10 Tips For a Greener Lawn
Spring leading into summer can easily be the death of your lawn; however, it is meant to be the absolute best time of year to enjoy it. Too often we see people watering their lawn in the midday sun and have a total facepalm moment. Said gardener loves their lawn enough to be out in the heat of the day tending to their grass but unknowingly they are doing the wrong thing. So, to lend a helping hand, here are 10 of the best tips to ensure your lawn remains green and lush throughout the warmer months.
1. Know when to water
The most beneficial time to water your lawn is in the morning. This allows the soil to absorb the water effectively (any later and the sun will cause it to evaporate) and the grass to go through photosynthesis. Because the lawn requires sunshine for photosynthesis to take place, if you water at night, the lawn can’t effectively make use of the water it is receiving. Watering at night also creates a damp environment where lawn disease can set in. Watering in the middle of a hot day often means most of the water will evaporate before it can be absorbed. The usually cooler air and calmer winds of the morning period gives the soil ample opportunity to soak up the water, helping to keep your lawn hydrated throughout the day.
2. Get your lawn in training
To build a strong, healthy lawn it is important not to water it too frequently. It’s all about training your lawn to develop a deep root system that will see it through the summer months without the need to switch on a sprinkler every day. To get the roots of your lawn searching for water at a deeper level, you'll need to give it a long soak two to three times per week, rather than a short daily soak. This is not helpful as it will only help to create a shallow root system.
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3. Avoid creating run off
If water is starting to puddle or run off, it’s time to turn off or move the sprinkler to another spot. If it started to run off before you could give it a good soak, then turn the sprinkler off for 15-20 minutes to allow the water to soak in before turning it back on again. Hoselink’s Oscillating Sprinkler can be beneficial in this scenario as the constant movement gives the soil a brief break in which to absorb the water before more is sprayed on. This type of sprinkler is also fully adjustable, allowing it to reach right across the lawn or concentrate on one small space. If in doubt, test it out! It’s always better to trial watering methods to see what works best on your lawn.
4. Water the lawn, not the path
The green stuff is where the water needs to land, but you knew that anyway right?! How often do you see someone’s sprinkler busy watering everything but the lawn? It’s an easy mistake to make when you haven’t got the right watering measures in place. Make sure you’re not one of those people, get yourself a sprinkler that’s suitable for your lawn shape and size. Hoselink offer a great selection of sprinklers such as Classic, Oscillating, Impulse, 9-Pattern and more! Sprinklers are great for helping you ensure you are watering all the right spots, limiting wasted water and not waiting for the path to grow!
5. Lawns need air to breathe
Lawns need oxygen as well as water, so it’s important to keep your lawn aerated. Aeration involves perforating the soil at intervals to alleviate compaction, allowing water, air and nutrients to penetrate deep below the surface. The easiest and cheapest method is to push a garden fork into the ground at 15cm intervals over the entire lawn, although for large areas it may be easier to hire a machine to do the hard work so you don’t have to. An aerated lawn will also be better at absorbing water rather than letting it run off.
6. Feed your lawn
All plants eventually deplete the nutrients in the soil, and a lawn more so than others as it’s the one plant we tend to cut consistently, taking with it each blade's personal store of nutrients. A simple way to feed your lawn is with a fertiliser spray formula. Thankfully, Hoselink have made it easy to feed your lawn the right stuff to keep it looking lush and green. Hoselink’s 3-Day Green Lawn Fertiliser Concentrate is a rapid-release lawn health and wellbeing blend that will have your lawn looking richer and greener in just three days. This fertiliser is blended with all the essential nutrients our lawns love, such as potassium, magnesium and iron. The fertiliser also includes a wetting agent to help your lawn absorb all of those ingredients at the root and provide sufficient coverage across the lawn. The easy-to-use 3-Day Green Lawn Fertiliser can be applied once diluted in a watering can. Better yet, you can use Hoselink’s Fertiliser Spray Mixer, which connects simply to your Hoselink-fitted hose via an Accessory Connector. If you’re after the complete package, you can purchase both of these products in a bundle, or, in a complete set with our other products in the fertiliser range by clicking here .
7. Mow at the right height
Raise the cutting height of your lawnmower during summer to keep your lawn looking at its best. The grass won’t dry out as quickly and the roots will be better protected by the longer blades. We recommend mowing your lawn every two to three weeks in summer to keep it looking tidy, though the need can vary if there has been a lot of rain fall.
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8. Be flexible with your watering
Don’t water your garden when it’s raining. Fairly obvious, but an easy mistake to make if you have an automatic watering system or timer set up. Turn the water off on days it is due to rain and be ready to water again if the rain doesn’t deliver enough saturation. If you are looking for a water smart timer, Hoselink’s Automatic Tap Timer with Rain Sensor Is perfect for saving water when it rains! This timer will detect when it's raining and delay any scheduled watering until the next day (if no rain happens again). This product will help your lawn and other parts of your garden as well as prevent any water wastage.
9. Weeds
Hoselink recommends that controlling weeds ‘early and often’ is better than spraying the whole lawn with weed killer. This can be done by pulling them out manually or better still, use a Garden Weeder , Fork or Hand Scythe Weeder . If you’re a fan of convenience, ease and a sense of satisfaction while pulling weeds out, then it's definitely time to try Hoselink’s Stand-up Weed Puller! It requires no excessive bending over and has been ergonomically designed to make weed pulling easier than ever! Simply push the claw end down with your foot on the pedal. Once the claws are submerged in the ground, lever the tool towards you and pull the weed clean out of the ground. Once the weed has been pulled out, use the grip on the handle to push down and eject the weed. Pop the weeds in a Hoselink Planter Bag to collect them for the green bin. Or, if there are too many weeds for this method, try ‘painting’ weed killer on the affected area; perhaps doing just one section of lawn each day. More weed removal methods can be found in our blog post: ‘Top Tips for a Weed-free Backyard ’.
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10. Never water with hot water
Watering your lawn with hot water can be incredibly harmful for its overall health. It can overheat the roots or kill it entirely. It’s not a good idea for the health of your hose to leave water lying in it. Water that does get left can get quite warm, even hot enough to scold the blades of grass. Always ensure you empty your hose after each use by turning off the tap and emptying the remaining water using the sprayer. If you forget, make sure you flush the hot water away before commencing watering your lawn.
So, there you have it, no rocket science and no secrets, just simple straightforward tips to keep your lawn looking great throughout the summer months. Try taking before and after pictures of your lawn so you can look back at the difference these tips have made. If you have any tips of your own, please feel free to share them with us!
Looking for more lawn care tips? Check out Hoselink’s video with Horticulturist Ben Hayman here where he shares all of his top tips to get your lawn looking lush and healthy.
Happy gardening!