Wise Up .... On Grass, With Jai Cheswick

THE GRUNT

THE GRUNT

If, like me, your teenage chore was to mow the lawn or if your partner kicks you out of the house to cut tracks through a jungle of growth before Sunday lunch you will soon have realised the importance of regular maintenance to keep your grass looking, if not first rate, at least half decent and easier to cut.

MAKING IT EASIER

I often thought to myself 'What will make this job easier?' and aside from blackmailing my brother into doing the work the only solution I could come up with was to cut it more often.

Now that is easier said than done in a country where it seems to be raining 4 days out of 5, but fortunately there are some other fairly simple things to do that will make mowing less of a chore.

GRASS CHOICE

Firstly, it is important to choose the right grass for your garden. What this boils down to, as is the case with any plant choice for your garden, is deciding on what you are going to use the turf for and to understand what the growing conditions in your garden are.

BLENDING CHOICE

With so many grass seed mixes on the market, which one do you use? You could have grass seed blends for all of the following uses and conditions (and this is only a short list).

Heavy wear

High shade

Dry soil situations

Wet soil situations

Fine 'golf green like' turf

The multi-use lawn

Acid situation

Alkaline situation

Low maintenance

High maintenance, high quality

By choosing the right mix for your situation you will be making the next stage a whole lot easier.

MOWING

Mowing Like most jobs you need the right tool to do the job well and make it easier. Cylinder mowers are generally used for fine cutting when the finish required is tight and fine. These mowers do not cut long grass very well. In contrast rotary mowers are not great for the finer work but are better matched to the 'grunt' work of cutting long grass. For a shorter finish you will need to cut more often.

FEEDING

The grass is what it eats. All this cutting removes a huge amount of minerals from the turf, which will need to be replaced to keep the grass looking great. Some soils are not very rich in the correct nutrients which grass requires. Very often this is due to an incorrect pH level. If your grass condition is a concern, you would be well advised to buy one of the HGC soil testing kits to check the soil pH. Knowing this will then allow you to start making informed decisions about what nutrients might be required.

SEED or TURF?

I have listed some of the techniques to get your grass growing from either seed or turf together with some of the disadvantages in growing them. It is not an exhaustive list by any means but it will give you the 'heads up' on getting off to a good start.

FROM SEED

- Make sure you cultivate the seedbed well

- Apply fertiliser

- Ensure your seeding area is free of stones

- Choose the seed for your conditions

- Care in sowing in spring

- Do not bury seeds to deep

- Light rolling, mowing and feeding

Advantages

- Low cost

- Clean results

Disadvantages

- Slow establishment

- Time required with seedbed preparation

FROM TURF

- Ensure your levels are good

- Apply fertiliser

- Choose the right turf

- Choose for your conditions

- Sods should be uniform

- Make sure you lay correctly

- Light rolling, watering

Advantages

- Instant lawn

- Quick establishment

Disadvantages

- Higher cost

- Sods drying out before laying

CONCLUSION

So now, all you teenagers and cajoled husbands, you have at the very least some insider knowledge as to how to make your mowing days easier and hopefully your finished product looking better.

Bring on the snow!

Jai Cheswick Landscape & Garden Design Consultant

by: Professor Michael Benfield PhD

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