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Spring lawns and flowers Follow this simple, sensible guide for a lush lawn that’s the envy of your neighbourhood GARDENING 8 Life In Cheshire Where life gets interesting. S ay goodbye to your garden’s bare spots, unsightly brown patches, dandelions,and creeping Charlie. With the right grass, proper preparation, and timely mowing and watering, you can welcome a beautiful green lawn. Choose your grasses Whether you’re starting a new lawn or reviving an existing one, approach grass the way you would any other plant. A lawn is made up of as many as 850 grass plants per square foot. Grasses might look more or less the same, but different types have different levels of insect and disease resistance; tolerance for drought, shade, and foot traffic; and temperature hardiness. Lawns usually contain combinations of grass types. Picking the right mixture for the conditions in your garden is essential. Just as a plant that thrives in dry soil will probably die in a boggy spot, an out-of-place grass will grow poorly or not at all. For example, cool- season grasses prefer a temperature range of 60-75 degrees and generally require less water, but summer heat can stress them. Warm-season grasses thrive in higher temperatures (80-95 degrees), but they lose their colour when the mercury drops. However, warm-season grasses typically have deep roots and can tolerate close mowing and heavy foot traffic. Final Pages.indd 8 18/04/2012 15:59:02
