Summer proof the lawn and garden
The backyard has always held a special place in the hearts of Australians.
They’re the perfect spaces for a quick game of cricket, kicking a ball, wrestling with the kids, playing under the sprinkler or the simple pleasure of enjoying the outdoors.
Today, despite often being a bit smaller, this precious space is more important to the Aussie lifestyle than ever before.
This is reflected in design trends as increasingly the outdoors is seamlessly connected with the indoor living spaces, creating true outdoor rooms.
With busy lives comes the appreciation of the important role these spaces play in overall wellness – for fresh air and exercise, relaxing with friends and family, growing organic vegetables, fruits and herbs, or as spaces to retreat to and unwind in.
According to garden and lawn professional Adam Woodhams, summer is the time we all want to be making the most of our outdoor spaces, but it can also be the time when gardens and lawns demand more of our time in care and maintenance.
“There are, however, some simple ways to keep your garden looking brilliant over summer without having to spend every weekend working on it,” he said.
“Investing a little time now will reap relaxing rewards throughout summer.”
Adam said that the lawn can look pretty sad, pretty quickly once the weather warms up, so he’s sharing some easy tricks of the trade to keep the lawn and garden looking superb, even in the peak of the heat.
For the perfect summer lawn
“A lush, green lawn is the perfect backdrop for a summer outdoors,” Adam said. Here’s how to get one: • Fertilise with quality slow-release lawn food. Feeding is quick, easy and builds a strong lawn that’s more able to resist hot and dry conditions.
Use either an organically fortified lawn food or supplement slow-release fertiliser with a seaweed-based product.
This helps feed the soil, looking after the allimportant soil micro-organisms.
• Use a quality soil wetter if the lawn is not absorbing water well. Make sure it’s a soil wetter designed for lawns.
This will also improve fertiliser absorption and penetration. • Don’t mow too low. Scalping stresses the lawn, causes dead spots and actually makes it grow back faster, but weaker.
Aim to leave the grass long enough that it feels comfy under bare feet.
“The most important thing is to switch your mower to mulch mowing,” Adam said.
“Many mowers feature their unique mulching blade-disc design for super-efficient mulch-mowing.” • Mulch, mulch, mulch. This smart process continuously shreds lawn clippings to super-fine material that is then blown back into the lawn thatch.
There, the clippings work like super-fine mulch, helping retain valuable moisture and insulating grass roots from temperature extremes.
“These clippings then breakdown very quickly, adding organic matter to the soil,” Adam said.
“It’s like giving your lawn a light organic feed every time you mow.”
Mowing in summer will always be more frequent than during the cooler months, so how can it be made to be less of a chore?
“When to mow is a question I’m often asked and the answer is simple – early” Adam said.
“I’m a fan of mowing earlier in the day for two reasons; the first is because you’re not pushing a mower around in the heat of the day and, second, it places less stress on the lawn to mow it before the heat hits it.”
Adam suggests switching to a high-tech lithium-ion battery powered mower to cut the lawn quickly and quietly.
“You can mow first thing in the morning and avoid making the neighbours cranky,” he said.
For the perfect summer garden
Adam says it’s easy to summer-proof the garden too and recommends one main task – mulching.
“Mulching is the single, simplest sustainable thing you can do in your garden,” he said.
“Such an easy task and the benefits are enormous.
“You’ll reduce the need to water, help retain natural moisture, keep weeds out, cut down soil erosion and, as the mulch breaks down, it adds natural organic matter and nutrients to the soil.” Adam has these tips for mulching: • Feed the garden with a quality controlled release fertiliser and water well before mulching.
• Remove weeds and lay newspaper (around 4-6 sheets thick) over the area, damping it down as you go, before laying mulch.
• Spread quality compost or manure before mulching for an extra soil boost.
•Spread mulch evenly in a layer around 5-8 centimetres thick.
• Keep mulch away (at least 5cm) from tree trunks or plant stems to avoid rot or insect damage. • Water well after mulching. Adam suggests re-mulching throughout summer.
“Your own garden can be a source of regular mulch top-up material,” Adam said.
“Leaf blowers are a super useful tool for keeping the outdoors tidy, but did you know that many can also convert to vacuum shredders?”
Adam suggests the smart, new, easy-to-start 2-stroke petrol Swift-Start blower, which easily converts to a vacuum shredder so material gathered up while blowing can be quickly sucked up, shredded and used as garden mulch.
Blowers are the ideal tool for efficiently cleaning outdoor spaces.
Unlike a broom or rake, they don’t rely on contact or friction to clean, so paths and pavers are not left with grass or leaf clipping streaks.
“They’re also perfect for a quick tidy-up before guests arrive,” Adam said.
“If you’re worried about the noise of blowers or the hassle of keeping tins of fuel, then make the switch to the new generation of smart battery-powered blowers.”
“To me, the real plus of battery equipment range is that it’s always ready to go,.
“No refuelling, no messing around; just flick a switch and you’re off and blowing with as much grunt as a petrol machine.”