How To Get Greener Grass | Mowbot

• Fertilize, fertilize, fertilize

Whether you buy weed-and-feed fertilizer, other synthetic fertilizers, or you go the organic route, fertilizing your lawn regularly aides in the development of healthy, greener grass. Weed-and-feed fertilizers should only be used if your yard is both a dingy shade of green or brown, and it is infested with weeds. Using herbicide when your lawn doesn’t need it, does more harm than good.

Other types of synthetic fertilizers are great for a fast-acting source of nutrients for the grass but are detrimental to your soil and the environment in the long-term. Organic fertilizers, like cow manure or corn gluten meal (which is also an organic herbicide), are slower acting, but fantastic for your soil nutrient levels and the health of your grass.

• Spread grass seed

If you have bare or brown patches, no matter the size, spreading a layer of grass seed on top will hasten regrowth. You can’t have a healthy green lawn with irregularities, so treat them well and fill them in with new grass.

• Aerate

Aerating using a tool, or special aeration shoes opens the root system to bring in the fresh air, more water, and better nutrients. It’s your best combatant against soil compaction, which makes it hard for nutrients and water to move down to the roots.

• Test for pH

The perfect pH level in your soil is crucial in how to get greener grass. Most varieties of grass require a soil pH balance between 5 and 7. If your pH is too high, add sulfate to your lawn with a broadcast spreader. If your level is too low, spread lime.

• Grass-cycling

Instead of removing and discarding glass clippings after mowing, keep them on the lawn. Grass clippings decompose quickly, returning key nutrients to the roots. Grass-cycling is a natural mulch process that better enables your yard to retain water.

• Water deeply and infrequently

Watering for a few minutes a couple of times a week isn’t a perfect system. Your lawn prefers infrequent, deep watering. This allows the roots to grow deeper, keeping the lawn greener for longer during droughts. Provide one inch of water once a week. Water when the first three to four inches of soil is dry to the touch.