Best way to get a thick, even lawn?

Hannah
by Hannah
  2 answers
  • Kne17719133 Kne17719133 on Apr 19, 2017

    Set your mower to 3 inches to 3 1/2 inches. You may have to mow more often in the spring, but once w get into summer, you'll have the best looking grass. Another thing to do along with this, don't pick up your grass clipping and use mulching blades. Keep your blades sharp is another good thing to do. Fertilizer when needed and follow their instructions on the bag.

  • Rozmund Rozmund on Apr 20, 2017

    water...to Hand cast Epsom Salt Crystals over your lawn just before a rain...the green will deepen, the grass will thicken, the roots will strengthen and be better able to withstand the constant nibbling of micro sized critters in the soil we can't even see...if in doubt, try it on a 4 x 4 spot first...the other thing that could be helpful is mix your seed up for your zone and location..i.e. sun, semi sun..that way there is always something coming up as they do have different growth cycles..ALSO, I also advocate cutting low in the Spring..BUT, WHEN YOU SEE THE GRASS STARTING TO SEED UP....let it do it's thing..let it go to seed...these are the same valuable seeds you just paid a fortune to acquire...nature knows best..when that happens, don't bag your clippings, don't mulch, just cut...high...give your self at least 3 high cuts...a week apart..no need to water...just leave the seeds to fall down in between the existing blades of grass to rest and fully mature...I am guessing all of this will be happening in August..then water in well, if rains not coming...then continue cutting as normal, perhaps just set at mid height..because now the roots must go into storage mode...as above, so below....short blades, short roots...okay for a few months, but roots need to go deep to survive the winter - so whenever Fall arrives in your area, that is your target date...cut fairly high until then, often but high....then just before an expected deep frost is scheduled..give it one really good scalping with the bag on.....no bag....then mulch...but I prefer the bag as it scoops up weed seeds that have blown in from the area....I save my bagged clippings in a black plastic garbage bag - toss in a third of a cup of fertilizer any old thing you have hanging around. and a shovel of soil....this heats up the cuttings and encourages them to break down..in the Spring you will have either actual soil, all ready for your vegetable or flower beds, or a great head start..okay, all this fiddling around is just for one season...next spring, continue with your lawn life as usual - you will be amazed...this is a bit of work, but it is a long time fix..another tip...despite what is touted..your lawn does not need forced growth which is what adding fertilizer is all about...beating out the neighbours..nature knows best..for the health of the lawn...this may be hard to believe..but in 30 years I only fertilized once..the year I started my lawn..that was in really poor shape..our property was hilly, so water run off was a problem,,,,where the water ran off we had to amend the soil with organic compost...where the water collected we introduced small stones ... I followed the advice above ...only once did I have to spot recede because the neighbour hired a weed killing company, and the drift from their liquid application killed off parts of my lawn when it was in the seed growth stage..the neighbours were amazed..I did not spend any money on outside companies..and never had grubs that were damaged..of course I probably had them, I don't know..but when the grackles came swarming onto the lawn in the spring...I did not scare them away, as so many do...I let them eat their fill of the emerging grub larvae ... so they had grubs that turned in lawn root eaters..their lawns turned brown because the grubs live off the roots..then they became desperate and fertilized..further killing off what was left..they blamed the fertilizer which did not do the killing..then they called for professional help and was told they had grubs..so in comes the poison guys..killed off the grubs...the lawn did come back..slowly...but here is the thing..they had to do this every year...this always amazed me...I never had to do..I just let nature do it..I kept out an eye mind you...if there was a brown spot developing in the sod, if it reached a foot in diameter I gently turned it over..if I saw grubs, I picked them out myself...replaced the sod piece...if there are skunks in your area they are on the prowl for grubs..so watch for symptoms of grubs in your lawn...all of this is for a zones 2-5...good luck..and if your question was not directly answered perhaps this lengthy explanation will service someone else...it worked for me for 30 years...now I have a new property...and have been doing the same natural thing for the last 5 years..but the soil in this new property is dreadful...very very sandy...I have been amending with horse manure, skim milk powder for calcium, epsom salts for minerals, and not watering deep but misting after the morning dew had dried off..being a resale I have no idea what kind of grass seed has been applied by the former owners...I like clover as it produces it's own nitrogen in the rooted area which the grass feeder roots take advantage of..so I am introducing a low growing dutch clover - plus a little grass seed that is happy with full sun, and little water..my experiment..so will see what happens...I do these methods not because I am cheap..but because nature's way is best...if you have a lawn that only survives on "drugs"..."fertilizer"...what happens to it when these are no longer available or priced out of sight...that is my humble mindset anyway...