Posts Tagged ‘lawn’ < back
24th Apr:
It seems strange that in the middle of this incessant rain I am sat here writing a blog about what we can and can’t do with hoses over the next few months! On April 4th having taken a huge gamble, we finished laying 480m² of turf in one garden. Since then I don’t think it has stopped raining which is great for that lawn and the reservoirs but frustrating for all our other jobs.
I have been asked many times over the last couple of weeks what the general public are allowed to do in the garden so hopefully below are a few helpful guidelines.
- No hoses are allowed to water lawns or plants. However you can fill watering cans and water any lawns or plants. It will just take a lot longer.
- No cleaning of any walls, or windows, patios, paths, garden furniture or any other outdoor artificial surface using a hose.
- You are not allowed to fill or maintaining a domestic pond using a hosepipe (unless it has fish and their welfare is at stake – lucky fish!).
- You are not allowed to fill or maintaining an ornamental fountain.
- However you are allowed to use a hosepipe for cleaning purposes if health and safety is going to be an issue.
Ways to make the most of the situation.
- Plant any new trees, shrubs and plants in well-rotted, water-retaining compost and cover with a heavy layer of mulch (up to 4 inches) to retain moisture.
- While you are at it cover the rest of the beds in a thick layer of mulch.
- Deliver water directly to the base of plants through tree-root watering pipes or trickle/drip irrigation equipment.
- Install a trickle/drip irrigation system.
- Wherever possible, use timer devices to water early in the morning or late in the evening when evaporation is minimal.
- Don’t worry about lawns turning brown. This shows the grass has stopped growing, but most lawns will recover completely when the rain returns
- Install water butts to collect rainwater off greenhouse, shed, garage and house roofs
If anyone is unsure about anything or has any questions please feel free to give us a call and we will try to help in any way we can (legally!!).
Something to do this weekend – Serpentine Gallery Pavillion
6th Oct:
You have until the 18th October to visit this year’s Serpentine Gallery Pavilion. Step away from the hustle and bustle of London, a garden within a garden.
“The concept for this year’s Pavilion is the hortus conclusus, a contemplative room, a garden within a garden. One enters the building from the lawn and begins the transition into the central garden, a place abstracted from the world of noise and traffic and the smells of London – an interior space within which to sit, to walk, to observe the flowers.”
http://www.serpentinegallery.org/2011/04/serpentine_gallery_pavillion_2011_zumthor.html
Mowing Tips
28th Jun:
Firstly and most importantly choose the correct lawn mower for your lawn. Cylinder mowers are only really suitable for perfectly flat lawns with finer grass types. Consider whether you want stripes (in which case best results come with some sort of roller) whether there are hard to reach or sloping areas (use a lighter fly-mow) or if you need the mower to collect cuttings too.
Make sure your mower is serviced regularly and that the blades are as sharp as possible which will ensure a better cut. Do not cut your lawn too low.
Whenever you fill your mower with petrol, never do this on the actual grass as petrol burns grass.
Don’t cut your lawn too short (min 1 inch). Cutting your lawn too short can encourage lawn diseases, moss and weed growth. Also never cut more than a third of the height at any one time. If you do, it can cause scalping which can take 2-3 mowing cycles to recover.
Also try to remove any clippings from the lawn as this can encourage thatch which means moss will thrive.
Cut your lawn frequently as this encourages it to grow thicker which keeps out the weeds.
Don’t mow the lawn when it is wet as this can cause the soil to be compacted which suffocates the roots and causes bald patches.
Keep your edges nice and neat by using either a half moon edging tool or even installing an edging product such as EverEdge.
If conditions are very dry and the lawn is looking brown, try to keep off the lawn as much as possible as the grass will be dry and brittle and liable to break. Do not cut shorter than 2 inches and do not cut again until there is a sign of growth.
When watering, don’t overwater by watering every day. In the summer every 2-3 days should be enough. Water the lawn early in the morning or during the later part of the day when evaporation is at its lowest. An irrigation system is always a good idea.
Watering deeply will encourage deep root growth.
Aerate your lawn, using a fork on the smaller lawns and specialist machines (that can be hired) on the larger lawns.
Once this is done, scarifiy your grass, again using a hand rake on smaller areas and machines on the larger lawns. These jobs can be done in either order.
Next is the grass seed. On a small lawn scatter it by hand thinly. Careful not to be too generous at the start and run out before all the area is covered. Then using a stiff brush gently ‘encourage’ the seed down the holes as much as possible.
Next apply a top dressing, which is a mixture of compost and wash sand which helps improve drainage and fertility of the soil. Using a soft rake, gently spread the topdressing into the grass.
Feed your lawn regularly with an appropriate lawn fertiliser. This will make it greener and thicker, and helps return nutrients to the soil.
Gardening jobs for May
18th Apr:
Spring is officially and deeply present – at last! – and, perhaps even better, Summer is tangible and just around the corner. Everything is shooting into rapid growth, and blooming, or promising bursting displays of flowering glory. Relish and enjoy your garden and plants at this time of the year, and take delight in what you have – but also take note of spaces, and possibly failures, that can still be rectified in time for Summer. Evenings are warm and light, mornings are bright and cheerful, and the best is still yet to come!
It’s not all about the relaxation and an easy-life though (unless you employ us to take care of your garden – in which case it most definitely is!)…
1) Weeds are on the rampage, and must be kept at bay before they shed their cursed seed and run wild throughout the Summer. Glyphosate based herbicides are highly effective, and very efficient, and aren’t too damaging for the soil if used correctly. Good old-fashioned hoeing and hand-weeding are still to be put into practise though, and mulching is an excellent way to suppress the weeds from their advance, as well as conserving moisture in the soil. Speaking of which…
2) Watering is important at this time of year, despite occasional showers. If you haven’t done so already – then get those irrigation systems up and running again, or install them. Or, better yet – let us take care of that for you! An efficient and effective irrigation system works wonders, and require very little in the way of maintenance or care, if installed and managed professionally.
3) Planting, planting, planting – get more plants into those gaps and spaces while there is still time, before the hot and dry Summer months. Perennials are excellent ‘gap fillers’, and insightful selection can ensure guaranteed results over the Summer and Autumn.
4) Clip those hedges! Or, again, let us do this for you! Most hedges are cut in late Summer, but fast-growing or ornamental hedges that are meant to keep their shape should be cut now – especially Box.
5) Pestering pests must be gotten on top of. Spray all Roses, Clematis, and anything else that is susceptible – even the super tough Box can be plagued with whitefly in the Summer if left unchecked. Organic pesticides are widely available, and quite often they are just as effective as the non-organic choice. Slug pellets are important at this time of year, with all that soft, tasty, leafy growth that is available to them.
6) Bedding plants for Summer displays should be planted now to get the absolute maximum pleasure from them. Plant up window boxes or pots, and be bold – there is so much on offer at this time of year. Geraniums, Pansies and Petunias are all good – please don’t get me wrong – but how about Bacopa, Diascia, Dahliettas, Thunbergia (Black-eyed Susan), Lantana, Heliotrope, Felicia…
7) Lawns, mow them, water them, feed them, weed them – or simply enjoy them, and let us do the hard work! Feeding and weeding programs applied now will reap dividends for the Summer, as well as the occasional thorough soaking to promote healthy and strong growth, and root development.
8) Painting – if it’s dry and warm, then now is the time to apply a fresh coat of paint to that tired-look wall, or stain the decking, or seal the paving, or oil the furniture, or pain the shed etc… Have a look – there are bound to be some areas of your garden that could be brought back to life simply with a new coat of paint or varnish, do it before it’s an eyesore in the Summer when you’re out there every day.
9) Feeding – it’s not too late to apply slow release fertilisers, if you haven’t already done so. This can also be done by mulching with well-rotted manure, which will also act as a weed barrier and retainer of soil moisture. Combine both mulching and feeding for the very best results and remember – what you invest now, will pay you back bountifully come the Summer.
10) Finally, enjoy your garden! Get out there, whether at weekends with your children, or partners, or on your own with a good book and glass of plonk, but just don’t leave it for the weekend – get out in the evening after work, or after a long day. Gardens are to be enjoyed and relished, they are there for you to relax and unwind in, so do so, as often and as much as you can. City gardens are havens of peace and beauty that recharge your batteries from the draining effects of whatever else is going on around you. For us, it’s work; but for you, it’s pleasure!
Gardening jobs for April
16th Mar:
Jobs for April
1) Slugs and snails – they’re starting to wake up, so do beware! It’s early days, but a mild spell will see them destructively active, and they will munch up any tasty new shoots and growth. Slug pellets are effective, but a risk for birds and pets; nematodes are effective – highly effective, easy to source online through mail-order; birds are great – entice them with food and water, and enjoy their company; copper tapes around pots is great, but slugs can come up through the holes in the bottom and bypass; anti-slug drenches are very effective – they will wipe out everything in sight, but they’re very strong, and aren’t good for soil organisms. Do your research, and consider your options. If you have a ‘major slug problem’ – accept it, and adapt. There are many plants that slugs won’t touch – even some varieties of Hostas (their favourite).
2) Lawns – time to kill that moss. Use a drench or spray, and get on top of it now. Scarify in a month, and give your grass room to grow and re-colonise. Perfect time to lay new turf, and it’s fine to reseed a lawn now. Have a look, and think that if ‘it looks bad now, imagine it in the hot Summer months’ – now is the time for major repairs, or starting-from-scratch, or simply improving what you have.
3) Pruning – it’s not too late to prune your Roses, ornamental grasses, deciduous shrubs etc… get them ready for their new growth. Prune your Dogwoods, and other Winter-interest-stem-plants. Get them right down low, and they shall shoot back up. Shrubs that flower in late-Summer can still have drastic pruning work, and will still flower. Late Spring/early Summer-flowering shrubs should be left, unless you can accept them not flowering this year.
4) Pot plants – get them re-potted now, if they look like they could do with the extra room. Top dress plants that are happy in their pots with a good few inches of compost – ‘proper’ compost, either manure, or home-made; never ‘multi-purpose’.
5) Plant, plant, plant – it’s still a perfect time to get large and mature, specimen shrubs into your garden. They’re dormant, so require little in the way of watering, and availability is good for ‘instant’ hedges, trees, and mature plants. Perfect time to invest, and think of the near-future.
6) Weeding. Dig over those beds and catch your weeds before they go to seed and spread. Trust me thos will save a lot of time later in the year.
Autumn Gardening Tips
13th Oct:
1. Give your garden a good tidy up to reduce the risk of disease and garden bugs.
2. Planting for next year. Now is the perfect time for planting spring bulbs and transplanting shrubs and dividing of existing perennials.
3. Lawn care. Reduce the amount of mowing, raise height of cut, scarify and treat lawn. Don’t forget to water if still dry.
4. Taking care of your garden furniture. Take it inside if possible or cover up allowing air to circulate around it. Clean before storing and if wooden, treat with a preservative.
5. Get that compost going. Use the green waste you collected to begin the composting process for the next year.
6. Autumn Planting. Introduce some autumn colour into your garden with seasonal window boxes and hanging baskets. As well as the most afforable way to plant up your garden – bulbs!
7. Don’t forget to keep watering your lawn and garden if still dry.
8. If planning any hard landscaping, paving, walls, fencing or decking, now is the time, so it is completed in time for the following Spring.
9. Remember all the garden maintenance work you put in this autumn will benefit you when Spring comes around next year.
