Spring Lawn Care Tips

Your lawn is one of the areas of the garden that should be a top priority over the spring months, as giving it a little care and attention now will pay dividends for the rest of the year.

Here are five top priorities for your garden’s grass this spring, courtesy of turf supplies specialists Madingley Mulch. We are based on the outskirts of Cambridge but supply a wide range of horticultural products to gardeners in Essex, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.

 Time to Mow

Spring is the time when you should be thinking about giving your grass its first mowing of the year. It is best to make sure you wait until a dry day, as a wet cut could do more harm than good. Cut the grass on the mower’s highest setting to avoid any risk of damaging the surface.

Trimming the edges will also ensure you have a lawn to be proud of in the summer months. Alternatively, garden lawn edging will cut down on maintenance and give it a clearly defined border. We can supply decorative kerb edging stones which are ideal for pathways and drives as well as garden borders.

Weeding and Scarifying

Clover, dandelions and buttercups and daisies all compete with grass for space to grow, and they usually survive close, regular mowing. Spring is a good time to get rid of these invasive plants. Smaller ones can be removed by hand, but you may need to use an appropriate weedkiller for the larger, more established varieties.

Moss is another of the gardener’s worst enemies, spoiling the look of the grass and inhibiting its growth. It thrives whenever the lawn is too wet or too dry, or because the underlying soil is too acidic. Applying a quality moss-killer, followed by some vigorous raking or scarifying, can both be done in the spring, provided there is a mix of sunshine and rain which will allow the lawn to recover.

Feeding Time

Spring is the best time of year to apply fertiliser to your lawn, as this will also stifle the growth of moss and weeds. It should be applied when the soil is moist, or when more rain is expected. You may need more than one application to improve any problem patches.

 Reseed…

If your grass has suffered badly over winter, then consider reseeding bare patches or even returfing your lawn. If you opt to reseed, then you should break up the surface with a fork and rake it to provide a fine surface. Sow the grass seed, then rake the earth again. Some gentle watering may be necessary if the weather is fine; and keep off the grass until it has established itself.

Top dressing can also improve the condition of the turf, especially if there are dry patches showing. At Madingley Mulch our friendly, knowledgeable staff will be able to advise you about which lawn dressing is best for your grass.

…or Returf?

If you decide to returf your lawn or any other area of the garden, then good preparation will be key in helping your new grass establish itself. The area should be weed-free, but it is a good idea to avoid using weedkillers as they could harm the future growth of the grass.

As with reseeding, the lawn will have a better chance of flourishing if people avoid walking on it and, depending on the weather, will probably need daily watering. Regular applications of fertiliser about a month after the turf has been laid should give you a lovely green surface.

At Madingley Mulch  we can supply good-quality, locally-grown turf and lawn top dressing supplies for collection and delivery in Cambridgeshire, Essex, and other East Anglian counties.

Our weekday delivery service is available on all orders to towns and villages throughout the region, including Haverhill, Saffron Walden, Cambourne and Newmarket. Delivery is free to all addresses within 15 miles of our base on the outskirts of Cambridge, while a standard £20 charge applies to all places within 24.5 miles. Orders can be delivered to addresses further away as well.

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