Lawn Treatment: What You Need to Know to Keep Your Lawn Green in Fishkill and Wappingers Falls, NY

Some lawns seem to happen effortlessly, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Lots of routine maintenance and different seasonal tasks take place often and throughout the year in order to keep a lawn happy and healthy. The key to turning your lawn into a masterpiece is knowledge, and consistent work. Here’s what to consider when you’re planning out your seasonal lawn treatment: what you need to know to keep your lawn green in Fishkill and Wappingers Falls, NY.

Related: Fertilizer: The Best Time to Use It and Other Tips in Chappaqua and Fishkill, NY

Late Winter Planning

After the worst of the snow has finished for the season, it’s time to think ahead to what your lawn will need in the coming months. Take a walk around your lawn and make note of what you see: damaged, diseased, or dead grass. Look for areas of low growth and any areas that are bare. Look for flattened grass that may have been suffocated by packed snow from improper snow shoveling. This information will help you understand how to bring your lawn to its full potential.

Sod

If your lawn has bare areas, early spring is a good time to install healthy sod that is ready to establish roots in your landscape. Starting grass from seed (by overseeding) is more risky since the seeds may not outcompete weeds, and the results could be patchy for the whole season.

Removing Weeds

Weeds grow much faster than the lawn and can take advantage of the nutrients, water, and sunlight that you’ve intended to go towards your lawn. Prevention is better than the cure. Supporting your lawn with a pre-emergent weed killer will help prevent weeds from germinating; and later in the season, there will be less weeds to contend with. Using the right weed killer correctly will also ensure the health of the rest of your landscape.

Adding Fertilizer

To keep your lawn healthy, apply fertilizer several times in a year. Fertilizer is a concentration of nutrients that dissolves in water. However, you need to use the right types of fertilizer, which means having your soil tested at least once a year to prevent creating a nutrient imbalance by using the wrong fertilizer. Application of the fertilizer is also a task that requires care to avoid causing fertilizer burns on the grass. In high concentrations, fertilizer can even damage surrounding plant life and become toxic to people and animals.  

Mowing

One of the most common landscaping jobs you’ll see is mowing. But mowing isn’t as easy as it looks if you want the best results. Mower blades need to be routinely sharpened to cleanly cut the grass rather than tearing it, which can lead to ugly brown tips and invite disease. Mower blades need to also be set to the correct height. Mowing too high will hold too much moisture on the ground, while mowing too low will lead to soil drying out. 

Leaf Removal

When the leaves drop in autumn, they can create a suffocating blanket on the lawn. You can have the leaves removed, or mulched so that the small particles filter down to the soil and add nutrients to the soil. 

Professional Assistance

Sometimes the work required for a lawn may outmatch the time and energy available of the homeowner. Don’t delay. Set up a lawn maintenance contract with lawn care professionals so your lawn will look great all year long and you can spend more time enjoying your beautiful landscape.

Related: The Role Weed Killer Plays in Keeping Plantings Flawless in Dutchess County, NY