Blog – Page 2 – Trail Creek Nursery

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6 Lawn Care Tips for Summer

These 6 lawn care tips for summer give your grass and yard the best chances for the best-looking yard on the block.

1. Water your lawn in the early morning hours

The ideal time to irrigate your lawn is from 4 am to 10 am. Watering at night can lead to fungus growth. Using the suggested times allows your lawn to absorb enough water and also keep some water in the grass as the temperature rises.

2. Mow your grass at the correct height

Generally speaking, mowing your lawn at 3 inches is best for summer weather. This helps the soil stay moist and your grass grow deeper stronger roots.

3. Keep your mower blades sharp

Dull blades cut the grass blades with jagged edges leading to a dryer lawn than if you use sharp blades. Plan on sharpening your lawnmower blades once a year.

4. Use the correct fertilizer at the correct time

Fertilizing incorrectly in the summer can lead to big problems. Make sure to use a type of lawn feed specifically designed for summer use.

5. Spot treat weeds

Attacking problem weeds in your lawn that crop up during the summer helps combat the spread throughout your yard. Just spot treat them rather than treating your entire lawn.

6. Leave your lawn clippings

Using a mulching lawn mower or just allowing the clippings to stay on the lawn helps to feed your grass. The clippings break down and help create a strong healthy lawn. Then plan on dethatching in the following spring.

Use these 6 lawn care tips for summer and dominate your neighborhood!

Lawn, Maintenance

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When Should You Dethatch Your Lawn?

Should you dethatch your lawn?

When should you dethatch your lawn? Most likely these questions arise because we just want our lawn to wake up and look nice without any effort other than turning on the sprinklers.

Perhaps we think “The thatch and decay in the lawn will provide some nourishment to the lawn. Kind of like compost. Yeah, that thatch is like compost. We can leave it and the lawn is healthier for it”. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

Removing the old dead grass and other detritus helps the grass to breathe and grow.

When can you dethatch your lawn?

Yes, it’s spring, and it’s also time to dethatch your lawn. Think of it as a gentle facial, if you’ve ever had one, that is. Think how much your yard will appreciate the cleaning and massaging of your rakes. All these actions help the grass to grow healthy and active.

Removing the thatch from winter improves the growth and overall health of your lovely yard. Depending on where you live, you may have voles that wreak havoc through the winter months. The little devils using the snow depth as insulation and terrorizing your lawn underneath the protection of pristine white snow all winter long.

Dethatching and removing all this dead and decaying material is key to a beautiful green lawn this spring.

Once the snow finally melts from your yard, you can go about lawn care. Using simple rakes, or power rakes pulls up the dead material, giving your lawn room to breathe. There are even attachments so you can dethatch your lawn with a lawn mower.

Now that your lawn is dethatched, you can add seed and fertilizer. You also need to keep your lawn well watered to help the lawn heal. Dethatching also makes room for fertilizer and other lawn treatments to reach the lawn. Otherwise, those fertilizers and food for your grass might go wasted away on the dead material choking your yard.

Gardener pruning trees with pruning shears on nature background.

Maintenance

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Pruning Trees, Shrubs, and Bushes

Early spring is the best time for pruning trees, shrubs, and bushes. This timing provides plants with the whole summer to heal their wounds. When plants are still dormant, it is easier to see the shape and form of the plant you are pruning.

“If a person cannot love a plant after he has pruned it, then he has either done a poor job or is devoid of emotion.” Liberty Hyde Bailey

Spring flowering shrubs, such as chokeberry, lilac and serviceberry should be pruned after flowering and before they set buds for the following season. The summer blooming bushes, potentilla, and spirea can be pruned back to 6-12 inches above the ground in the early spring.

Pruning can be the rejuvenation of an old, unruly shrub that has poor structure due to snow load.

When setting out to prune, spoil yourself with good, sharp tools. Make clean cuts at a 45-degree angle. The dead and broken limbs need cut first. Then, any crossing or rubbing branches need to removed. Then you can follow up by cutting to control shape and size. Don’t use pruning sealers, as they inhibit the plants natural healing process.

Fresh From The Nursery