Garden lawn or ordinary lawn is quite common in landscape design and is most suitable for family recreation. In its beauty, it is only slightly inferior to such a species as the ground floor, but it is distinguished by its unpretentiousness and requiring less effort in care. To decorate a suburban area with such a covering, you just need to use the services of our company.
Main characteristics of park lawns:
- durability;
- shade tolerance;
- resistance to mechanical damage.
Thanks to these qualities, an ordinary lawn can be used for picnics, walking, playing with a dog, children frolicking and even riding a bicycle. But it still has one drawback - at the end of spring and summer, the grass grows very quickly, so the lawn needs frequent mowing.
Rule one. When to mow your lawn for the first time
It is very important to start properly caring for your lawn from the very beginning - the first time after planting the grass. The time for the first mowing is when the grass reaches eight centimeters in height. The main thing is not to overdo it. Experts recommend removing no more than one and a half centimeters during the first haircut. The grass should become even more lush after this.
Important! Rolled lawn should be mowed for the first time seven days after you lay it.
Types of services provided
If you do not always have enough time to fully care for the site, you can resort to outside help. Nowadays, there are lawn mowing services. The service can be ordered from spring to late autumn. Lawn mowing price per m2 will be determined based on the type and volume of your territory.
Rule two. How to prepare your lawn for mowing
Before treating your lawn, you must do the following:
- Remove any things that complicate the process - figurines and furniture.
- Get rid of small stones and branches.
- Get rid of weeds. Use herbicides if necessary.
- The surface of the lawn should be combed with a fan rake. The process removes dry grass and moss. In addition, this procedure improves aeration - plant roots receive more oxygen.
- If necessary, sharpen your lawn mower blades.
- Use scissors when mowing your lawn to help trim the grass near the borders.
We cut hard-to-reach places
A trimmer or scissors will help us remove grass in hard-to-reach places, such as a fence, bench, bushes, etc. For those who love beauty and clarity, this is a must-have procedure.
After mowing the main area of the lawn, hard-to-reach areas are treated. Thus, we will achieve a complete, complete picture of the site. The edge of the lawn can be decorated with stones, or trimmed evenly using scissors or a trimmer.
Rule four. How often does the lawn need to be mowed?
The frequency of mowing is influenced by various factors:
- season,
- grass type,
- weather,
- soil fertility.
It is recommended to mow the lawn at the indicated frequency:
- In spring you need to cut your hair more often - twice a week;
- in the summer a little less often - once every week and a half;
- in the autumn season, when plants grow more slowly, one mowing every two weeks is enough.
If you notice that the grass grows up to 10 cm between mowings, cut it more often. But you shouldn’t overdo it either - frequent pruning is traumatic for plants.
The perfect striped lawn
Are you dreaming of a striped lawn? This means that you need to buy a lawn mower with a roller, because it is the strips of grass that are crushed in opposite directions that look like they are different colors.
If your lawn is rectangular or square, cut strips along two opposite edges first, and then, starting at one of the other two edges, cut the lawn in parallel strips, driving the mower in opposite directions and turning it each time on the already cut strip. If your lawn is of irregular shape, first mow all the edges, then cut the first strip in the middle of the lawn, and then, moving in one direction from it and making the same parallel stripes in opposite directions, reach the edge of the lawn; then return to the middle and repeat everything, moving in the other direction.
Rule five. How tall should the lawn be?
It all depends on what type of lawn you have.
- The standard ground floor has a small height. In our climate, it is recommended to leave a height of three centimeters.
- The gardening plant is taller - its height ranges from 4 to 7 cm.
- The functional one, which is intended for relaxation, is cut in the same way - 4-7 cm remains.
- Sports turf. Designed for playing football. The height of the grass is 4 cm.
This is interesting. When it's hot outside, the height of the lawn should be increased by a few centimeters.
Third stage
A mandatory step in preparing the foundation for a lawn is digging up the soil. If the area chosen for the lawn has not been cultivated for a long time, and the soil is either too light or heavy, then it is necessary to perform two-tier digging:
- a furrow is dug across the lawn with one bayonet of a shovel, and the earth is temporarily tilted to the side;
- the bottom layer of soil is loosened with a pitchfork;
- a second furrow is dug and the soil from it is transferred to the first, large clods of soil should be broken;
- the same manipulations are performed with the second furrow as with the first, after which they move on to the third;
- The last furrow is filled with soil from the first.
Fertilizers can be added to the dug soil. Ideally, the composition of the area for the lawn should be 40% heavy loam and rotted manure or compost in equal proportions, 60% peat and sand in equal quantities.
Recommendations for improving the soil for an ordinary lawn:
- if the soil is poor, then the amount of peat and humus must be increased;
- if the soil is heavy, the amount of peat and humus increases;
- more loam and organic minerals are added to sandy soil;
- for comprehensive soil improvement, 40-50 grams of simple superphosphate should be added per square meter.
Finally, the area under the lawn must be leveled, otherwise you will end up with an uneven lawn covering. Unevenness can be easily corrected with a rake. At the same time, it will be possible to remove all the old roots and pebbles that rose to the surface during digging. If the depressions are large enough, then you need to temporarily remove the top fertile layer of soil, pour the required amount of soil into the hole, and then return the soil back.
The area leveled under the lawn should be compacted with a special roller or feet. Now you need to give the earth a rest. The break time between preparing the area for a lawn and sowing the grass mixture ranges from three weeks to two months. It all depends on how long you are willing to wait.
Rule seven. Is it possible to get a haircut after it rains?
Many owners of summer cottages are wondering whether it is possible to cut the grass after rain. But this is not worth doing for various reasons:
- Wet lawn sticks to the lawn mower, prevents the blades from moving, and can damage the equipment.
- Blades become dull due to contact with moisture. Because of this, uneven edges emerge at the cut points.
- Do not mow wet grass. You can accidentally slip, and this can cause health problems.
- If the equipment is electric, then you should not cut your hair after it rains, as there is a possibility of getting an electric shock.
Grass height norm
The height of the grass cover depends on the type and purpose of this decorative element of the landscape.
Lawns are:
- Parterre or front - they are grown in open areas.
- Ordinary or gardening - planted in the garden in free areas.
- Functional - they cover areas in recreation areas.
- Sports - grown on sites intended for team games.
For the first type, the height of the “hairstyle” should be 30–40 mm, for the second and third – 40–70 mm, for the last – 30–40 mm, but it all depends on the type of sport, so the care of such plantings is trusted to experienced professionals.
Also, the height of vegetation depends on the time of year. For example, in the summer, when the weather is hot and dry, the grass cut is slightly overestimated (this is done to shade and reduce moisture loss in the soil) and the age of the lawn. During the first procedure, 80-100 mm of height is left; in the next two years, functional and ordinary ones are mowed down to 50-70 mm, front ones - up to 40-50 mm.
Important! To prevent the turf from weakening and the lawn from dying, mowing should be done according to the principle “not too short, but often.”
In one haircut you can mow no more than a third of the height. If one or more procedures were missed, and the grass has grown significantly, then you cannot remove the entire length of the plant in one go; initially, 1/3 of the height is cut off, gradually bringing it to the regulated values (in several steps).
Tools for creating a smooth lawn edge
Edge trimmer. Making the edge of the lawn smooth, especially if it is adjacent to a flower garden, is not a trivial task: soil and grass tend to “slide” into the flower garden. They are trying to solve this problem in different ways, for example, they fence the flower garden with plastic tapes or decorative fences. Unfortunately, this does not improve the appearance, and it does not particularly help. Often they try to trim the edge with a shovel, but as a result the edge turns out uneven, as if “gnawed”. Meanwhile, there is a very simple tool that helps you make a truly beautiful edge without much effort. This device looks like a semicircular blade on a handle; You can use a regular garden hose along the edge of the lawn as a guide to create an even line.
Lawn equipment: edger
Grass shears have a special design and are needed for trimming edges, cutting grass in corners, along flower beds, walls and in other places where it is difficult or unsafe to work with a mower and trimmer. Mechanical shears, in which the force is created manually, can be equipped with guides for even cutting of grass to the same length, and a rotating head - this is convenient in difficult conditions. For those who find it difficult to work while bending over or squatting, scissors are available with small wheels and a long handle with controls on the top.
Lawn equipment: mechanical grass shears
Cordless grass shears look like a large hair clipper - their cutting element is designed in a similar way. The width of the scissor head is 6-10 cm, this is enough to properly trim the edges of the lawn. Autonomy depending on battery power is from 30 to 80 minutes. These scissors can also be found in versions with a long handle and wheels. An additional advantage of the tool is the ability to expand its functionality: in some models, the cutting head for grass can, if necessary, be replaced with a tool for simple trimming of ornamental shrubs.
Lawn equipment: cordless grass shears
When to mow
The lawn needs to be mowed regularly, and even the first mowing should not be delayed. In spring or summer, a few weeks after sowing, when the grass has already reached a height of 10 cm, you can safely cut it without fear for the condition of the still unformed turf.
Lawn mowing: rules and recommendations
The best time for a haircut is dry weather. But the grass should not be overdried, but rather slightly damp. If the grass is wet, the lawn mower will quickly clog, and if the soil is dry, the turf will be torn out by the roots.
Important! If the lawn was planted in the fall, it can only be mowed in the spring.
After winter, a lawn that has been growing for several years should be trimmed as soon as the snow melts. But still, it is impossible to name an exact time for a spring haircut - in the regions of Russia, spring comes at different times. The first spring mowing of the lawn should take place when the ground is almost dry, not too wet. By the time of the first mowing, the grass should already be growing, at least a couple of millimeters. You need to adjust the lawn mower blades so that you only cut the grass at the tops. The lawn should not be cut short during the first mowing.
The time of day is also of great importance when cutting grass. Experienced summer residents advise mowing the lawn in the evening or morning. The fact is that in the early morning (6-7 am) and in the evening, when the sun sets, the grass begins to rise and stretch upward. Due to the fact that all the blades of grass stand level, the grass cover and all the irregularities that remained unnoticed are clearly visible.
Where to dispose of grass clippings from the lawn
After the very first mowing, all grass clippings must be removed from the area. You can leave it during subsequent procedures in dry weather as mulch, when the number of haircuts decreases. This will protect the turf and plants from losing moisture. It is distributed in an even layer over the entire area of the lawn, but after a change of weather, and especially if it has rained, the remains must be removed.
Lawn grass can be left for 2-3 days until it dries out if there are animals on the farm to use it as hay. It is also suitable for compost. To do this, the cut green mass is placed in a special pit for rotting, and then used as organic fertilizer for the needs of garden or vegetable plants.
Also find out how long it takes for grass to sprout after planting.
So, mowing the lawn is a troublesome but necessary task. Follow the rules for caring for your garden decorative element and enjoy its emerald shades all season long.
What you need to uniformly sow your lawn
The main problem when sowing lawn grass, especially in large areas, is to evenly distribute the seeds so that the lawn does not become an illustration of the saying “where it’s thick, where it’s empty.” To solve this problem, there are also special devices - seeders-spreaders. Typically this is a device without a motor, equipped with a container for seeds and a system for adjusting their distribution. The simplest models are portable, very compact, resembling a small bucket with a lever.
Lawn equipment: hand seeder
More advanced ones are wheeled with a handle on which the controls are located. Some of them have a built-in spreader shaft with a mechanical drive from wheels: when rotating, it scatters seeds over a distance of 1 to 6 m, depending on the operator’s walking speed. Such seeders can also be used to distribute dry fertilizers when feeding the lawn.
Lawn equipment: wheel seeder
Lawn soil care equipment
For lawn care, three more devices are needed, which are often confused despite the differences in their functions: an aerator, a scarifier and a verticutter. An aerator is used to improve oxygen access to the roots of lawn grasses by loosening the top layer of soil and removing dead grass and moss. It is advisable to treat the lawn with an aerator several times a season - this promotes good grass growth and suppresses the growth of moss, which likes to settle on poorly aerated soils. The scarifier is used for thorough “cleaning” of the lawn - removing debris and moss, “breaking” the old turf. During operation, the scarifier plunges deeper into the soil than the aerator and loosens it more thoroughly. It is used twice per season - in spring and autumn.
Lawn equipment: scarifier shaft
A verticutter is the “roughest” of this group of tools; it is used to tidy up old lawns with a thick and coarse turf layer and to harshly loosen the soil, which is associated with damage to some of the roots of the lawn grass. This is useful: such procedures stimulate growth and improve nutrition of lawn plants. The verticutter is used as needed, most often in the spring, when working to restore the lawn after wintering.
Since all three devices are, in fact, a shaft on which the working elements (knives, teeth or knitting needles) are fixed, they are often combined into one device of varying degrees of versatility: scarifier-aerator, aerator-verticutter, etc. This is achieved in due to the possibility of replacing the shaft and adjusting the depth of tillage. In the class of expensive devices, there are also models with highly expanded functionality that can even be used for cutting grass. The aerator (or universal device) is always equipped with a motor that rotates the shaft. Structurally, such units are similar to mowers: they have wheels, a handle with controls, etc. Powerful devices with a verticutter function are often gasoline-powered; in lighter classes you can find compact models powered by mains or batteries. The processing width is 32-53 cm, the device can be equipped with a waste collection container.
Lawn equipment: aerator-scarifier
How to mow lawn grass
This question is worth pondering from the moment you decide to arrange a lawn on your property. The quality of the grass cover will depend on the technique chosen. No matter how much you want, you won’t be able to create a perfectly flat surface using a braid. For this purpose it is better to use special equipment.
Lawn shears
Mowing the lawn with special scissors
This fairly simple device will allow you to cut the grass along the edge of the lawn and in hard-to-reach places, as well as trim a small lawn. However, using lawn shears is not effective because it is time consuming and labor intensive.
Garden trimmer
Mowing the lawn with a garden trimmer
Garden trimmers are equipped with an electric or gasoline engine. The first of them are lightweight, small in size, but require an outlet and long wiring.
Gasoline cars are characterized by mobility, but are heavier in weight. The trimmer is perfect for cutting grass in hard-to-reach places where it cannot be cut with a mower. Can be used for cutting small areas.
Lawn mowers
Mowing the lawn with a lawn mower
Today, there are many models of lawn mowers, differing not only in price, type of cutting element and engine type, but also in the presence of auxiliary options. Therefore, when choosing a lawn mower, you should take into account engine power, area and shape of the lawn, and a number of other technical characteristics.
Using a manual mechanical lawn mower will allow you not to depend on the availability of energy resources and to carry out impeccable lawn cutting without harming the environment. Sharp knives provide the highest quality mowing, although it is quite difficult to work with.
Electric mowers are easy to use, easy to clean, operate quietly, are relatively safe for the natural environment, and are great for medium-sized lawns. Almost the only inconvenience when using this type of mower is the need to connect to the power supply. An excellent solution for small lawns with a flat surface.
Gasoline lawn mowers are ideal for mowing large lawns of any shape, while they are independent of external power sources. However, gasoline mowers are heavier, more difficult to use, and produce a lot of noise.
Mowing the lawn with a garden tractor
For larger areas, there are more complex and larger lawn treatment equipment. As a rule, such machines are equipped not only with blades for cutting grass, but also with tools for aeration and scorification. Some include a garden vacuum function to collect leaves, grass clippings and debris. Machines for cultivating large areas of lawn are called garden tractors.
What time of day is best to get a haircut?
In order for the grass to tolerate shortening well, it is necessary to choose the optimal time for this procedure. In the scorching sun and severe drought, freshly cut tips quickly dry out and turn yellow, which has a bad effect on the appearance of the lawn, and the plant can be pulled out of dry soil along with the roots. Therefore, the grass should be dry, and the ground, on the contrary, should be slightly damp. The ideal weather would be a warm, cloudy day, and the time would be morning or evening.
Did you know? Since the end of 2005, home robotic mowers have been available for sale. To limit the boundaries of mowing, a cord is installed on them. If the power supply runs out, they themselves find a place to recharge; such robots are also equipped with rain sensors.
