The lawn care year
Mow high, scarify and aerate in autumn, feed twice a year. Those three change more than any machine you buy.
Mow higher than you think
Cutting short is the most common single mistake. A longer leaf photosynthesises more, shades the soil so it dries out less, and out-competes weed seedlings that need light to establish. Scalping does the opposite of all three and it is why a close mown lawn goes brown first in a dry summer.
Around 25mm to 40mm suits most domestic lawns, higher in summer and higher again in shade. Never remove more than a third of the leaf in one cut, so in fast growth mow more often rather than lower.
- 25 to 40mm for most lawns
- Higher in summer, higher again in shade. Short grass browns first and lets weeds in.
- Never more than a third
- Of the leaf height in one cut. Taking more shocks the grass and it recovers slowly.
- Sharp blade, not a blunt one
- A blunt blade tears the leaf and the tips brown within two days. That is the usual cause.
- Vary the direction
- Mowing the same way every time lays the grass over and compacts wheel lines into the surface.
Scarifying and aerating are the two jobs that matter
Thatch is the layer of dead material between the leaf and the soil. Left to build, water and feed cannot get through it and the lawn thins from below. Scarifying rakes it out, and it looks brutal: a properly scarified lawn looks ruined for two weeks and then better than it has ever been.
Compaction is the other half. Soil pressed solid by feet and mower wheels has no air in it, so roots stay shallow. Aerating punches holes through it, and hollow tining, which removes a plug rather than just spiking, is considerably more effective.
- Scarify in autumn
- Or early spring. It looks like you have wrecked the lawn for a fortnight, then it thickens.
- Hollow tine beats spiking
- Removing a plug relieves compaction. Spiking a solid soil just compresses the sides of the hole.
- Both, then feed and seed
- The holes and the cleared thatch are how seed and feed reach the soil. Do them in that order.
- Not in drought or frost
- The lawn needs to be growing to recover from either job. Autumn with moisture in the soil is ideal.
Feeding twice, with different feeds
Spring feed is high in nitrogen to drive leaf growth. Autumn feed is low in nitrogen and higher in potassium and phosphate, to build roots and toughen the grass for winter. Using a spring feed in autumn produces soft growth that disease takes over the winter.
Even spreading matters more than the product. Hand scattering gives stripes and patches that show for months, and a spreader with a consistent rate is the difference between a fed lawn and a striped one.
- Spring feed is high nitrogen
- For leaf growth once the soil warms up. Applied to a dry lawn with rain forecast.
- Autumn feed is not
- Low nitrogen, higher potassium. Spring feed in autumn gives soft growth that disease takes.
- Use a spreader
- Hand scattering leaves stripes and burnt patches that are visible for months afterwards.
- Water it in
- Or apply before rain. Granular feed left dry on the leaf scorches it.
Seeding and patching
Grass seed needs soil contact, moisture and warmth. Scattered on a hard surface it feeds birds; raked lightly into loosened soil and kept damp it germinates in one to three weeks depending on temperature.
Autumn is the best time in most climates, because the soil is warm and moisture is reliable. Spring works and needs watering. Midsummer rarely works at all without daily watering, which is more commitment than most people expect.
- Soil contact is everything
- Rake it lightly in. Seed sitting on the surface germinates poorly and mostly gets eaten.
- Autumn, then spring
- Warm soil and reliable moisture. Midsummer needs daily watering to work at all.
- Keep it damp, not wet
- Until it has germinated and rooted. Letting it dry out once at that stage kills the lot.
- Match the seed to the site
- A shade mix in shade, a hard wearing mix on a route. The wrong mix thins out whatever you do.
Moss is a symptom, not a problem
Moss establishes where grass is struggling, and the causes are shade, compaction, poor drainage, low fertility and mowing too short. Killing the moss without changing any of those means it returns within a season, which is why people treat the same patch every year.
So the sequence is to fix the cause, then scarify the dead moss out, then feed and overseed the bare ground it leaves. Treating moss alone is the step that achieves the least.
- Find the cause first
- Shade, compaction, drainage, low fertility, or scalping. Moss is telling you which.
- Treat, then scarify out
- Dead moss still blocks light and water. Raking it out is the part that has the effect.
- Overseed the bare patches
- Removing moss leaves gaps, and something will fill them. Better that it is grass.
- Shade may not be fixable
- Under a dense tree, a shade tolerant mix or a different ground cover is a more honest answer.
Frequently asked questions
- What tools do I need for lawn care?
- A mower, a spring tine rake, a garden fork or hollow tine aerator, a scarifier or scarifying rake, a spreader, edging shears and a hose or sprinkler. That covers mowing, the autumn work, feeding and repair, which is the whole lawn year.
- How short should I cut my lawn?
- Around 25mm to 40mm for most domestic lawns, higher in summer and higher again in shade. Cutting short is the most common mistake: a longer leaf shades the soil, holds moisture and crowds out weed seedlings. Never remove more than a third of the leaf in one cut.
- What is scarifying and do I need to do it?
- Raking out the thatch, the layer of dead material between the leaf and the soil that stops water and feed getting through. If your lawn feels spongy underfoot, yes. It looks like you have wrecked the lawn for a fortnight and then it comes back noticeably thicker.
- What is the difference between spiking and hollow tining?
- Spiking pushes a solid tine in, which relieves surface compaction and compresses the soil around the hole. Hollow tining removes a plug of soil entirely, which genuinely relieves compaction and leaves a space for topdressing. Hollow tining is considerably more effective.
- When should I feed my lawn?
- Twice a year with different feeds. A high nitrogen feed in spring for leaf growth, and a low nitrogen, higher potassium feed in autumn to build roots and harden it for winter. Using a spring feed in autumn produces soft growth that disease takes over the winter.
- When is the best time to sow grass seed?
- Autumn in most climates, because the soil is still warm and moisture is reliable. Spring works but needs watering. Midsummer rarely succeeds without daily watering. In all cases rake the seed lightly into loosened soil, since seed on a hard surface mostly gets eaten.
- How do I get rid of moss in my lawn?
- Fix the cause first, because moss establishes where grass is struggling: shade, compaction, poor drainage, low fertility or mowing too short. Then treat it, scarify the dead moss out, and overseed the bare ground. Treating moss alone means it returns within a season.
- Why does my grass go brown at the tips after mowing?
- A blunt mower blade, almost always. It tears the leaf rather than cutting it, and the torn tip dies back and browns within a day or two. Sharpening or replacing the blade fixes it, and it is the cheapest improvement available to most lawns.
