3 Simple Ways To Get An Emerald Green Lawn

Few things feel nicer under bare feet than soft lawn grass, and a lush, emerald green lawn makes even humble homes appear upscale. If you're like many homeowners, however, you've discovered that creating and maintaining a green lawn is much harder than it looks. Some people, for instance, think that all that's required for a green lawn is lots of water and fertilizer, but this isn't necessarily the case. Following are three strategies designed to help your lawn a beautiful shade of green.

Don't Mow Too Short

One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make when it comes to lawn care is cutting their grass too short. This procedure is otherwise known as "scalping" and is often performed by people who feel they are short on time — by cutting their lawns as short as possible, they figure they won't have to mow as often. However, even just one scalping can damage a lawn to the extent where the only way to save it is to reseed it. What happens when grass is cut this short is that it can't properly photosynthesize, which means it can't produce the chlorophyl necessary to process energy from the sun. Scalping also almost always results in the presence of weeds because it causes bare spots in the lawn. 

Keep the Weeds Down 

Most homeowners think that the only real negative consequence of having weeds in the lawn is that they present an unsightly appearance, but they also have detrimental effects on the overall health of the lawn. The roots systems of weeds are strong and invasive, taking up valuable water and nutrients from the soil and leaving the lawn deprived. Some weeds even secrete toxic substances through their root systems that kill or damage nearby plants. One of the best ways to keep weeds under control is to keep your lawn healthy — weeds appear in lawns when there are bare patches caused by poor lawn health. 

Get a Good Irrigation System

Although depriving your lawn of water will ultimately result in it becoming brown, dry, and maybe even dying, it's more important to water wisely than to simply provide an abundance of water. Watering deeply once per week, for instance, is a far better strategy than giving your lawn a shallow watering several times per week, because deep watering promotes strong, healthy root systems. However, it's often difficult for homeowners to know exactly how much they should be watering.  Programmable irrigation systems take the guesswork out of watering. Under ideal conditions, your lawn should receive one inch of water per week, and you can easily program today's smart irrigation systems to do exactly that. Some even come equipped with sensors that will automatically shut the water off if it begins to rain during the irrigation process. You can work with a company like Hydrotech Irrigation Co to find the best irrigation system for your lawn.