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Lawn Care - Treatments |
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Fertilising.
All good lawns need the basics to grow well. Grass is a
plant and needs feeding during the year to enable it to grow
green and healthy. Spring provides an ideal time to start
fertilising with a spring feed and make a good start for the
season ahead. Slow release fertilisers can be used to
continue the growth throughout the season ensuring that the
grass grows consistently and does not flush with excessive
growth. Winter feeds can ensure the grass stays green and
strong when it is at its most vulnerable, fertiliser does
not necessarily mean long uncontrollable grass and if
applied correctly will provide the basis for a perfect lawn.
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Weed control
is very important to avoid weeds overpowering the grass and
taking over. Most turf weeds grow quickly and should be
sprayed prior to flowering and reseeding. We are able to
identify the weeds and spray them with effective selective
herbicides designed to treat ‘managed turf’. Some weeds are
easily treated like white clover, plantains and dandelions.
Daisies have a nasty tendency of reappearing the following
year, where as yellow suckling clover and speedwell need a
little more persuasion with carefully selected chemicals.
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Moss
is normally the sign of other problems. Generally a thin
unhealthy lawn in the summer season will have some sign of
increasing moss in the winter and spring. Moss will show
little mercy to the sandy, dry soil with low fertility. A
worn area will allow moss to creep in, as will wet or
heavily shaded areas. To control moss short term it can be
sprayed which will kill the moss turning it black, the best
time for this is in the spring. The moss must then be
removed to prevent it regenerating, rake or scarify the moss
and remove it from the surface. This will leave bare
patches which will need to be reseeded or returfed to avoid
moss or weeds causing another problem. Above all, address
the reason for the original problem and rectify this. Plan
a better maintenance routine for the season ahead.
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Scarifying
is a very good maintenance tool to lift out unwanted debris,
remove moss, thin out heavy thick unhealthy lawns and reduce
thatch. It is often preceded by spraying for moss and
followed by cutting to clean the surface. It is important
to ensure that the grass is healthy when scarifying to aid
recovery and should often be followed by fertilising.
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Aeration
is important for the grass plants roots. The roots need air
and water in the soil to grow. Heavy, wet or compacted soil
does not include much air and restricts the roots from going
deep enough to provide the grass plant with food and water.
This leads to wet areas in the winter and dry problems in
the summer. The air exchange that all plants need is
restricted and the grass becomes weak. Aeration may not be
needed every year, it depends on the amount of traffic,
structure of the soil and amount of rain fall. Aeration can
be carried out with garden forks or other hand tools, but is
a back braking job. Mechanical tools are ideal for lawns as
they can be interchanged with a variety of tines and ensure
the whole lawn is well aerated. Chisel and solid tines help
reduce compaction with hollow tines taking out cores of soil
for larger holes or to allow topdressing to be brushed into
the holes.
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Topdressing and Over Seeding.
Topdressing on it’s own is an excellent way of levelling the
surface of the lawn. Combined with aeration it allows soil
exchange to introduce a preferred soil for better nutrient
levels, droughting or drainage. When over seeding
topdressing protects the seed helping to keep in the
moisture and restricts the birds from eating the seed.
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Pest and Disease treatments.
Pests come in many forms, insects (leather jackets, chafer
grubs, ants and mining bees) damage the grass above and
below the surface, pets urine, birds and wild animals
digging for grubs, worm casts and others. Treatments are
varied and may include changing your maintenance practices
or spraying with insecticides. Diseases may effect grass
plants in the same way as they effect your other plants.
You may begin to notice red strands of grass, dead patches,
mould or fungus in your lawn. Spraying may solve the
problem short term, but increasing or improving your
maintenance and fertiliser plan may also be needed. When
applying chemicals, be sure to always read the label and be
safe. Green Side offers a complete range of treatments so
as the homeowner may safely resolve their lawn problems. We
are qualified and insured for handling and applying
chemicals
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Returfing
may sometimes be necessary to provide an instant answer to a
poor lawn and allow reshaping of the borders. The choice in
turf is very important, by choosing a good quality turf now
you will save a lot of time in your future maintenance.
Fine grasses are generally the best for lawns and with the
inclusions of refined harder wearing grasses, produce
excellent surfaces. It is also important to look at the
soil that the turf is grown on. Avoid going for the
cheapest meadow turf as you will end up with thick, clumpy
uncutable pastures, fit only for animals. Remember,
groundsmen grow fine grasses for quality and farmers grow
thick grasses for grazing. Green Side has some excellent
suppliers of turf and can completely lay your new lawn.
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