Today, the word “green” has taken on more than one meaning when it comes to the grass making up your lawn. While it still indicates the color that people want their grass to be, it can also refer to the environmental approach homeowners may prefer their lawn care service to adopt. In Jupiter, FL, this is becoming the preferred method of treating a lawn – whether through a hired company or by the homeowner themselves.
Going Green
A healthy green lawn does not require heavy doses of pesticides. It can achieve this goal by ensuring initial and subsequent maintenance practices are firmly entrenched. The basics are simple:
- Overseeding: If you have a thin patch of lawn, be sure to overseed it in the spring or fall. Apply a light coating of compost, rake the seeds, and compost and soil them together lightly.
- Mowing Height: Your mower should never cut grass down to the quick, as this can destroy the growing tip. It can also discourage it from establishing deep growing roots. If you set the mower height to about 3 inches and only mow when the grass reaches about 4.5 inches, then you are encouraging thicker growth and deeper roots – roots that can utilize moisture, requiring less watering.
- Keep Equipment Sharp: Whether you or a lawn care service mow the grass, always make sure the equipment is sharp. Hacking at the lawn will cause damage and can lead to disease and other problems.
- Recycle Your Grass: Do not throw out the cuttings of your grass; leave them on the lawn. Grass is approximately 80 percent water. It will decompose, quickly returning valuable nutrients back into the earth. This method also is cost-effective and ecologically sound. It:
- Reduces landfills
- Reduces the need for fertilizer (up to around 25 percent)
- Decreases energy, time and effort spent in bagging clippings
A mulch mower will actually serve this purpose best.
- Feed and Aerate: Both feeding the soil of your lawn in Jupiter and aerating it are green methods of keeping the lawn healthy. By feeding it the right levels of compost and organic fertilizer, you can provide it with the right level of nutrients. By aerating the soil, you are enabling it to breathe more easily which reduces the compacting and allows the entrance of water, air and compost into the soil.
You can also adopt other healthy lawn care practices. Make sure the lawn care provider understands the difference between healthy insects and pests. Also, encourage earthworms but discourage weeds and other pests through natural means, including weeding.
Lawn Care Service
If you want to keep your lawn looking a healthy green, you may want to consider adopting green and environmentally friendly practices. By considering your current maintenance practices or talking to your lawn care service provider, you can arrange a method that will keep your lawn in Jupiter “green” in more ways than one.
