Backyard Blitz: Looking after your lawn

Backyard Blitz: Looking after your lawn

Fertilising

Spring is a great time to fertilise your lawn.

Look for organic fertilisers like ‘dynamic lifter’ as this will add to your soil profile, help with water and nutrient retention, help break down Canberra’s clay soils, as well as giving the grass the food it needs.

Products like this can smell, but watering them in will help. Otherwise, you can use a synthetic fertilize which will still feed the grass, but won’t do as much for the soil profile.

While you’re fertilising you can also throw out some Gypsum (clay breaker). This will help break those heavy, cloggy soils apart making it easier for the grass to send down roots, creating a healthier lawn all over.

Aerate your lawn

Now is also a great time to aerate your lawn. This can be done with a garden fork by moving along the lawn and pushing the tines into the ground with your foot every 20 to 30cm.

This will open the soil profile to air and water and help with root growth again.

Mowing

For a healthier lawn, mow it more often and take less grass off.  As a rule, you should only cut about a third of the leaf off every time you mow. Taking too much off can stress the grass, which in turn can take the nutrients from the roots to compensate. This means a weaker roots system overall and you’ll still have to mow just as often.

Lift your mower to its highest setting. The lawns at Denman Prospect are mowed at 2.5 to 3 inches. This is why they look so lush. They will still look neat if cut at a uniform height.

Watering

While it is still cool, watering will only be required once a week or once a fortnight depending on the rainfall we get. Your lawns will not need much water until October when the warm weather starts to take over.

Going forward the healthier your soil profile and root structure are the less water you will need to keep your lawn looking its best.

Tips by Groundskeeper Dan