THE PERFECT LAWN
Say goodbye to forlorn threadbare areas with our tips for keeping your grass lush and healthy
Often, it’s the flowering plants and trees in a garden that we notice most, while lawns are simply taken for granted. They play an essential supporting role, though, both as a backdrop to colourful planting and also to unobtrusively link separate areas. ‘Thanks to its uniform colour and texture, grass is a great unifier, even in the smallest garden; and where large areas are involved, a grassy surface ties different elements together,’ points out awardwinning garden designer David Stevens.
Lawns are wonderfully versatile and can be created to fit any given space, whether rectangular, square, round or free-form. Geometric shapes suggest formality and order, whereas circular and free-flowing areas are more relaxed and natural.
A lawn’s mown stripes can also have a subtle effect – a long narrow one mown diagonally, for instance, appears wider than one mown down its length. ‘Alternatively, in a larger garden with gentle contouring, mowing that creates sweeping, swirling patterns helps draw the eye through and around the space,’ adds David.
A freshly mown lawn on a hot summer’s day is an open invitation to walk barefoot, and provides a soft, forgiving surface for children to play. To keep grass wellmanicured,
it should be regularly maintained in seven ways – mowing, feeding, weedkilling, watering, aerating, scarifying and repairing. Mowing is carried out from early spring until late autumn, and the best finish comes from a cylinder lawn mower that rolls as it cuts, creating classic parallel stripes, in opposite directions. ‘Ensure the blades are sharp,’ advises David.
In spring and early autumn, grass needs regular feeding and weedkilling, and there are lawncare products that combine both. Keeping grass healthy is the best defence against moss which, once it’s taken hold, requires regular control. So, too, do vigorous perennial weeds such as dandelions, which should be dug out by hand. During the growing season, isolated weeds can be tackled with a dab-on lawn weedkiller.
For organic gardeners, there are slow-release organic fertilisers and seaweed extracts that ‘green up’ tired lawns.
The results of drought can be an issue at this time of year so, for resilience, water little and often. A weekly soaking fosters deeper roots that reach moisture far below the surface. Once drought strikes, set mowers higher. ‘Don’t cut the grass shorter than 10mm for fear of leaving it vulnerable to die-back in hot, dry weather,’ David suggests. In addition, leaving finely chopped grass clippings to decompose >
on the lawn not only releases nutrients, but also cools a lawn, slowing evaporation. Watering in the evening will also minimise evaporation but, if there’s a hosepipe ban, consider diverting bathwater to fill water butts. Another solution is to use a computerised automatic irrigation system which, with pop-up sprinkler heads for lawns, is programmed to operate at specific times – specialists such as Hozelock and Gardena offer a range of options.
Even though grass stops growing and turns brown during drought, once rain comes, even the most parched ground is usually revived, and soon improves with scarifying. A spring-tine rake teases out dead thatch, debris and moss, enabling the grass to breathe – for larger areas, use a rotating cylinder scarifier. ‘Aerating a lawn encourages air and feed to reach the roots, while enabling water to drain, preventing the build-up of moss,’ notes David. Small areas of healthy lawn need little more than puncturing with a garden fork at 7cm intervals, to a depth of 10cm. For larger areas, a rotary lawn aerator saves time.
Sometimes dead or brown patches appear in a lawn, spreading rapidly during damp, humid weather. Causes include insect damage, animal urine, buried rubbish or poor drainage. If, having eliminated these possibilities, the problems persist, then the cause is most likely a turf disease, such as red thread or fusarium, for which there are fungicidal treatments. Another disease, dry patch, is best countered by applying a wetting agent to help water absorption, and aerating. For specialist advice, visit the Royal Horticultural Society’s website (rhs.org.uk), which provides comprehensive information.
In situations where a lawn is either past repair or being created from scratch, the answer lies in either turf, grass seed or artificial grass. ‘Turf establishes far more quickly than seed, and is now available in such large sizes that it’s almost as easy to lay as rolling out carpet,’ explains David.
Top-quality turf can be laid all year round, apart from during heatwaves or frosty weather. It establishes quickly, providing the ground is correctly prepared and watered regularly, and is ready for use within about three weeks. ‘Order five per cent more turf than required, to allow for cutting and shaping, and lay within 24 hours of delivery,’ he adds.
Grass seed is less costly than turf, but takes much longer to establish. ‘It is essential to choose the correct variety of grass for the situation and use,’ David explains. ‘Lawns are composed of a number of grass species, which range from very fine-leaved varieties suitable for a velvety but delicate putting green, to tougher, broader-leaved kinds that are better suited to a hardwearing “utility” surface.’ For areas where shade is unavoidable, there are specially formulated grass seed mixes using a higher proportion of fescue grasses that are better able to cope with lack of light, water and nutrients.
Neat lawn edges add a smart finishing touch, and are easily cut with a half-moon turfing iron – create a straight edge by securing a tensioned line between two pegs and cutting along it. Curved edges can be indicated by using a hose as a guide: if it’s too stiff to curve into shape, first dip it into a bucket of hot water. For a permanent solution, edge a lawn with bricks, stones or interlocking metal strips.
Finally, artificial grass is a low-maintenance alternative. The best quality options are handsome materials that, seen from a distance, are hard to tell apart from the real thing. It’s the perfect surface for children to play on throughout the year, and needs little maintenance beyond occasional vacuuming. Simple and quick to install, artificial lawn is laid on either sand or a shockpad of recycled rubber that make it springy underfoot. In common with the real thing, it feels soft to walk on, and the only giveaway is that it isn’t cool to the touch, because it has the warmth of a man-made fibre.