Easy Lawn Care

Mowing Height

• Set your lawn mower so that it doesn't cut the blades too low to the ground. When you mow too closely, the result is a reduction in the ability of grass and plants to both produce and store necessary nutrients. As long as your mowing technique avoids creating a lawn that is too thin and weak to stem off the growth of weeds, your grass should remain healthy enough to produce an attractive lawn.

Fertilizer

• Synthetic lawn fertilizers that are high in nitrogen and work quickly can paradoxically result in making your lawn weaker due to an overstimulation of growth. This type of fertilizing approach will probably make the lawn look healthy, but in reality it will increase the likelihood of damage due to fungus and insect infestation. A much more effective approach is to use slower working organic fertilizer.

Footprints

• Lawn care can be as easy as looking behind you when you step across the grass. Regular and consistent observation of the lawn's reaction to traffic can be an indicator of the necessity for watering. When footprints become visibly noticeable after walking across the lawn, you'll know it's time for a saturation of the soil. Water the lawn for up to two hours immediately after noticing footprints.

Composting

• Composting can be just as effective at stimulating grass growth as it is for stimulating plant growth in your garden. This is an especially easy lawn care task since it is only required twice a year. Once each spring and fall lay down 1/2 inch of either screened or whole compost over the grass.

Patching

• A small section of damaged lawn can be easily repaired with a patch. Simply cut out the damaged area of the lawn and replace it with a matching patch of grass that you have taken from a less conspicuous part of the yard. Tamp down both pieces in the respective spots and then provide adequate watering.

Fairy Rings

• The way you go about mowing can have an effect on the health of your lawn. When you notice fairy rings, which are rings of toadstools or mushrooms, you need to make sure that you choose this area to mow last. You want to avoid spreading the infected spores over the rest of the lawn that results from chopping up the fungi and stepping through it. You also need to make sure you clean the mower afterwards so that you don't spread the spores across the yard the next time you mow.