize natural lawn care remedies to help improve the lawn.
In this article, well go over some ways you can naturally improve your lawn, paying special attention to watering and aeration and overall improvement of the soil. A lawn without a healthy foundation is not a healthy lawn at all.
Video: 7 Ways To Get Thicker Greener Grass: Pro Lawn Care Tips For Central & Southern Md
Hows your lawn looking these days? Do you wish you had thicker and greener grass?
Youre not alone. Everyone covets those luxurious lawns that beg to be walked on with bare feet while sipping an iced cold drink.
Maybe you look over at your neighbors yard thinking the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence or property line. Well, worry no more. These pro lawn care strategies can amplify your lawns health and make the grass greener on both sides of the fence maybe yours will even be a little greener.
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Discover How Cinch Can Protect Your Home Systems And Appliances From Costly Repairs
As a homeowner, you care about the look of your home inside and out. You want the best for your home systems and appliances. With Cinch Home Services home warranty plan options, you can get coverage for the essential components that keep your home running, such as your clothes dryer and washer, refrigerator, heating and air-conditioning systems, and plumbing system.
You can choose from three protection plans: Appliances, Built-in Systems or Complete Home. Compare and choose the right home warranty plan for you and your budget.
With Cinch, homeowners can understand their plan and coverage. Request an instant quote today and get personalized coverage for your home.
How To Make Your Grass Greener: 10 Tips For Minneapolis & Eau Claire Wi
5 MINUTE READ
The easiest way to make your grass greener is to head out to your yard with a few cans of green spray paint.Admit it youve actually considered this idea, right? Trouble is, its a short term solution. Also, thats a lot of spraying. Your finger will get really tired.We have a few better ideas to make your lawn healthy and greener from the roots up:
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Easy Ways To Improve Your Lawn
Most people think that to have a nice lawn, you need to apply lots of fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides and water. But in most parts of the country, it’s actually not that difficult to grow a healthy carpet of grass. The problem is that most turf is growing on a thin layer of poor soil that contains little organic matter or beneficial soil life. To establish a healthy, low-maintenance lawn, you need to work from the soil up.
But First What Is Compost
Simply put, compost is a mixture of decaying organic materials that have been reduced back to a soil-like state, allowing for their nutrients to be bioavailable to your soil, lawn and plants.
Most garden and lawn compost mixtures are made from various organic materials, including discarded fruits and vegetables, lawn and garden scraps and a range of clean fills or mulches. However, meats, fish, and dairy products are avoided to discourage pests during processing or reduce the chances of pathogens or contaminants.
Compost sets the stage for new growth by revitalizing your soil foundation with the necessary nutrients for your lawn or garden to grow and thrive.
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Cut Your Grass Correctly And To The Recommended Cutting Height
Knowing what height to cut your grass is an important way to get your grass to grow healthy and strong. Setting your lawnmower to the highest or lowest setting is not necessarily the best thing for your grass. In fact, different grass species have different needs in terms of grass cutting height. Check out this guide to grass cutting height. Additionally, you should keep the blades on your lawnmower nice and sharp so that it cuts your grass effectively. Also, consider buying a reel mower, which actually cuts the grass like scissors rather than tearing it like traditional rotary lawnmowers. This makes for healthier grass in general. Read this guide to reel mowers for more information on the benefits of reel mowers and how to select one for your needs.
Try Aerating Your Lawn
Did your children spend all summer outside running around the yard? Of course, every parent is happy to see their kids enjoying the benefits of playing outside, but this can affect how healthy your grass is.
Just like you need the best soil for gardens to grow flowers, you need proper soil to make grass green. Kids and adults can cause the soil to become compacted by walking or playing in the yard. When this happens, its harder for water, air, and nutrients to reach your grassroots.
Aerating your lawn can be an easy way to fix this. There are tons of products to choose from, and you can be done in no time!
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Use Corn Gluten Meal As A Natural Herbicide And Lawn Fertilizer
Corn gluten meal is used most frequently as a natural preemergent herbicide for turf grass and organic crops. However, it has the added benefit of fertilizing your soil. Corn Gluten Meal is a totally natural byproduct of the wet-milling process for corn . It will help control annual weeds in your lawn and will keep your grass fertilized. If you want to learn more about this great organic gardening product, please visit Dr. Nick Christians University of Iowa Corn Gluten research page.
8. Use Mycorrhizal Root Builder to improve your soil.
Mycorrhizal fungi are beneficial soil organisms that provide a sort of secondary root system for your garden plants and grass. They attach themselves to the roots and help plants and grass make better use of water and organic nutrients in the soil.
With a Mycorrhizal fungi root builder, you can get mycorrhizal fungi to work more efficiently. Mycor Root Builder is an excellent product that will work great on all the plants you grow, not just your turf grass. Like these eight easy steps? Dont forget to bookmark them or pin us on Pinterest!
Pro Strategies For Thicker Greener Grass
For many Central and Southern Maryland homeowners, a green grass shows they care for and have pride in their properties.
In summers heat, its especially important to do all of the things all year long that contribute to a lawns health. Because, as the pros know, you cant do just one thing to nurture a thick lawn. A mix of the right strategies is necessary when it comes to how to make grass greener.
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Tools And Equipment For Taking Care Of Your Lawn In The Summer
Taking care of your lawn in the summer doesnt require too many tools. It is important to keep your lawn mower in good working order to reduce additional stress and damage to your grass:
- Regularly sharpen the blades to ensure that the mower is actually cutting the grass, not tearing it, which can weaken the blades
- Set your blades higher in the summer. Cool season grasses should be cut to about 3-4 inches, while warmer season grasses such as bermudagrass and centipedegrass should be mowed at 2-3 inches. If you have a St Augustinegrass lawn mow it at 3-4 inches tall. Cutting the grass too short can damage it and make it more susceptible to heat damage.
The other important tool for summer lawn care is a good irrigation or watering system. Unless you have built-in sprinklers, you will need at least one high-quality sprinkler that can water your lawn evenly. If you have a larger yard, invest in several sprinklers to save time and prevent having to move the sprinkler.
Check Your Tools And Equipment
This is a good time to inspect your tools. Is your hose in good shape? Take your mower in for service, or give it a tune-up by changing the oil, replacing the air filter, and changing the spark plugs, or if electric, check the power cord for damage.
Having a lush green lawn this summer is possible, but you should take steps now to make it a reality. A bit of preparation in the spring can give you a lawn to enjoy through the rest of the year.
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How To Boost Your Homes Value With A Beautiful Lawn
Posted on April 12, 2016 by bbomi
A healthy, green lawn does more than just beautify your home: it also boosts your homes value. Its true! Much like a new coat of paint or updated fixtures, a well-tended lawn boosts curb appeal and helps potential buyers fall in love with your home on first sight!
Simply caring for your lawn with proper fertilization and maintenance is one of the most cost-effective ways to boost your homes value. Even the most popular major renovations such as kitchens and bathrooms only offer 75% to 100% returns on your investment. But due to the low costs and high value of lawn care, simple lawn maintenance typically results in a 100% to 200% return on investment for home sellers.
In fact, according to research by the Lawn Care Institute, turf grass alone can increase a homes value by as much as 15%.
How often your yard is treated with fertilizers and weed-control products is the essential secret to a lush, healthy lawn.
Use Your Machine Properly
Every item you are about to maintain needs your time and research. Keeping a lawn needs affection. It requires regular care and maintenance. One such topic that it needs your research on is knowing your machinery.
You need a specific type of machine to maintain the health and physical structure of the grass. Its called mowing machines. You can also call them mopping machines. These machines work manually or electrically. You need to know the overall mechanism of the apparatus and its cutting procedure, keeping in mind the physiological nature of the green bodies.
Image via Daniel Watson@danielwatsondesign
Grass of smaller length tends to die out sooner than we expect. Besides this, longer grass becomes more and more susceptible to growing weeds and becoming unhealthy. These simple yet important points shape up the operating routine of the machine.
Its essential to decide the height of the grass, depending on the science of their growth, and the background geography about their growth. These details keep your lawn hefty, physically.
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Five Simple Things To Improve My Lawn This Long Weekend
Its not all that difficult to maintain a healthy carpet of natural lawn with some simple tips from one of the countrys leading authorities on all things turf . . . Lawn Solutions Australia. One of the biggest secrets to a healthy lawn isnt necessarily lots of care, but routine care. A healthy lawn can have many benefits as well as being a desirable feature for potential homebuyers, a fresh lawn can provide an inviting outdoor space, somewhere safe for kids and pets and an area thats perfect for entertaining in the Aussie outdoors. Follow these simple tips to ensure you have the best lawn in the street, making your neighbours green with envy!
Make Sure Your Soil Is Not Overly Compacted By Aerating Your Lawn
Most lawns see a lot of traffic, from kids playing, pets running around and even the task of mowing your lawn can result in the soil becoming compacted over time.This results in poor air circulation, reduced water absorption, and nutrient absorption. It is also more difficult for essential earthworms to establish themselves in overly compacted soil!
All of this results in reduced lawn quality. If you want to achieve your goal of a greener, lush lawn, then adding aeration to your lawn management protocol is a great idea. If your lawn is small, or if you have plenty of time on your hands, then aerating your lawn with a machine aerator is unnecessary because you can complete the task with hand-operated tools. Aeration breaks up compacted soil by creating holes in it, helping the grass grow vigorously and reducing thatch, moss and other lawn problems.
An overview of the lawn aeration process. Source
Push a hand aerifier, which has tube hollows that are 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter, or a spading fork through your lawn grass, and into the soil, to about 3 inches deep.
How often should you aerate your lawn? Each lawn varies based on how much foot traffic takes place on the lawn, how much thatch is present, etc. If your lawn looks good, aerating every 3-5 years is sufficient. If theres a lot of activity it might be worthwhile to consider aerating every two years or even annually.
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