5 Lawn Care Tips for Brand-New Homeowners

Knowing how to take care of your lawn is a key part of being a responsible, effective homeowner. When you’re just starting out with lawn care management, however, knowing where to start can feel overwhelming. To help guide you, here are five lawn care tips for brand-new homeowners.

1. Mow at the Right Height

Always cut your lawn using professional, proper methods, and cut it depending on grass growth rather than the day of the week. Mowing heights vary depending on the season and type of grass. While some grasses benefit from being kept short, others require more height. Hot spells call for higher overall mowing heights. Over numerous sessions, progressively adjust the mowing heights. Never cut off more than one-third of the blade length at once to avoid hindering healthy above- and below-ground development. Depending on the size of your lawn and your objectives, use the appropriate grass tools to make duties simpler and less time-consuming. Consulting a lawn care service company about your lawn’s particular mowing height needs is highly recommended, and can help you become a lawn management expert.

2. Seeding is Everything

Timing is crucial when sowing new areas, seeding your lawn or thickening the grass already present. Plan your seeding to coincide with the ideal time to plant grass and seasonal grass growth. Avoid the usual grass-sowing errors that many homeowners make by planting seeds properly. Additionally, it’s always recommended that you overseed, as this will ensure your grass grows as efficiently as possible. Underseeding can lead to many unforeseen issues, after all. Spend some time learning how to read a seed tag so you can identify the source of the seeds you purchase. You can be surprised by the contents of the seed sold by several businesses after having bought it on the open market. But with high-quality grass seed, you can seed with confidence and take advantage of a sustainable lawn with greater resilience to diseases, pests, and drought. Doing so will ensure your property is beautiful year-round.

3. Understand Your Soil

There’s a golden rule when it comes to lawn care: what occurs above ground reflects what occurs below. Your grasses may more easily access the vital plant nutrients they require to grow thick, lush, and green when ideal soil pH levels and advantageous microbial activity combine in healthy soils. Consider the advice of lawn experts and do a soil test to determine your starting point for important factors like soil pH. You can find information on test kits and reliable soil laboratories by contacting your county extension office or agricultural agent. You can collect reliable soil samples on your own. Include distinct samples for troublesome locations, such as bare spots or regions covered in unwelcome lawn moss. So that they can provide you with incredibly exact results, let the lab know you’re checking lawn areas.

4. Get Rid of Weeds Fast

Lawns frequently deal with pesky weeds and weed seeds, even when newly planted. For new homeowners who want to have an ideal-looking lawn, learning how to de-weed their lawn is crucial. Grass and weeds face off in the battle for nutrients, water, and sunshine, and your lawn can become an unwitting victim of this war if you’re not careful. Learn about common lawn weeds and how to get rid of broadleaf weeds so you can save time and money by not having to treat them again. Additionally, lawn weeds multiply quickly once they appear. Wherever you’re sowing fresh grass seed, stay away from pre-emergent weed treatments like crabgrass preventers and fertilizers that combine weed and feed. These treatments are made to prevent weed seeds from germinating and establishing strong roots, but they can also be used to control grass seeds. Useful spot treatments can be used to combat difficult lawn weeds.

5. Keep Your Grass Well Fed

The right nutrients are a must-have requirement for having the best lawn in your neighborhood.  Maintaining your lawn’s lush, vivid, and green appearance requires a lot of nitrogen, after all. Based on the organic matter in your soil and other factors, the findings of your soil test will suggest how many pounds of nitrogen your lawn needs annually. Following the advice you receive in this area will help you keep your lawn healthy, and cut down on the need for future lawn maintenance as well. The percentages of actual nitrogen and other nutrients that goods actually contain are shown by the numbers on fertilizer labels, allowing you to match the product to your needs. Be cautious, though, as frequent or excessive feeding might have negative effects. Establish a feeding schedule that suits the fertilizer requirements of your grass and adhere to it. If you irregularly feed your lawn, it can cause a lot of frustrating, and expensive issues down the line.