Want to learn how to make your grass green? Achieving the lawn of your dreams starts with proper planting and maintenance methods. There are several steps that homeowners can take to ensure a beautiful lawn, including fertilization, weed management, aerating, mowing and more.
How To Make Grass Green
All homeowners desire a luscious, beautiful yard, but not everyone understands how to keep their grass green. When not properly cared for, grass can turn brown or yellow, which reduces the curb appeal of your home.
Achieving healthy, green grass starts with proper care and maintenance, which includes fertilization, weed management, pest control, proper mowing and more.
Fertilization
Healthy grass growth cannot be achieved without proper fertilization techniques. In order for your grass to grow and stay green, it needs the right nutrients. Additionally, the nutrients must be dispersed in the right amounts over time. That’s why it’s important to know more about the different types of fertilizer.
It’s crucial to choose a high-quality fertilizer that contains nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous. Next, apply the fertilizer in the growing seasons, in the early spring and fall.
It’s important not to fertilize your lawn too early in the spring, as the grass needs that time to develop a healthy root system. Wait until your grass is actively growing, and fertilize it just before you mow it for the first time.
Another crucial component of fertilization is using the right amounts of fertilizer. Over-fertilizing can burn your lawn. Make sure you pay attention to the recommended amounts on the fertilizer bag and be careful not to apply too much.
Weed Management
Overgrown weeds will rob your grass of the nutrients it needs to grow. It’s important to inspect your lawn regularly for weeds so that they do not have a chance to germinate and become unruly. Weed spot treatments work well on small weeds; however, more powerful herbicides may be needed to control a bigger problem.
Pest Control
Unwanted pests can cause significant damage to your lawn, causing it to become diseased and turn brown or yellow. It can also thin out your lawn, which is the opposite of what homeowners want to achieve.
Protect your grass with insecticides and inspect your lawn for signs of pest damage on a regular basis. Wilting, discoloration and thinning grass are all signs of a pest problem. Consult with a pest control professional to treat these pests on your lawn.
Using Quality Grass Seed and Overseeding
A healthy and green lawn starts with high-quality grass seeds. If your grass has thinned out over time, due to foot traffic and other issues, overseeding may be the right option for you. Overseeding is when you plant high-quality seeds over thinned-out areas of your lawn in order to add density. To learn if overseeding is right for your lawn, contact a lawn care specialist.
Aerating Your Lawn
A common problem that prevents grass from staying green is compacted soil. When soil becomes too compacted, water and fertilizer cannot reach your lawn’s root system. It’s helpful to aerate your lawn annually to remove compacted soil and allow the roots room to breathe.
Proper Mowing and Lawn Maintainance
One of the best ways to encourage proper grass growth is to mow your lawn on a regular basis. Mowing also makes your grass more resilient to diseases.
The other part of proper lawn maintenance is keeping a watering schedule. For personalized advice on how often you should mow and water your lawn, contact a local lawn care professional.
The Best Way to Ensure a Beautiful, Green Lawn
The best way to ensure that your lawn stays beautiful and green all year long is to work with a lawn care professional. An expert can offer care advice that is specific to your lawn’s needs. For example, they can advise you on the best fertilizer brand for your grass, watering schedule and more.
What is the Best Month to Plant Grass Seed?
A key aspect to achieving a lush and green lawn is planting your grass seed at the right time. However, there is no straight answer on the best month to plant grass seed. The right timing depends on several factors, such as the type of grass you plant and the climate you live in.
For example, cool-season grasses are best to plant in the early fall, such as in September. Cool-season grasses include Kentucky bluegrass, ryegrass and fescue. These grasses are planted in the early fall so that they have time to establish their root systems before the weather turns cold. By springtime, they will grow into healthy and luscious lawns.
Warm-season grasses, on the other hand, should be planted in the late spring or early summer months. Warm-season grasses include zoysia grass, St. Augustine grass and bermuda grass. These grasses need warm weather to thrive, which is why they should be planted earlier in the year. They are more heat resistant than cool-season grass and cannot germinate when the soil is too cold.
Your local climate is another crucial factor to consider when planting new grass. Elements such as rainfall and temperature can have a profound impact on your growing season.
For the best advice that is specific to your area, consult with a lawn care specialist. They will guide you on the right type of grass for your lawn, when to plant it and how to care for it to ensure the best results.
Should You Try Using Vinegar to Kill Weeds?
Are weeds overtaking your lawn? The good news is that there are several solutions that can control weeds and allow for healthy lawn growth. In fact, research has shown that spraying vinegar on weeds can help kill them in the first two weeks of their life.
The reason that vinegar may help to kill weeds is because it contains acetic acid, which causes unruly weeds to dry out and wither away. However, acetic acid can also impact other plants. When using vinegar to kill weeds, it’s important to avoid spraying it on your healthy plants to reduce the risk of damaging them.
Follow this step-by-step guide to killing weeds with vinegar:
- Use white distilled vinegar in your solution as it contains a high amount of acetic acid.
- Mix one part vinegar with one part water to create your weed-killing solution. However, if you’re dealing with stubborn weeds, you can adjust the ratio to include more vinegar as needed.
- To make the solution even more effective, add a small amount of dish soap. The soap will help the vinegar cling to the weeds and do a better job of killing them.
- Pour your solution into a spray bottle and spray the weeds by hand. Cover the leaves and stems of the weeds with the solution. Be careful to only spray the weeds and not your plants.
For the best results, use the vinegar solution on weeds that are under two weeks old. They will be more at risk of drying out, which is why acetic acid is more effective on young weeds. Stubborn weeds may require multiple treatments of the vinegar solution.
While using vinegar to kill weeds can help, the best way to deal with overgrown weeds is to work with a lawn care professional. They know the most common types of weeds and will have the right tools, products and experience to take care of the issue for you without harming the rest of your lawn.
Achieve a Beautiful Green Lawn With Professional Assistance
There are several steps that homeowners can take to have beautiful green grass, such as planting high-quality seeds, proper fertilization, watering and more. The best way to ensure that you’re doing everything you can do to make grass green is to partner with a lawn care specialist.
A professional can help you choose the right grass seed for your climate and advise you on when to plant it. They can also create a maintenance routine for you that includes fertilization, lawn aeration and overseeding.
A lawn care expert can also help you with weed management and provide expert solutions to restore the health of your lawn. To achieve a gorgeous lawn with lush green grass, contact a lawn care specialist.
ABC Can Keep Your Lawn Healthy and Green
The best way to prevent any problem with your lawn is to create a lawn care schedule that works best for the lawn type, soil type and sun exposure you have in your yard. Instead of spending your free time trying to determine what will work best for your particular situation, contact ABC Home & Commercial Services. Our lawn care specialists are highly-trained and can provide you with routine lawn care that keeps your lawn free of fungi, pests and other diseases.
