Tips for New Lawn Care

These tips on new lawn care will save you time, money and backbreaking labor down the road...

1. Choose a variety of seed that will thrive in your conditions. Don’t buy the cheapest. You will pay more for the right seed later.

2. New lawns often lack nutrients in the soil. A soil test by your local garden center could help you treat your lawn at the root level. Large doses of organic fertilizer and water should start you off on the right foot.

3. Avoid pesticides in a lawn’s early stages. This allows microorganisms and earthworms to proliferate, which helps root systems.

4. Avoid pre-emergent weed control in the spring. Pre-emergents stop ALL seeds from germinating, including grass seed as well as weeds. This is a common mistake.

5. Use a post-emergent weed control (preferably liquid). This should control weeds while allowing grass to grow unstunted.

Despite even the best effort in new lawn care, the nicest lawns are still reseeded once or twice a year. They also require a diligent chemical program. If you don’t want to do it yourself have a company like TruGreen ChemLawn do it. I like how they give a Free Lawn Analysis.

Alternative to Seeding: Sod and Plugs

While seeding make take a growing season to mature, sodding lets you have a new lawn in a day. Some grasses that can be started from sod can also be established with plugs. Warm weather grasses like Zoysia grass, St. Augustine, and Bermudagrass are often established this way.

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