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19th August 2010
At last! The hose pipe ban has been lifted.
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10th August 2010
Its been quite wet over the last couple of weeks. Dont be tempted to let your lawn grow too long. Keep on top of your mowing - still once a week at the moment!
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19th June 2010
Its HOT HOT HOT! Keep new turf watered!!! (twice a day please!)
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9th June 2010
We have seen some reasonable showers over the last few days, so now is an ideal time to feed your lawn. A good quality spring / summer feed should be used. If your lawn is looking a little rough around the edges after the dry spell try lightly raking the lawn before you mow it. This will help the lawn recover and it will also help control any weeds. Speaking of weeds, now is a good time to treat the lawn for weeds. June can often be a hot and dry month but its looking cool for the next couple of weeks so take advantage. We are expecting it to warm up again towards the end of the month.
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25th May 2010
Its been a busy few weeks for us, so our usual update is a little late.
Your lawn will be in full swing now, so make sure you keep on top of the mowing. If you dont already have the lawn down to your desired summer height then now is the time to do it as the cool spell we are about to have is the best time to reduce the lawn height. Remember, dont remove more than 30% of the blade in each mow, so if needed cut the lawn - wait a few days - then cut again.
Mowing should be weekly now. Those of you with petrol mowers may well need to start thinking about getting your blade sharpened in the next month or so, as it will be starting to dull down now and this can allow disease into your lawn.
The weather has been very nice for the last week or so, but the cool spell over the next few days makes this an ideal time to apply fertiliser to your lawn. As mentioned on our last update - our 9-7-7 product is ideal. We may see a fair bit of rain over the next couple of weeks, and this will allow the fertiliser to do its job nicely.
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5th May 2010
So far May has been fairly kind to us. Mostly dry and cool – which is great conditions for laying turf. May can sometimes be a difficult month, as many people are playing catch up trying to lay lawns in warm dry conditions and it can present lots of problems.
The good news, we expect the current cool and cloudy conditions to continue well into may. We don’t foresee any change in wind direction for the next week, maybe even 2 weeks. We may start to drag a bit more air off the near continent, so those of you in the south may see things warm up a little – but nothing to write home about. As such, this extends the turfing season nicely, so if you are still thinking about laying some turf, or even seeding – now is the time to do it.
We have seen a big increase in Dandelions (Taraxacum Officinale) this year. Mostly due to the weather over the last few months. Even pristine lawns are being affected. The solution is a fairly simple one – gently dig around the weed base and expose the roots. Try and remove all the roots in one piece and remove the entire weed. The resulting hole will need to be filled with soil and then some seed applied.
Again, if you are thinking over seeding your lawn its best to remove any weeds first. Dont be tempted to mow them out as your problem will re-occur.
Last month I mentioned fertiliser. As we get into May its always a good idea to add some nitrogen heavy fertiliser to your lawn. The spring summer 9-7-7 is ideal, and we sell this in 25kg bags. You can apply this at a rate of 70 to 80g per square meter. Always apply before rain, or just before you plan to water your lawn – to prevent any damage. Monitor the granules carefully and if they have not dissolved within 24 hours continue to water until dissolved.
This process can be done once every 8 to 12 weeks until late August.
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15th April 2010
Our website will be down for 48 hours from today whilst we make some changes.
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13th April 2010
A nice cool but dry week this week. Take advantage of this and get a couple of mows in over the next 7 days or so. We are keeping a close eye on a weather system that might bring some rather cold and stormy weather to the UK towards the end of the month. We will update you when we get more detailed forecasts.
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8th April 2010
April is here at last so it's time to start getting your lawn ready for summer....
Growth should be fairly strong now, so mowing should be weekly.
Start by mowing fairly long (35mm on utility lawns) and then slowly reduce down to your desired mow height by the end of April. (25-30mm on utility lawns).
You may need to over seed the lawn - this is by far the best chance to get this done before the summer.
See our seeding guide below for information.
It's also advisable to start feeding your lawn with our Spring and Summer fertiliser. You can buy this on our website in the Fertiliser and Feed section. Make sure you clear any weeds or moss off the lawn if you have any. Again over seed if needed.
Looking like a dry couple of weeks ahead for most - so take advantage of this cool dry spell.
Don't forget to make sure your mower blade is sharp! If it's not then make sure you get this done as soon as you can.
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22nd March 2010
So, over seeding - what's that all about then you might ask?
Well, it's quite an important task when it comes to lawn maintenance.
It's most often done in spring and autumn. Due to the rather cold winter we have had this year we are advising everyone over seeds their lawn this spring.
Over seeding not only improves the look of your lawn, but it promotes new growth and helps fight off disease and means your lawn will stay healthier for longer.
The average 50m2 lawn will require 2kg of grass seed. See our grass seed section for a wide variety of grass seed. We also strongly advise you purchase pre-seeding fertiliser which can be found in the feed and fertiliser section.
How to over seed your lawn in the spring (mid March to late April):
The first step is to mow your lawn. We would advise that you mow your lawn before you start any work. This makes the whole job a little easier and will ensure you don't have to mow the new seedlings too early. You need to set the mower a little lower than normal too, reduce the clip height by about 5mm.
Next, rake over the area with a wire or spring rake. Ensure this is done thoroughly to remove any dead grass from the existing lawn. Significant quantities of dead grass and thatch may be produced in spring or autumn so it is very important you carry out this step as your new lawn seed will replace this material.
Next we would strongly advise that you apply some pre-seeding fertiliser. This is available in our online store along with application rates.
The above steps can be done a day or two before the actual seeding, so if you are unsure of the weather you can always prepare the ground first and then seed the area the following day.
Apply the seed at the recommended rate. If it's a normal sized lawn you are best to mark out the area into metre squares by using some string and apply a measured amount into each area.
Apply each area using careful movements.
We suggest you divide the seed into 4 parts.
Then apply in the following manner
¼ seed in north to south motion
¼ seed in east to west motion
¼ seed in south to north motion
¼ seed in west to east motion
This will ensure the seed is spread evenly.
The amount will depend on the type and species of the seed in the grass seed mixture. All our seed rates are on our website.
This process may take quite a bit of time, but it will give the best results. Alternatively you can use a seed spreader to spread the seed at the desired rate. This works a lot quicker than the manual method but you still need to ensure even coverage by working opposite directions.
With the seed applied lightly rake the lawns surface. A top tip here is to turn your spring rake over and use the back of the rake. This prevents lifting the already raked surface further but will move the grass seed down into the soil. If you have a roller, you can use this also.
Next water the area with a fine spray on a watering can or hose.
At this stage the key is to keep the area and the seed moist for 14 days not allowing it to dry out. This means spraying the area with water up to 3 times a day, depending on climatic conditions.
We would advise that you do not walk on the seeded area for 10 days.
Once the seed has germinated and reached 30mm high it should be rolled or lightly walked on during a dry day.
This action deliberately causes minor damage to the lawn, but it encourages the new seedlings to regenerate and will result in a stronger lawn and a more consistent result.
When the grass reaches 40mm high its time to cut it with a rotary mower or flymo.
The blade MUST be sharp. Set the mover to remove the tops of the swords, removing no more than 1/3 of the total sword with each mowing session.
After 6 to 8 weeks we would advise a half dose of spring / summer fertiliser is applied to the lawn. This can be repeated after another month to 2 months.
Continue mowing and enjoy your new improved lawn!
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20th March 2010
Today is the Vernal Equinox! Which, in broad terms, means it's the start of spring. The clocks might not go forward for another week, but spring is here.
If you don't know, an equinox only happens twice a year. It's when day and night last the exact same length of time and it's most often seen as the transition from summer to winter and from winter to spring. (There are much more technical explanations, and I am sure I will get e-mails pointing out day and night will not be the same length! But for our purposes, it's the simplest explanation!)
You may wonder why this is important for gardens? In fact it's very important, as it will start the spring growth period. Many plants and animals rely on this event to trigger certain cycles. As such this day is very important in many countries all around the world, and some cultures treat the spring equinox as "new year's day" and it's still a public holiday in many countries around the world. In the UK it's mostly ignored, but we can now look forward to spring!
So what does this mean for us? Well, as the earth's tilt brings us round closer to the sun we will get a lot of growth over the next 4 to 6 weeks as the days become longer and the temperature increases. If you have not already had to mow your lawn, you will defiantly need to over the next week or so.
If you are thinking about over seeding and existing lawn, or seeding a new one then now is the time to act. Prepare the ground over the next week or so with a good quality top soil and then sow the lawn when there is a reasonable rainfall expected. I will be posting a guide on how to seed a lawn very soon.
We are keeping a very close eye on the weather in the pacific, as this can have a very strong effect on our spring weather. At the moment there is a strong El Nino in place, which means we may well see a very warm dry April.. but this is by no means guaranteed so I will keep you updated on this.
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15th March 2010
Later this week I will be posting my "Grass 101" which will give you quite a bit of detail about lawns and I will also be posting a guide on how to over seed your lawn.
In the mean time, looking like a mixed week weather wise, showers and sunshine. If you have time it might be worth giving your lawn a very light mow before Thursday as we are starting to see a small amount of growth now and we are expecting some rather heavy showers on Friday over most of the UK. Don't forget - don't remove more than one third of the grass blades when mowing to prevent damaging the sword. We would advise that first mow only takes off 10% of the sword.
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8th March 2010
Weather wise its looking like we will see quite a bit more cloud this week, which is not a bad thing as it should mean slightly warmer nights, which in turn will end the run of frost we have seen last week.
Looking a bit further forward we might see highs of 9c or 10c in the south towards the end of next week. A promising start to summer.....
In terms of lawns, we have not really seen any significant growth yet but its not far off now.
Anyone thinking about laying a new lawn, now is the time to start planning your lawn as we move into the end of March.
Now is also a good time to get some compost into your borders, and start to prepare any raised beds for home grow.
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1st March 2010
Welcome to our new website!
In the past we have updated this area once a month to help customers maintain their lawns and gardens.
This year we are going to take a slightly different approach and this area will be updated every few weeks, or if something occurs (i.e snow!) where we feel it's worth advising customers to take action.
As such we would suggest all customers pop into this area every couple of weeks. We spend quite a considerable amount of time looking at weather and climate information and we will summarise this in conjunction with regular lawn care information that corresponds to the current conditions.
For our first update we have just come out of probably one of the worst cold snaps in recent times, including some fairly serious snow fall events in January.
Unfortunately this has lead to quite a large outbreak of Snow Mould. This is quite rare for the UK, because we don't often get prolonged periods of snow! The mould develops when snow lies on lawns for a long period of time, preventing air flow reaching the lawn surface which in turn allows the fungus to develop.
We won't go into detail now about how to prevent this happening (as we already did this last October) but we will go over it again towards the start of this coming winter.
If you have got this problem, then we advise that you contact a company such as Green Thumb who will be able to treat the lawn with a fungicide which will stop it spreading. The lawn will then start to recover over the next 2 months. You may need to over seed the lawn, which we would advise you carry out in late March or early April. We will cover this in our next update.
Looking forward to the next couple of weeks, we are expecting to see the average day time temperature climb to 6 or 7c. This is the start of the growing season, and we will start to see some activity on your lawn. As such this is your last chance to make sure that mower is in good condition. If you have not yet had the blade sharpened then this is your last chance before the action starts!
If you have a petrol mower we would advise that you start it up at your next opportunity and make sure it is all running as it should be. (As always consult a professional if necessary).
Make sure your lawn is clear of any debris by using a spring rake and enjoy your last few weeks of relaxation before the hard work starts! The spring Equinox is on the 20th March, so expect to see a few changes in your lawn and garden after this date.
If you are unsure about anything posted on this page please seek the advice of a professional. All advice contained on this page is for information purposes only and form no professional guidance and does not confer a warranty of any kind.