Lawn Care Harrisburg PA is the art and science of maintaining a verdant, healthy lawn. It requires proper knowledge of turfgrass species and soil conditions. It also includes routine mowing, watering, fertilization, aeration and weed control.
Proper mowing and lawn care promotes healthy, low-input maintenance lawns that enhance the environment. Fertilizers containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium stimulate new grass growth and improve plant vitality.
Watering is the most important lawn care task because it can have a significant impact on the health of your grass. When done properly, it minimizes fungal disease, promotes deep root growth, and helps your lawn become more resistant to drought. However, improper watering can lead to soggy soil and overgrowth of weeds and other undesirable plants. Striking the right balance is key to a lush, green lawn all year round.
As a general rule, most lawns require about an inch of water a week (including rainfall), but the specific amount your lawn needs will depend on soil type and grass type. The best time to water is in the early morning, as this allows the grass and soil to absorb the moisture before the sun heats up and causes evaporation. Watering in the evening can leave your lawn wet for the entire night, which increases the risk of fungal diseases.
It’s also a good idea to minimize the amount of times you water your lawn each week, and to encourage deep watering. Watering frequently with shallow applications can actually discourage root growth, making the lawn more susceptible to dry conditions. Deep watering 2-3 times per week, with longer run times, will promote deeper root growth and help the turf develop its natural resilience to drought. Avoid leaving puddles of standing water on the surface of the lawn, as this can lead to fungal diseases like Leaf Spot, Blight, and Melting Out.
Fertilizing
Fertilizing is an essential aspect of lawn care and helps to maintain that lush, green look. It can help ward off common issues like weeds, pests, and bare spots by strengthening grass roots and blades. Fertilizing is also environmentally friendly and contributes to soil health, preventing erosion and reducing runoff that can pollute water bodies.
Different types of grass require a specific nutrient ratio in order to grow and thrive. Choosing the right fertilizer based on these requirements will ensure that your lawn is healthy and vibrant.
Grass needs nitrogen to produce new growth, phosphorous to promote root development and seed formation, and potassium to improve overall plant vigor. Fertilizers are sold with a number on their packaging, which represents the proportion of these nutrients (N-P-K) in the product. Choose a fertilizer that matches your soil test results and grass type, and be sure to follow all application instructions.
When applying fertilizer, be sure to use a spreader to evenly distribute it and avoid over-fertilizing, which can cause patchy or brown areas. It is also important to irrigate the lawn after fertilization to encourage rapid absorption of the nutrients into the ground.
Remember to sweep up any fertilizer that has accidentally landed on sidewalks, driveways, or other impervious surfaces and back into grassy areas. This will prevent contaminated runoff into nearby storm sewers and bodies of water during heavy rains.
Aerating
A well-manicured, velvety green lawn is the focal point of any landscape. It can be a place where you laze in your hammock watching sparrows gather, squirrels dart across and the occasional frog hop around. It can also be the home of a pet, a play area for the kids or a spot to host your annual backyard barbecue.
One of the most important steps to a healthy lawn is regular aeration. Essentially, it is like poking holes in the earth to provide your grass with better air circulation, which helps boost root growth and nutrient consumption.
Tightly packed soil hinders root growth by blocking the flow of water and nutrients to the grassroots. Over time, this causes the roots to grow shallowly and suffocate. Aerating loosens compact soil, prevents excess thatch and allows seeds to germinate.
Aerating is best done in fall, but can be accomplished at any time during the growing season with cool-season grasses (bluegrass, fescue, and rye). It’s especially helpful to aerate prior to fertilizing or performing major lawn care operations such as dethatching. It is also recommended to aerate your lawn after it rains to make the process easier. There are multiple methods of aeration including core aeration, spike aeration and liquid aeration. Each offers unique benefits. However, core aeration is regarded as the most effective method by many professionals. It removes small plugs of soil from the surface, which improves natural soil aeration and prevents thatch buildup, reduces weed growth and promotes deep, healthy grass.
Weeding
Lawns that are weed-free are an indicator of dedication to a home and provide a beautiful backdrop for outdoor activities. Proper weed management strategies, like applying pre-emergent herbicides in the early spring to stop germination and curb growth, help keep annual weeds like crabgrass and purslane from taking over lawns and garden beds.
Weeds are tenacious and grow much faster than grass, which makes them more difficult to remove. In addition, they take up water and other soil nutrients from grass, preventing them from growing their best. By removing weeds, you allow grass and other plants to absorb the necessary resources they need to grow strong and thrive.
A weed-free landscape also reduces the risk of plant diseases. Many weeds carry pathogens that can spread to healthy lawns and gardens, impacting their health and appearance. Weeds also compete for sunlight, reducing the amount of light that grass receives and limiting its ability to photosynthesize.
Whether you’re looking to do it yourself or hire a lawn care professional, the key is to get started as early as possible. Invest in regular lawn maintenance, including mowing at the recommended height, aerating, fertilization and weed control, to ensure that your yard is healthy and vibrant all year round. In the long run, you’ll find that your efforts will pay off with a lush, green yard that’s the envy of your neighbors!
Overseeding
After a summer of heat, humidity, excessive foot traffic, and other environmental stresses, your lawn may need a pick-me-up. One of the best ways to do this is by overseeding. Overseeding involves spreading grass seed over your existing lawn to improve its density and health. Thicker grass helps crowd out weeds and increases your lawn’s resilience to diseases, insects, and environmental stressors (Scotts, n.d).
The best time to overseed is in the fall. This is because the warm soil temperatures of fall promote optimal germination rates for cool-season grasses like tall fescue in North Alabama.
When overseeding, it is important to use a broadcast spreader to evenly distribute the grass seed over your lawn. Additionally, it is important to aerate your lawn before overseeding in order to alleviate soil compaction and improve seed-to-soil contact (Pennington, n.d).
After overseeding, it is crucial to water your lawn daily to encourage growth and reestablish the roots of the new grass. However, it is best to avoid saturating the soil with too much water, as this could wash away the newly planted seeds or cause them to grow fungi. Also, it is important to wait until the grass is a few inches high before mowing to reduce wear and tear on the young sprouts. Lastly, it is important to apply a lawn fertilizer with a balanced blend of nutrients to help the new grass get established.
Renovation
Lawn renovation is the process of introducing new grass seed to thicken and invigorate your lawn. It is also a good opportunity to introduce more resistant grass species to your yard that are better at resisting pests and drought.
A thorough lawn renovation begins by mowing at low heights and removing thatch, a layer of dead grass and roots that inhibits healthy growth. Often thatch builds up to a thickness of 3/4 inch or more which can be a result of poor mowing practices, disease, overfertilizing, drought and heat, soil compaction, nutrient depletion, insect damage and shading from trees or buildings.
Once thatch is removed the soil can be aerated to alleviate soil compaction. This will allow grass roots to better absorb water and nutrients which is a major cause of lawn thinning and decline. Following aeration, the soil is top dressed with a light fall fertilizer to promote the growth of new seed and give it a head start.
If birds are a problem or temperatures are set to drop then covering the seed with a layer of fleece will speed germination while protecting it from birds and colder weather. Once the new grass is established regular mowing, watering and feeding will keep it in peak condition.