Good soil is essential to a healthy lawn. This is one of the most important element for lawn care. Once grass is established, you can aerate and fertilize it, but actual soil base can’t be reworked. If you carefully prepare the soil layer in the beginning, your lawn can start with a good foundation.

Soils come in two basic types: Clay or Sandy. Heavy Soil, called clay or adobe, is easy to recognize but difficult to work with. If you squeeze a handful together, you’ll get a gummy plastic mass that won’t break apart even if you tap it with a shovel. Though clay soil is often rich in nutrients, it contains very little space for air, grass roots may refuse to grow because there is no sufficient supply of oxygen and often they drown because of poor drainage. Clay soils do have an advantage: slow drainage through tiny,compacted particles prevents nutrients from leaching out.

On the other hand, Sandy soil has huge particles that allow good aeration, quick passage of water, and rapid temperature change. Sandy soil provides plenty of air for plant roots, and the roots can spread easily, but here’s the rub: Water will pour right through the soil, taking with it any plant nutrients you’ve applied.

Here are the tips for proper aeration best for your lawn:

* If it is possible, use a coring aerator as opposed to a spike aerator. Spike aerators just further compact the soil while making a hole.

* Water your lawn heavily, up to an inch, the day before you plan on aerating. The soil should be soft and moist when aerating but not muddy.

* Be careful of shallow sprinkler lines getting punctured by the aerator.

* Aerate during spring or fall or also during late summer

* Aerate only twice a year in arid or dry climate.

* Don’t waste your time or money with shoe aerators.

* After core aeration, leave the plugs on the grass and allow them to dry out, then rake the plugs into the grass if you like. If not, don’t worry they will break up after the first mowing and help to breakdown thatch by providing micro organisms that will feed on thatch.

For us who always love to plant on our garden and is experiencing some problems on how to get away with those bugs, here are some great tips..For each kind of bug that can cause damage to your plants, you can plant certain plants that could be very helpful to your other plants to keep away from those bugs that might put your garden or lawns in danger..

Aphids - The small whitish bugs that love rose bushes and other flowers. Plant Chives, Nasturtium, Basil, or Catnip nearby to fight aphids.

Japanese Beetles - Plant Geraniums or Garlic to keep them away.

Mosquitoes - Plant Rosemary or Basil to keep mosquitoes away.

Tomato Horn worm - Plant Borage near your tomato plants to keep them away.

Flea Beetles and Potato Beetles - Plant Catnip nearby to keep them away.

Ants - Plant Spearmint or Peppermint to keep ants away. It can be planted near your house to naturally deter ants from your house.

You can escape these bugs in your gardens and lawns..with those suggested plants that could help you take good care of your plants. Feverfew and Marigolds repel many different kinds of insects and are a useful addition to flower and vegetable gardens.

While a lush green lawn typifies the suburban ideal, the time and money not to mention the ecological cost of maintaining a lawn has led many homeowners to replace at least part of their lawn with other forms of landscaping, which can be just as beautiful.

While you may be decreasing the size of your lawn, in this case less is more more colors and textures, more areas for recreation and entertaining, and more wildlife habitat.

- Plant a hedge. The least-used parts of your lawn are most likely on the edge of your property. Create privacy and visual interest by planting a “tapestry hedge” with mixed shrubs.
- Build a pond, patio, or island bed in the center of your lawn. Create a visual focal point, a place for entertaining, or a habitat for attracting wildlife.
- Create a tree island. If you have one or more trees in the middle of your yard, chances are the grass that grows underneath isn’t that healthy. Why not plant ground cover, perennials, or woodland plants under your tree instead.
- Devote part of your yard to wildflowers, drought-tolerant grasses, and other native plantings. Practice xeriscaping using plants to replace part of your water-hungry lawn.
- Plant a ground cover to replace some of your lawn. Ground covers are great on slopes, in shaded areas under trees, and in the front yard where a lawn is less apt to be used for recreational purposes.

1. AERATION- Loosening the soil so that water, air and nutrients reach the root zone quicker. Aeration enhances the effectiveness of the products applied to your lawn. By loosening the soil, items needed by the roots (air, water & nutrients), are more available. Therefore, when fertilizer is applied, it is used more effectively by the grass plants.

Core aeration is accomplished by running a machine over the lawn. The machine pulls up plugs of soil, about the size of your finger, and leaves them on the ground. It takes a couple of weeks for the plugs to break up and blend back into the lawn. Liquid aeration provides the same great results as core aeration but is much easier to do. It also is cheaper, and cleaner.

2. MOWING - In general, keep fescue, rye and bluegrass mowed at a minimum of three inches. Zoysia and bermuda grasses can be mowed shorter. Mowing at the proper height will strengthen the grass plant and inhibit the growth of unwanted weeds. As a matter fact, studies have shown that simply mowing at the correct height will eliminate crabgrass over time. The shorter the grass is cut, the shorter the roots will be. Mowing high causes the grass to shade the weeds, so they cannot grow. Mowing high also makes the grass stronger, as more grass is using the sun to make it grow. Always keep your mower blade SHARP! Sharpen the blade after 8-10 hours of use. Grass clippings are a good source of nitrogen for your lawn. It is recommended that you not bag your grass clippings. Let those clipping fall to the ground and breakdown, thus returning nutrients to the soil.

The frequency of mowing should be such that you cut 1/3 of the grass stem off each time. Removing more than 1/3 of the grass stem at a time will damage the plant. This means that you should mow your grass at or before it reaches 4-1/2 inches. During periods of drought it is advised that you mow even higher, at 4” or more. It also advised that you mow higher in areas that are heavily shaded.

3. PROPER WATERING - Proper watering encourages grass growth and deters weed growth. Watering too frequently will actually discourage grass growth, as the roots are not required to go deep to find their water source. Weed roots are much shorter than grass roots, so watering less frequently will cause the weed roots to die, while the longer grass roots will be seeking deeper water. The grass will tell you when to water, usually once a week. The grass blades will begin to curl when they need water. They will curl before they turn brown. Another way to tell is to walk across your grass and take a look where you walked.

If your footprints remain, the grass needs some water. If your footprints disappear, the grass is fine.
You should water all areas of your lawn with an inch of water. Simply set a cup in the watered area and keep an eye on the water level in the cup. When it reaches an inch, stop. To conserve water, water right after it rains. You will need to know how much rain fell, then “top it off” until you have an inch.

4. WEEDS & TRIMMING -Have you ever given any thought as to why weeds tend to grow next to the fence, or the driveway, or around the planted areas? The answer is probably that these are the areas you are using the trimmer in. If you are mowing your lawn at the proper height, usually 3 inches, chances are the middle of your lawn looks nice. The problem areas tend to be the edges of the lawn, where the trimmer is used.

Weeds love to be cut short, and it is difficult to maintain a consistently high cut when using a trimmer. Besides the fact that weeds thrive when cut short, they also thrive in these closely cut areas because the grass is cut too short to shade the growth of the weeds. So, take a little extra time when trimming to keep the trimmer up in the air, instead of letting it touch the ground.

5. SHADED AREAS -Shaded areas of your lawn are probably the most difficult area to have a healthy lawn in.

Below are suggestions for dealing with the shade.

- The amount of sunlight can be increased by trimming the lower branches, and thinning higher branches of trees.
- You can trim shrubs to allow more air movement. To further reduce stress on grass in shaded areas, you may choose to mow this area 1/2 to 1 inch higher.
- Increased fertilizer will also help.
- If you plan to seed a shady area, be sure to use seed which is shade tolerant.

6. SEED & SEEDING -Unless you have a specific preference for a particular variety of grass, I suggest you use a mix of grass seed. Using a mix will help you obtain a uniformly green lawn, as different varieties of grass green up at different times, and some do better in different areas of your lawn than others. So, using a mix, will keep the entire lawn looking nice. Using a mixture of fescue, bluegrass, and perennial ryegrass. The key to choosing seed is to make sure the seed is high quality and contains very few weed seeds. All seed bags have a label which will list the content varieties of the seed, and the percentage of weed seed included. To determine if you need to seed and how extensive the seeding needs to be, you will need to take a close look at your lawn. Basically, if you do not have much grass, you need to do extensive seeding and work the seed into the soil. If you have a pretty good stand of grass, you can simply sow the seed and leave it alone. If you are pleased with the thickness of your lawn, you can probably skip seeding, and only do it every other year.

In this video, Learn how to edge your front yard using either an electric edger or a hoe.

“Weed control is more than making a pretty yard. Weeds compete with grasses for water and nutrients,” says Walheim. “A well-cared-for, vigorous lawn will resist weed invasions.”

Below are the five steps to keep your yard in top shape for weed resistance:

1. Mow high – Mow the upper end portion of the required height for the type of your grass encourages deeper roots and better heat as well as drought tolerance because the grass helps shade the soil to reduce evaporation and it maximize the soil moisture content. With this, the need for frequent water could be minimize. Mower should be set at 11/2 inches high for common Bermuda; 1 inch high for hybrid Bermuda; 3 inches high for tall fescue; 21/2 inches for Kentucky bluegrass; and 21/2 to 3 inches for St. Augustine.

2. Water properly – Water the soil thoroughly down to its depth of 6 – 8 inches to prevent shallow root system, It is important to wet the soil properly so they could absorb the water very well. To check for its thorough absorption of water, insert a rod or screwdriver into the soil; it will stop when it reaches dry dirt.

3. Fertilize at the right time of year - This is one of the most important step. This depends on the type of grass. Fall or spring for cool-season lawns and late spring and early summer for warm-season lawns. But be aware of the insects that might ruin your grass like grubs that eat grass roots.

4. Aerate and dethatch - Remove small cores of soil as it is necessary for better water and penetration of nutrients.

5. Kill weeds – Buy such product that would be best for your lawn and try to know what kind of weeds you have in your lawn so you could have the right protection for your lawn against weeds. And learn to follow instructions properly.

Source: Lawn Care