New lawns and lawn maintenance

New lawns

There is nothing finer than a well maintained lawn to complement the borders and trees in a garden. A top quality lawn will be composed of grasses called bents and fescues and will need close and regular mowing to keep weeds out. A harder wearing lawn suitable for family use is composed of fewer bents and fescues but has extra meadow grasses and ryegrass, which are coarser and harder wearing.

Lawns can be laid as turf, which will give an instant lawn, or by seed, which is cheaper but entails waiting up to one year for a lawn that can be used by the family.

Seeding or turfing is best done in Spring or early Autumn. For methods of preparing the site and laying turf or sowing seed, look in your gardening book, or pick up a leaflet from your nearest B & Q DIY store

Whether turfing or seeding the lawn, you will need to thoroughly prepare the site by first levelling the ground. Make sure the land drains freely and add further topsoil if the condition of the earth is poor. Finally a sprinkling of Growmore fertilizer will aid the rooting process if you are laying turf.

For turf, measure the intended lawn area, adding an extra metre or so, to cover awkward shapes or errors.

• Examine turf for freshness before it is off-loaded, and lay as soon as possible according to the method in your gardening book. Or get a reputable landscape gardener to do the job for you.
• If the turf arrives yellowed and dry, refuse delivery, as it will not take root

For seed, ensure the seedbed is level, firm and raked over, and any large stones removed. Choose a dry, mild, windless day for sowing, and lightly rake the seed after sowing. If no rain has fallen within 24 hours the area should be watered thoroughly but gently. If you are troubled by birds eating the seed, set some canes - with tin foil strips attached that flap in the wind - into the soil

Immediate aftercare for both turfed and seeded lawns entails ensuring that the area doesn`t dry out and keeping weeds at bay.

Lawn maintenance

Lawns form a restful contrast to your borders and a well maintained lawn is a delight to see. A regular regime of maintenance as follows is needed to keep your grass looking good all year round:

• In Spring and Autumn apply feed containing nitrogen, phosphorus and potash to replenish minerals lost by continual cutting and clearing grass away.
• In Spring remove moss and thatch, preferably with an electric lawn rake.
• Mow lawns regularly with at least a weekly cut in summer.
• Control weeds with a spot weeder that will eliminate unsightly weeds.
• Keep neat edges that will set off the lawn and give a professional finish
• If you have a female dog, train her to use a gravelled part of the garden for a toilet, as her urine would burn brown patches into the lawn. It is also more hygienic confined to just one part of the garden.
• Keep the lawn moist in drought conditions, but don`t worry if you can`t, it will recover when the rain starts
• Repair any bumps, hollows and bald patches as they appear. (Refer to your gardening book for instructions.)
• Worms may make unsightly worm casts in winter, but they are the gardener`s best friends. In the Spring just brush the casts away with a rake or stiff brush.
• Mole infestation requires patience and the help of a mole trap or other device. Get advice from your local council if you have a real problem.

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