3 Common Mistakes You Don’t Want To Make With Your Saanich Lawn

3 Common Lawn Care MistakesIt’s Not Easy Having a Beautiful Lawn or Everyone Would Have One!
Here are 3 common mistakes home and property owners make with their lawn.

Having a beautiful lawn isn’t easy.  It takes a lot of work and it starts with the initial prep that went into your property before planting seed or rolling out sod.

#1. Lack Of Irrigation

A vibrant and lush green lawn takes a proper watering regime.  Ideally you have an underground sprinkler or irrigation system installed as this is generally the easiest way to keep your lawn from getting to thirsty and dry.  For small lawns you might be able to get away with a sprinkler attached to a hose but you need to make sure the entire lawn is getting watered, usually morning and night for short durations.

Note:  While your lawn needs to be watered frequently it can also get too much water, which will starve the roots of oxygen and kill your grass.  If your water is pooling up and submerging the grass during a watering you’re giving it too much.

#2. Wrong Type Of Grass

There are many different species of grass and they all have their own growing characteristics which include preferred climates and soils.  It’s not OK to just run out and buy any type of grass seed and expect to get beautiful results.  Unless you have a green thumb it’s best to have a professional lawn care and landscape professional come and take a look at your yard and determine your soil composition.  But for the sake of this article, here are the 3 most commonly found types of grass when you buy seed.

  1. Kentucky Bluegrass (thick blades, great deep color)
  2. Perennial Rye (very good all around, durable grass)
  3. Fescues (extremely thin bladed, likes shadier areas)

The weather we get on the Saanich Peninsula and the rest of the Island can often be very wet, for this reason Perennial Rye is a very good choice for your lawn.  Perennial Rye is durable, has good-sized blades and will have that beautiful, vibrant green color most people want in their lawn.  You’ll find Perennial Rye in soccer fields, rugby fields, baseball diamonds and public parks where it’s durability makes it an easy choice.

#3. Wrong Type Of Soil

If you’re starting out with the wrong type of soil and base for your lawn then you’re going to fail each and every time… It’s really that simple!  Your soil is the growing medium, it must be the right composition to allow your grass roots to breath, while holding moisture and encouraging in the uptake of nutrients from the soil (this is determined by your soil PH).

For a healthy happy lawn the soil should be made up of a mixture of sand, silt and clay.  This is called “loam soil” (not to be confused with topsoil).  Loam soil helps retain moisture even though it drains well.  Because of the sandy composition it makes it easier for the roots to breath too even after heavy watering.

Don’t worry if your soil isn’t right on your property.  Your unproductive soil can be removed and hauled away as fill and then replaced with the proper base of loam soil.  Starting with the right type of soil to begin with is the best way to get a beautiful lawn.

 

 

Who Specializes in Lawn Care and Maintenance on The Saanich Peninsula?

Island Pro Mowing and Landscaping Inc. is a full service lawn care and lawn maintenance company based on the Saanich Peninsula.  We specialize in the care and maintenance of lawns for homeowners, residential developments such as condos and townhomes and commercial clients.

From restoring your lawn to the regular mowing, edging and fertilization the team at Island Pro Mowing and Landscaping can ensure your lawn always looks great.