What to expect during the first season with lawn care?

Millions of homeowners dream about having the perfect lawn and being the envy of everyone in their neighborhood. After years of lawn maintenance, including regular mowing and a lot of work, some homeowners decide to spend a little more money and hire lawn care service phoenix az.

After explaining the benefits of regular maintenance, the sales representative signs the homeowner up for service. They can't wait to see the lush, weedless sea of green they have always longed for. It's not as easy as it seems. 

This blog will help homeowners anticipate the many differences in maintaining a treated lawn.

Start your Engines

The homeowner is often unaware of the rapid growth of turf after fertilization. A lawn that hasn't been fertilized can be mowed once a week or even every seven to ten days. Sometimes, it may need to be cut for as little as 14 days. To maintain a lawn at a reasonable height of 3 inches, fertilization must be applied weekly.

Extra cutting can cause more wear to the mower. Regular mower servicing is necessary. To ensure that your mower runs smoothly, we recommend sharpening your mower blades at least twice a season. 

Regular landscape services will be responsible for cutting the lawn more frequently than usual. You should consult cheap lawn maintenance near me about the possibility of additional costs associated with frequent visits to your property.

Not everything green is Grass

Many homeowners mistakenly believe that all weeds look like dandelions. They are large, broadleaf and produce huge flowers. The lawn will look much better once all the weeds have been removed. 

However, many weeds are low-lying and green, which may make flowers for a short time. The green ground cover is seen from afar by the Grass before service may have been caused by broadleaf weeds like clover, ground ivy and wild violet.

Broadleaf weed management makes a huge difference, but the absence of crabgrass during the summer is what homeowners aren't ready for. Many residential lawns can overrun crabgrass if it isn't controlled in the spring. 

Crabgrass, a grass-like summer annual that grows in the heat, is low-lying and grass-like. Lawns with a lot of crabgrass will require little maintenance. They need very little water to stay green and can be mowed down to 2 inches or less without any consequences. After your lawn care provider has removed crabgrass from the lawn, the only thing that will remain in the summer is the desired grasses. 

These grasses do not like heat and won't stay green unless adequately watered. Is this a requirement that the lawn is irrigated every summer? No. The expectation is that the property will look healthier with treatment. However, if the homeowner cannot properly water their lawn in the summer, it might not. Turf health should keep crabgrass away.

However, homeowners may find it frustrating to see crabgrass surrounding their properties. These lawns look nice from afar and do not require water to maintain color. The lawn will eventually appear thinner once crabgrass and other weeds have been controlled. The property may appear lighter because it might not have had enough desirable Grass to cover the ground. The lawn technician may recommend seeding the lawn to increase the lawn density.

This is again contrary to what most homeowners would expect. They have already bought an annual treatment package to improve the appearance of their lawn. 

Shouldn't fertilizer suffice to thicken the lawn? The fertilizer will make existing Grass thicker and greener but will not encourage new Grass to grow from the areas that were previously occupied. 

After weeds have been controlled, homeowners should not be surprised to learn that seeding might be required to create a thicker and better-quality lawn.

What is Core Aeration?

A lawn that is mostly Grass requires more care than one with weeds. Desirable grass species prefer well-drained soil that is oxygenated. This requires regular attention to soil compaction and control of the thatch layer. 

Thatch is a layer made up of decomposing organic material and living grass stems that form at the base of plants just above the soil surface. Fertilization stimulates the growth of these stems so that the thatch layer will grow much faster with treatment. 

The soil will not get oxygen or moisture if the thatch layer is too thick. It can also create a favorable environment for disease and other insects.

Central New Jersey also has soil that is very clay-rich and compacts easily. As fertilization increases, so does the rate of mowing. This causes compaction to occur even faster.

The lawn technician recommends Core aeration to prevent excess thatch accumulation and reduce soil compaction. Core aeration involves the mechanical lifting of soil and grass plugs to the turf's surface. 

Then, the lawn technician will allow them to resettle in the turf. As a maintenance procedure to prevent soil compaction and thatch growth, core aeration should be performed at least once a year. 

Core aeration may be required for lawns with densely compacted soil or turf species that produce excessive thatch.

Soil pH

Soil microbes can break down many fertilizers applied to residential lawns to release nutrients to plants. The soil pH must remain between 6.0 and 7.0, depending on the type of Grass. 

This process works very well. Lawn care companies regularly test the pH to ensure that fertilization is adequate. Lime will be recommended if the soil is becoming more acidic.