Lawn care is an important part of home ownership. Having a beautiful lawn is something you will be able to enjoy and which you will find worth the effort required to maintain it. A well-maintained yard helps to increase your home’s value, and keeps your relationship with neighbors in good standing. Here are some of the basics for making your lawn the envy of the neighborhood.
Fertilize
Fertilizing is an important part of maintaining a healthy, lush, and green lawn. Fertilizers provide needed nutrients to the soil so that grass can grow and stay green. A fertilizer high in phosphorus is particularly important in promoting strong root growth and cultivating a green color. You can buy natural fertilizers, or use compost. Compost is available at garden stores, or you can create your own from lawn clippings and kitchen waste.
Eliminate Weeds
Weeds are tough plants that strive to out-compete your grass for light, water, and nutrients. For the best looking lawn, you want to get rid of them. Natural and organic weed control products are available, so you don’t need to turn to harmful chemicals. Chelated iron is one such product, which is bad for weeds, but grass love it. Keeping your grass long will also help to prevent weeds from taking root.
Control Pests
Controlling pests will help keep your yard green and beautiful, but it will also make it a more enjoyable environment for you and your family. Certain lawn pests are common in the Tampa area, including grubs that eat the roots of grass, webworms that eat the grass itself, and chinch bugs, which can wreak havoc in the dry months.
You can fight these critters with natural, organic methods. For instance, grubs can be controlled by infecting them with milky spore, a disease that only kills the grubs. You can also battle them with nematodes, a natural predator. Chinch bugs are difficult to control, but you can prevent their invasion of your lawn by growing resistant varieties of St. Augustine grass. To rid your lawn of webworms, it is important to water regularly and to avoid letting dry thatch build up. You can also use natural pesticides, such as those that include orange oil.
Care for Your Trees and Shrubs
Having a beautiful, weed-free, pest-free lawn is just one part of creating a healthy yard. Your shrubs and trees need care too. As with your grass, there are natural pest-control methods and natural fertilizers that can keep your shrubs and beds healthy and productive.
Trees also need care and should be protected from disease. For instance, your palm trees are vulnerable to phytoplasma diseases. Caused by a type of bacterium, these diseases can kill your trees if ignored, but they are preventable. Injections into the trunk of palm trees can prevent and treat the disease.
Caring for your lawn and garden is essential to maintaining a beautiful environment that you can enjoy every day. While traditional lawn care involves using chemicals, you can take care of your grass, beds, shrubs, and trees without turning to these harmful and harsh measures. Organic and natural lawn care is an industry that keeps growing and evolving to bring you the best solutions and products.
