Add Photo to Journal

Photo Credit: ©2000 Dolezal Publishing/John M. Rickard

A restored lawn can return to its original vigor through simple, but regular, maintenance. Like all plant roots, grass roots require adequate moisture, air and nutrients.

Regular dethatching, aerating, topcoating and amending will keep your lawn healthy and looking neat. But if you’ve had to deal with any problems like broadleaf weeds, grassy weeds or disease, your grass could probably use a little extra TLC. The good news is it’s not hard to get your lawn back into bragging-rights condition – you just have to get to the root of the issue.

In fact, a healthy, thriving root zone is the very base of a lush lawn, and that means clearing away all impediments to your turf’s roots so they can get all the moisture, air and nutrients they need to flourish. These maintenance practices are essential to turfgrass renewal, and you should perform them every year or two to maintain your lawn’s overall health and vibrancy.

First comes dethatching, an annual or semiannual process that requires specialized equipment to treat and restore your lawn. While some thatch is normal, too much blocks out the roots from moisture and nutrients. So you’ll have to remove the fibrous, straw-like, matted, undecomposed grassy material gathered around the grass stems.

Hand in hand with dethatching is the occasional need for soil aeration. This process uses special equipment to make holes in the turf and underlying soil to loosen the compacted earth and improve the flow of oxygen to the turfgrass’ root zone.

There’s also a lot of value to topcoating and amending your soil right through the surface of your existing lawn, adding nutrients to the root zone by way of the aeration holes. And for those areas that fall victim to the occasional neglect, you need to fertilize or possibly revitalize and reseed the soil.

With the right care – and a sharp eye out for any problems that can arise – your lawn can be back to its beautiful self in no time. In fact, you’ll be amazed at the quality and vigor of your lawn that comes with some general TLC – which will only add to the quality time you and your family spend enjoying it.