MARK CULLEN: Summer Lawn Care Tips

By Mark Cullen

It's just about that time of year when your lawn begins to look a bit shop-worn.  The tremendous burst of green growth that occurred early in spring is waning and soon ‘the bloom is off the rose’ to use a metaphor from another part of the garden.

Lawns are more than a living green groundcover.  There are substantial benefits that we enjoy from lawns:

• A well tended lawn can increase the value of a property by up to 15 per cent, improving curb appeal.

• Turf serves as a natural air conditioner.  On a hot day, compare the difference between standing on pavement and standing on turf.  10 to 15 degrees Celsius.  I rest my case on that one.

• Turf traps dust, smoke particles and air born toxins from the air and acts as a filter for the air we breathe.

• Grass offers a very efficient and inexpensive control function.  Turf intercepts rain and filters it through the soil, promoting water ‘percolation’ rather than runoff.  Urban streams and drainage infrastructure would be absolutely overwhelmed if not for turf’s water-retention capabilities.

• Grass plants capture and use greenhouse gases, thereby counteracting climate change.  Turf also traps air pollution and generates much of the oxygen we breathe.  A 50’x 50’ lawn produces enough oxygen for a family of four to breathe for one year.

(Source: Canadian Landscape Trades Magazine)

Here is my suggestion: take a good look at your lawn care supplies.  At this point in the season your ‘lawn care inventory’ could include any of the following:

- A bag of the best lawn seed in the business.  Weeds?  Compete them out of existence by spreading good quality grass seed over the areas that are thin.  I use Golfgreen grass seed because it is virtually weed free, contains excellent quality grass seed varieties and is produced here in Canada.

- Several bags of triple mix.  You cannot just spread grass seed over your lawn and expect it to grow new grass plants.  It has to have somewhere to put down some new roots.  That is where triple mix comes in – it is a combination of equal parts top soil, compost and peat moss.  Together, these ingredients provide a quality base for your new lawn or the thickening of an old one.

- Fertilizer. O.k., so you fertilized the lawn early in the spring.  If you used a good quality brand like Golfgreen I advise that you re-apply after 8 or 10 weeks.  Why?  Fertilize in summer to thicken up the lawn and to keep it healthy.  A healthy lawn is more resistant to disease and insect problems.  If concern about the environment is an issue, the new formula of Golfgreen is phosphate free.  Slow release nitrogen, found in good quality lawn fertilizers, only releases as the temperature rises, rain falls and microbial activity takes place in the soil. In other words: only when the lawn needs it.

Mark Cullen appears on Canada AM every Wednesday morning at 8:40.  He is spokesperson for Home Hardware Lawn and Garden.  Sign up for his free monthly newsletter at www.markcullen.com.