Landscaping your yard
A green, healthy yard is something most men strive to achieve every summer. Having a lawn, free of weeds, plush enough for the kids, and has plenty of healthy bushes and flowers brings great joy and use to the whole family. Plus, who doesn't like to be the envy of the neighborhood? Depending on your methods, you landscaping and greening of your lawn may or may not be the most GREEN methods in the world, but since some of my ToM (tip of the month) articles have ventured into green territory I thought I would explore some ways to green up the lawn.
- Remember that any methods chosen takes time! For example, if you were to put fertilizer on your lawn, do not expect to see the full results the next day. Anything you do will take time to show its full result, as most items that are applied have a time release mechanism to them.
- Start in the spring with a weed and feed with crabgrass preventer. Be sure to apply it just before a rain, or water your grass after application. The water applied just after application will help activate these products, and will work faster on your lawn.
- Space out your application of different products. Do not apply fertilizer on your lawn within a few weeks of each other, otherwise you run the risk of burning your lawn (due to the nitrogen), and that would defeat the purpose of a green lawn!
- Remove any plants that you can when applying these products to the lawn (plants in baskets, pots, ect.). If the plants are in the ground and cannot be removed, cover them while spraying, or take extra special care to not spray around them. As you may have guessed, some chemicals used to fertilize lawns sometimes are not real good for flowers. If you wish to fertilize those, buy a separate fertilizer for them.
- I know this sounds obvious, but if you want a green lawn in the middle of the summer, you do need to water it. It does not need water 24/7, but 3 times a week after dusk or before dawn for a couple of hours each watering session should do the trick. Do not water during the middle of a summer day, because the heat from the sun will evaporate much of the water you want to go to your lawn, and will not do it much good.
- As a matter of convenience, consider installing an underground sprinkler system. This way, you do not have to drag the hose around (and get wet!) to move the sprinkler, and these can be set on a timer, so you don't have to get up early or stay up to turn the hose off.
- Don't mow your grass too short. When your grass is being cut, ensure there is at least 2 1/2 inches or more left. By cutting your grass too short, you may be cutting off some of the essential parts of your lawn, and that can make it look brown and dead.
- To go green and save yourself some time, consider buying a mulching blade for your mower. Mulching blades chop your cut grass into finer pieces, and put them back into your grass, helping it insulate it and hold that all important moisture in. Plus, you don't have to take the time to haul your grass clippings away!
