Takoma Park, Maryland
Getting Lawn Care in Takoma Park
Guarding the health of your lawn is an important part of taking care of your home. Not only can regular maintenance enhance curb appeal, it also protects the home's structure from experiencing water or pest damage. With trim grass, healthy soil, and neat edges, good lawn care can add value to your property and to the neighborhood.
Because new problems can arise every season, it's important to regularly practice lawn care. Finding help through professional lawn care in Takoma Park can be worth it, especially with the amount of tools and equipment required to keep lawns in spotless condition. This helps establish a new and revived appearance for your lawn, as well as more time to enjoy it throughout the year. Read on to learn more about common lawn care practices used by professionals and homeowners alike:
Mowing— Mowing at the incorrect height is one of the most common mistakes in lawn care. Some grass types require a different mowing schedule, depending on the season and climate. Mowing your grass too low can cause scalping, which destroys the roots and stems. To avoid lawn damage, grass should be cut to the appropriate height for the season.
Watering— Even though plants need plenty of water to grow, overwatering could limit grass growth. This may lead to lawns becoming exposed to weeds and diseases. Nevertheless, watering is essential, especially during seasons of drought. For the most part, lawns are best watered in a deep and infrequent cycle rather than a single flooding.
Fertilizing— Fertilizing your lawn is a major part of growing strong and healthy grass. There are some things to consider when fertilizing, such as the climate, grass type, and grade of fertilizer. Fertilizers can be organic or synthetic, composed of food compost or created with nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus nutrients. Despite popular belief, adding more fertilizer does not mean grass will grow faster. In fact, over-fertilizing should be avoided at all costs.
Aerating— Aeration may be commonly used on lawns with compacted soil, but even healthy ones can still benefit from having it done. In loosening the soil, more air can reach the roots of plants, in addition to more nutrients and water. If your lawn is in a region that experiences heavy rain or foot traffic on lawns, it's likely you will need to aerate the soil at some point.
More About Lawn Care in the Northeast
The Northeastern region of the U.S. is noted for its hot summers and snow-laden winters. Because of this, lawn care Takoma Park practices should coordinate with local climate patterns in order to ensure that lawns remain green and healthy year-round.
Common grass types in the Northeast include:
- Kentucky bluegrass
- Creeping red fescue
- Hard fescue
- Perennial ryegrass
- Tall fescue
Spring
Most lawns in the Northeast feature cool-season grass varieties that are more vibrant in the fall and winter than spring or summer.
To prevent it from dying in the off season, apply pre-emergent herbicides and grub control. Allow it to go dormant by watering and mowing only once a week.
Check the soil pH and add lime if it’s less than 6.0. Keep grass seed around to overseed areas that got damaged during the winter.
Summer
This is the off season for Northeastern lawns, so allow the grass to go dormant and set a regular irrigation schedule.
Avoid using herbicides at this point and focus on fertilizing and watering consistently, but minimally. You should not be cutting more than 1/3 of the grass blades at once.
Once the season starts to cool, add nitrogen-only fertilizer and water slightly to avoid damage from drought.
Fall
Fall is primetime for cool-season grass in the Northeast. Take advantage of the cooler temperatures to overseed, aerate, and dethatch.
You can fertilize easily with natural materials by raking up the fallen leaves and combining it with grass clippings to make compost.
Continue watering new plants and overseeded lawns until the temperature freezes the water. Then wait until it gets warmer before watering again. Mowing should also continue, but wind down towards the end of the season to make sure there is enough to sustain it during the winter.
Winter
Winters in the Northeast are prone to heavy snowstorms.
Mark off the edges of your lawn before the snow arrives so that you don’t accidentally plow the grass while removing snow. Likewise, refrain from walking on the lawn when it snows so that it doesn’t become damaged.
Take advantage of the downtime to service your lawn mower and think about the type of fertilizer you want to use for spring. Check the driver belt, spark plugs, oil and stabilizer tanks and make repairs so that it’s ready to go once the temperature warms up.
Hire Professional Lawn Care Now!
Doing lawn care on your own can be rewarding, but it also involves a lot of work. Lawn can be time consuming, especially on top of other household priorities. This could lead to lawn deterioration, a drop in property value, and overall disrepair.
Avoid this by seeking help from a Takoma Park lawn care expert. Allowing a professional lawn care company to take care of your lawn can help save valuable time and money spent on lawn care. You'll also save on costly damages by preventing them early on. What are you waiting for? Contact a Takoma Park lawn care company today and get started on a healthy, green lawn now!
