Is the grass in your garden or yard looking a little colorless? Is it patchy and rife with bald spots? There are plenty of issues that can affect the health of your lawn, from soil conditions to the recent weather. Here, we’re going to look at four of the top causes of a sick lawn, and what you can do to make the grass a little greener on your side with proper lawn care.
Lawn Care – Why The Grass Isn't Greener On Your Side
You’re mowing it wrong
It’s easy to think that mowing the lawn is a relatively easy task, not something you can get wrong very easily. However, mowing your lawn incorrectly could have you weakening your grass considerably. By repeatedly scalping it or cutting too short, you could use the grass’s energy reserves as it continuously tries to grow back to its full length. You can also be leaving it vulnerable to weed invasion. Besides mowing it to an appropriate length, you should also consider leaving the grass clippings where they lay, as they can foster healthier growth, acting as mulch.
Too much water
Your lawn needs water to live, but too much of a good thing simply isn’t good for you. In the case of water, if your garden doesn’t have the proper drainage, water can sit and lie in pools in the garden or yard. This can drown the seeds, leading to patch growth. It can also provide the perfect conditions for moss, which will take up more of the surface area of the soil, meaning that rain and sunlight don’t get to the base of the grass.
Not enough water
On the other hand, if you’re in a drier climate, watering your grass wrong could be as much of an issue. Instead of watering it a little bit on a regular basis, you should water it more thoroughly but less often. Installing an irrigation system, like lawn sprinklers, can save you a lot of the time and effort, too. Some of the signs that ineffective watering is your problem include audible crunching sounds when walking across the grass and grass that doesn’t spring upright when pressed upon. Different grass species have different watering needs as well, so it may be worth doing a little research.
Needs breathing room
The issue might be just beneath the surface. If the ground is too dense and compacted, then you can have trouble penetrating it. The seeds might not get deep enough into the ground to start growing and water can have trouble meeting the roots of the grass. In this case, aerating the lawn might be the solution. Simply put, this means poking holes here and there that allow for better penetration. You can get lawn aerators for this purpose, but a pitchfork can work just as well, it just takes more time.
If you’ve tried the methods above and nothing seems to work, it might be time to think about getting a lawn expert to take a closer look. You deserve a healthy garden and they might be able to find the solution it has needed this whole time.