A new or remodeled home deserves a new lawn, for it is an important part of the setting.
All homeowners contemplating lawn construction will welcome the word that there has been a marked reduction in the mortality rate of new lawns.
Once the lawn is started right, it is no longer necessary to remake it periodically.
Fundamentals Of A Good Lawn
There’s no trick to making a good lawn. all that is necessary for consideration of some of the fundamentals involved, namely:
- Drainage
- Topsoil
- Final grading
- Feeding
- Choice of seed
- Sowing
- Early care
- Weed control
First to be considered is the final grading and drainage.
Before any topsoil is put in place, the fill or subsoil should be roughly graded to the desired finish contour, allowing room for adding 4” to 6” inches of topsoil.
By rough grading first, it is possible to get a more uniform depth of topsoil throughout the entire lawn area.
Drainage
Heavy, compact soils might need improved drainage, especially in low-lying areas.
The right way to take care of this is to survey the property to determine the degree of the natural slope and the location of existing drainage facilities.
An agricultural clay or cement tile is then installed 18” to 20” inches below the final surface.
These tile lines can tie into drains now serving the perimeter of the foundation and roof gutters.
The individual tiles should be placed end to end with a space as wide as a pencil between them so the drainage water may enter more easily.
Because tile drainage does not pull efficiently from either side, parallel lines as close as 10’ or 15’ feet may be needed.
Filling the ditches with gravel or crushed stone before replacing the topsoil will also help the system quickly remove excess water.
Ideal Seedbed
The ideal seedbed for a permanent lawn is made of soil with uniform consistency.
Layers of materials with contrasting textures in the upper 6” inches should be avoided.
Begin to reserve your topsoil early. Before building excavation, pile it to one side for use later in lawn construction.
Either clay or sandy loam containing an abundance of humus is the preferred soil.
It should have a granular texture and be friable enough to retain moisture without remaining sticky but not becoming powdery when it dries.
Such soil 4” to 6” inches deep will provide a most favorable home for the grassroots. Also, the deeper the root zone is below 4” inches, the healthier the grass will be.
Pleasing Grade
A pleasing grade from the beginning obviates a general facelifting after the grass has been started and provides a means to carry the excess water off in the right direction.
To develop this desirable grade, reference marks on several stakes placed on the ground will greatly help.
A carpenter’s chalk line fastened 2” inches above the final lawn level and stretched tightly between stakes is better than trusting the eye.
To help point out high spots or low pockets, use a longboard with its straight edge held on the unfinished surface.
Then, the excess topsoil can be transferred to lower areas by alternately raking and shoveling.
Physical condition is not the only soil factor contributing to the lawn of your dreams. The best grass starts on a full stomach.
Once the lawn is established, food can be applied only from the surface downward. So the right time to fortify a lawn for a vigorous start in life is just before planting.
Special turf foods with as high a content of nitrogen as phosphate and potash combined, applied at the rate of 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet and evenly worked into the top 2” inches, will do the best job on new lawns.
Quality Lawn Seed
After taking great care in providing drainage, a pleasing grade, and the most favorable soil available, it would certainly be foolish to plant anything but the finest quality lawn seed.
Since it’s a rare neighborhood where one grass is the best the year around, a blend of perennial grasses will provide the kind of lawn you want.
Attempting to start by sowing a single variety usually asks for a lawn headache.
If you don’t know your lawn seed, make it a point to become acquainted with the seedsman or storekeeper where you purchase your garden supplies.
Naturally, he will hesitate to recommend anything that will not give you the best results.
Never select lawn seed based on price alone – cheap mixtures are the most expensive in the long run.
Only 4 or 5 pounds of high-quality seed are required for 1,000 square feet of the new seedbed. Inexpensive spreaders take much of the guesswork out of planting the right amount of seed for a given area.
But even with a spreader, it is best to divide the seed in half, planting the first half in the usual manner and the rest crosswise of the first sowing. This method practically eliminates any possibility of skipping spots.
Broadcasting the seed by hand is made easier if the lawn is divided into sections and a weighted amount of seed is reserved for sowing each part.
After the seed is sown, hand rake the area lightly with a flexible lawn rake, careful not to bury the seed any deeper than 1/8″ inch.
Rolling with a light roller will firm the soil around the seed and also serve as an alternate method of finishing the planting.
New Lawn’s Early Development Stages
Bringing the new lawn through the early stages of development requires careful watching.
It is seldom advisable to force germination by artificial watering since it is impossible to match the thoroughness of a gentle rain with sprinkling equipment.
Another thing is keeping the sprouting grass alive once the green fuzz puts in its appearance.
When rain clouds give you the go-by, faithful sprinkling with a fine spray several times daily is recommended.
This is imperative when a warm or windy period follows the first appearance of the new grass. Keeping the surface moist will save your investment until the return of normal showers.
There is also a right time to give the lawn its first mowing. When most of the grass reaches 2” to 3” inches, mowing will encourage more lateral growth, leading to a denser turf.
The first cutting will be less likely to injure the grass if its foliage is moisture-free and the mower is sharp and adjusted to a cutting height of 1 ½” to 2” inches.
Lawn Weeds
The rapid growth of weeds is not an uncommon problem faced by builders of new lawns.
The first few mowings will destroy some weeds, but others may require the use of chemical weed killers.
After the grass has been cut a half dozen times and the temperature is in the low 70s, it is safe to use chemical weed control.
Several soil and weather factors strongly favor autumn as the best season for planting new lawns and fixing old fawns.
One of the greatest advantages of fall lawn work is that the grass does not have to compete with weeds.
It just isn’t natural for troublesome lawn weeds. such as crabgrass to sprout and make rank development during this season.
44659 by J. W. Lentz