With the arrival of spring, the cold and harsh winter gives way to warmer temperatures, creating more favourable conditions for the growth of grass. This makes spring the perfect time to transform your lawn into a green and vibrant space. There are several lawn maintenance tasks and lawn care services to consider during this season, which will help result in the perfect lawn for summer.
Leaf Spot is a common lawn disease that can occur during spring. Lawns are at great risk of catching this disease due to improper mowing practices.
The disease starts to show a few days after it has been cut, and it gives the lawn an overall yellow and stressed appearance. The disease attacks the grass leaves, where yellow-brown spots will be noticeable. If left untreated, it can potentially cause the grass to die.
Lawn Master can help prevent most strains of Red Thread with a fungicide treatment. However, once Red Thread is established, it becomes more challenging to treat due to the numerous strains present in the lawn. Red Thread commonly occurs from late spring through summer and into early autumn. Therefore, it is crucial to watch for signs of Red Thread towards the end of spring, before it fully establishes during the summer months.
During the early stage of Red Thread, brown patches appear, sometimes with a red tinge. On close inspection, very fine red threads can be seen on the leaves, which give the disease its name. As it matures, Red Thread forms pink ‘candy floss’ type clumps that will produce spores. These can be spread by shoes, lawn mowers, water and other items moved around the grass.
Proper mowing techniques play a key role in preventing both Leaf Spot and Red Thread. Regular and correct mowing helps maintain a healthy lawn, ensuring that it does not become infested with diseases and weeds before the arrival of summer.
During growth seasons, you may find that your grass needs to be cut regularly (approximately once a week). When mowing your lawn, the height that you cut the grass at is a matter of personal preference. However, it is important to ensure that most grass types are not cut lower than 25mm, as this weakens the turf, allowing more weeds to encroach, and can cause the grass to turn yellow.
If the grass has not been cut for a long period of time, you should raise the height of the mower when you first cut it. Then, gradually reduce the height by a third each time you mow afterwards, until it reaches the desired cutting height. Avoid mowing your lawn too short in one go, as this can lead to an uneven cut and cause a tear in the grass blades, leading to Leaf Spot disease throughout the lawn.
When you start cutting your lawn on a regular basis, it is important to first check the blades of your mower to ensure they are sharp. Sharp blades provide a clean and consistent cut, while cutting grass with dull blades can result in an uneven cut and cause tears in the grass blades. These tears create an entry point for lawn diseases to establish more easily.
Spring is often the time homeowners start using our services, as spring is the best time to repair lawns. Lawn Master offer a wide range of professional lawn care treatments. Our treatments offer several benefits for maintaining a healthy lawn, including preventing the occurrence of lawn diseases, reducing thatch levels, and promoting healthy grass growth.
Our fertiliser choice at this time of year is based on how your lawns have fared throughout the winter months. After an analysis of your lawns current condition, our experts will apply a fertiliser that will be most beneficial. Weeds are also controlled during this application with selective weed-killers to specifically eliminate the weeds that are growing in your lawns.
Learn more about Fertiliser Applications.
This is the process of removing thatch and organic matter from lawns. Removing the dead matter allows new and stronger grass to grow through. Scarifying should typically be completed annually to ensure a fit and healthy lawn. The process reduces both thatch layers and moss levels, as well as allowing all the important nutrients that naturally occur to have better access to the soil.
Learn more about Scarification.
Over-seeding is the process of applying a matching grass seed to a lawn, to improve the sward density and to compensate for grass decline.
In most instances, lawns require over-seeding because of sparse areas or bare patches, usually caused by foot traffic over a period of time. Introducing new grasses will ensure a thicker and dense sward which ultimately makes your lawn more resilient.
Learn more about Over-seeding.
Top dressing is the application of a soil or organic material to the surface of a lawn to improve the quality of the soil over a period of time. Top dressing can consist of a mixture of minerals such as sand, silt and clay, or a combined mixture of them all. Top dressings can improve the overall level of your lawn, allowing it to be more usable and easier to maintain. Most importantly, top dressings will improve the soil structure, which in turn improves the soil’s nutrient retention capabilities.
Learn more about Top Dressing.
Learn more about Our Lawn Diease Control Programme.
Learn more about Our Standard Treatment Programme.
Written by Lawn Master Head Office. 25 Years of Professional Lawn Care Services
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