It is Springtime again and time to visit your garden! If you have a lawn you may find the Winter months have not been too kind and some care is needed.There maybe discolouration in parts or areas which look rather straw-like (like mine) rather than green and some indication of moss.
At this time in the UK , a first cutting will be important. The following are 5 steps to help you with that first post-winter cutting and to set you up for looking after your lawn to maintain a healthy and good-looking feature for your garden throughout the rest of the year.
Read more: 5 Steps to Giving Your Spring Lawn the Care It Deserves
- Remove thatch
The first step that you have to take is to remove any lawn debris that has accumulated during the Winter.You can do this by raking. This also gets up any leaves that have fallen to the ground and died, but it also can help keep your lawn free of thatch in the coming months.
Thatch is made up of the stems and roots that didn’t complete a decomposition process. You’ll find thatch around the living grass at the top of the soil. For people who did a thorough raking job in the Autumn, the thatch buildup should not be as thick.
If you leave thatch, it can create patchy areas in your lawn because the new grass can’t push through this to the surface.
So, as soon as you see signs of new grass growth, you need to take a fan rake and remove all traces of dead grass and worm casts.
2. Set your lawn mower correctly
Your first cut should not be a close one. The blades should set so that about one third of the height of the grass will be taken off the top.This will allow for a good cover overall and avoid scalping the lawn and so exposing soil and taking or dragging out grass at root level.
3.Choose a fine day
You do not want to cut your lawn when the grass is wet. This will only damage areas where you tread heavily and the mower may tend to tear rather than cut the grass. The effect when the grass has dried out will not be tidy.So if your grass is showing growth choose a dry day particularly before you make your first cut. Also, mow at a steady pace.
4.Remove grass cuttings
Do not leave any grass cuttings on the lawn.Ideally remove these to compost. For maximum performance your mower should be cleaned after use and the blades lowered for next time, usually in about a week.
5.Re-cut the edge of the lawn
After the winter the edges of the lawn will show some damage and unwanted growth.Take a half-moon edger and use the edge of paving as a guide to redefine the area of grass or, if improving a flower border, use a plank on the edge of the lawn as a guide and to protect the grass.The edger is preferred at this time to using a strimmer. Maintenance of the edge can now easily be done with a pair of edging shears after each time the lawn is cut throughout the year.
Now you should be off to a fine start for the Spring!Please look out for further gardening tips as we go through the year.In these unprecedented times an interest in gardening however small will help both body and mind if you are careful.