GET SET FOR SPRING, PAMPER YOUR LAWN

RUIN: Lawns can look a tad past their sell-by date in Autumn

Saturday October 11,2008

BY the autumn a lot of lawns are looking a tad past their sell-by date.

The problem is that today’s small family gardens mean even smaller lawns, which inevitably come in for more wear and tear from children, dogs, garden furniture and visitors.

That’s why one of the most essential autumn jobs is a spot of routine lawn care. Think of it as spa treatment for grass. It’s vital TLC that sets it to rights over the winter so it’s had a chance to recover by next spring.

Start by mowing as usual, using a grassbox to pick up the bits, then rake the lawn either with a proper lawn rake (one with long, springy teeth) or an electrically powered rotary lawn raker (which you can hire if you don’t own one).

Then mow again, this time at right angles to the original direction and repeat the raking; this “double doings” is enough to pull out most of the moss and build-up of dead grasses and tough creeping stems. Don’t worry if the grass looks a bit rough afterwards, it’s all for the best.

Now sprinkle an autumn lawn feed evenly all over at the makers’ recommended rate. You can do it by hand or use a spreader – some brands come in their own shaker pack, which makes life easy.

You’ve now done the most essential jobs but if you want to give your grass the full works, spike it all over with the points of a garden fork, pressed in three inches deep every six inches, over the lawn to improve drainage and aeration, then follow up with a dose of turf top dressing which you can buy in bags at larger garden centres.

If you can’t find turf dressing, it’s OK to use multipurpose compost. Sprinkle it thinly (no more than a quarter of an inch deep) all over the lawn, then work it in with a stiff broom or the back of a rake so that it disappears into the turf.

Yes, it takes time and effort – spread the job over a weekend so you don’t kill yourself – but once it’s done you’ll know your lawn will set to work repairing and reinvigorating itself while you rest on your laurels indoors over the winter. By spring it’ll be as good as new and all ready to stand up to another season’s rough and tumble.