There are a lot of elements to proper lawn maintenance in Calgary not just mowing the grass every week or so. Here are some:
Fertilization
Like all living things, turf needs nutrition. One way to ensure healthy grass is to be sure it gets fertilized correctly. A fast release fertilizer is a quick shot of food. It will give the lawn a good growth spurt but will not do much for the root system. Slow release will give the grass ongoing, though declining fertilizing. It is also important that you apply the fertilizer in the correct proportion. Too much or too soon will cause your grass to “burn” or be damaged to the roots. It is a good idea to feed the lawn at least in the spring and in the fall. Slow release in the autumn means the grass crowns will have something to rely on during the long winter months.
Weeds
Just because they are green, doesn’t mean they are good. To start with, a healthy lawn is more resistant to weed infestation. The unwanted plants just won’t be able to compete with the strong turf.
Pre-emergent – In the early spring, it is a good idea to apply a pre-emergent. This is a product that will help prevent new weeds from your lawn. It will not do anything for those weeds that have already seeded in your lawn but will prevent new ones from sprouting. Be sure to choose a product that will last the entire season.
Herbicides – This is a product that can be used to kill those weeds that have popped up. It is important that you only kill the weeds and not the entire lawn, or you will have a huge problem. A good method is to walk around with a five-gallon sprayer and just hit the surface of the leaves of the offending plant. Be sure that your product has a spreader sticker in the mix. That will keep the herbicide on the leaf so that it can kill the plant rather than letting the liquid just run off.
Natural death – Like most plants, weeds will only have a limited life span. The concern of letting them just exist and then die is that they will propagate themselves during the span. That means you will have more weeds of that type next season.
Disease and Insects
Most lawns are disease free. If there is a problem it is usually a fungus caused by watering issues. It should be rare that a lawn would need to be treated for disease.
Insects, however, are probably pretty plentiful. Back to the premise that a healthy lawn that is properly maintained can withstand a few insects. In fact, most turfs can handle bugs. The problem with using an insecticide is that it will destroy the beneficial insects along with the destructive ones. That includes pollinators like bees and even flies. The use of pesticides is greatly discouraged.
If you would like help with your annual lawn maintenance, Project Landscape is ready to help. Just give us a call and we will be happy to see what we can do to help you.