Keep it green

Year-round lawn care is essential for a healthy, green lawn. Without implementing the proper measures your lawn can quickly become dry, unhealthy and susceptible to outdoor pests. Ensure you adhere to seasonal lawn care and maintenance requirements to keep it in tip-top condition.

Apply fertiliser

“Apply lawn dressing and fertiliser at the start of the season (mid- to end-August) and again towards the middle of the season (around January). Use a fertiliser that is high in potassium and nitrogen.” – Craig de Necker, managing director of The Friendly Plant

Know how much to water

“Irrigate your lawns during the growing period with approximately 25mm of water per week. To test how long you should water, simply place a shallow container on the lawn, start a timer and turn on your irrigation system at the same time. Once the water level in the container is at 25mm, you will then know the amount of time per week that you should irrigate your lawn.” – Craig de Necker, managing director of The Friendly Plant

Weed your lawn

“Ideally one should be able to physically remove weeds by hand or with a small hand fork or big fork to loosen the root hold and then physically remove without disturbing the lawn sod. Alternatively for larger weed infestations , one could apply a selective herbicide for broadleaf weeds or specific herbicides for nutsedge weeds. A preventive herbicide spray is also available to treat your lawn to prevent an invasion of the annual grass weeds.” – Russell Trope, owner of Utropia Landscaping

Hire a professional

“There are a few factors in maintaining a healthy lawn, and a professional has the necessary understanding and training to advise on the correct treatment and when. This will include knowing when to fertilise the lawn and what fertiliser to use (this changes through the seasons); what height the lawn should be cut and adjustment of the mower cutting heights; any pre-season preparation, e.g. scarification; timing of top-dressing and what is the best medium to use for this; assessing whether the drainage is suitable for the lawn, managing the watering and irrigation system and assessing the types of lawns suitable for specific environments, client requirements, etc.” – Russell Trope, owner of Utropia Landscaping

Give your lawn the spring treatment

The Lifestyle Home Garden information team give a step-by-step plan to get your lawn ready for the warmer months:

1. Set your lawnmower to its lowest height and mow the lawn.
2. Scarify the lawn by raking vigorously across and down to remove the old dead mat using a steel rake with sharp teeth.
3. Water deeply to soften the soil.
4. Using a lawn spike roller or garden fork, spike the soil at least 20cm deep.
5. Apply an organic lawn fertiliser high in nitrogen, e.g. 8:1:5 or 5:1:5, and top-dress with a 1-3cm-thick layer of lawn dressing.
6. Use a rake or hard broom to spread the lawn dressing across the lawn.
7. Use the flat side of a rake to level out the surface.
8. Water deeply and gently after applying the fertiliser and lawn dressing.