Lawn Care Tips

Being keen gardeners our lawn always gets a lot of use through the summer. Whenever friends visit, they inevitably ask if they can look at the garden often with a glass of wine, when the weather allows! Children are safe and happy to play whilst the adults relax and leave them to their own devices. This usually results in even more wear and tear, but is counteracted by the laughter and animation that friends bring.

This week I have been busy giving the lawn some beauty treatment that should pay off through the winter months and next spring! I started by removing excess moss with a spring tine rake – a physical job but very satisfying as the moss is ‘scarified’ to reveal the earth underneath. The next task was to spike the lawn all over to aerate the soil and help with areas where the drainage is not as good as it could be. A special machine that removes plugs of soil can be purchased for this, but I like to go over our smallish lawn with a garden fork and sink the tines right in at about 15cm (6 inch) intervals. A good wiggle of the handle then opens up the earth channels. Once I had completed these two jobs, I was ready for a cup of tea and one of Mrs McGregor’s scones and strawberry jam!

Then it was off to the local garden centre to buy some sharp sand that I could mix with sterilised topsoil, in equal quantities. This was scattered over the lawn and brushed into the holes. I will now wait for a few days before using the autumn lawn care product that I also purchased. This will strengthen the grass for winter, by feeding the roots and also kill anymore pesky moss that appears now that the days are shorter! With the rain that is forecast, it will mean that I will not need to worry about watering it in either!

We have an area of rough grass in dappled shade under trees that often looks a bit neglected – an ideal area to brighten up with some Daffodils in spring. I have chosen a mixed selection that will flower over several weeks and can be left to die back naturally after flowering before the grass is mown.  After gently throwing the bulbs down so that they landed at random, I used a bulb planter to remove plugs of earth and placed a bulb in the resulting hole – the correct way up of course! Then it was just a case of replacing the turf topped soil plug and gently treading it down, keeping the buried treasure safe until next spring. Planting at the correct depth of three times the depth of the bulb seems cruel but ensures that they will flower in subsequent years and not come up ‘blind’.

Hopefully these Daffodils will slowly multiply to give a much need boost to a quiet corner of the garden for many years to come.

Mr McGregor

Top Buys this Season

• Notcutts' Bulb Planter is currently half price at £1.99. 
• A wide selection of bulbs are in stock, including some special Buy One Get One Free offers
• Treat your lawn this Autumn with our lawn care range.