Having a Great Lawn in Dallas

Now that summer is approaching in the southern hemisphere, those among us in dry climates fortunate enough to own a lawn, should be beginning the regular lawn mowing regime which will take us thru into the onset of winter.

The commonest lawn grasses in hot dry climates are evergreens like the Bermuda grasses, Cynodon, Zoysia varieties, Kikuya grass ( Pennisetum ), or St. Augustine grass, (Stenotaphrum secundatum). With the exception of the latter, these grasses should have been de-thatched sometime in the spring. This extraordinary treatment must not be carried out on grasses like St.Augustine, that spread by stolons, but only, like the species discussed, on grasses that develop rhizomes.

After the grass has come back - a process that can take anything up to a month, we start our regular mowing. Regular means regular! Not when we wish to it, not when the grass is a foot high, but as a regular activity. Other than watering, regular mowing at the correct height is doubtless the most important factor determining the standard of the lawn.

Never scalp the lawn from this point on until next spring's de-thatching. You can decide the right height by mowing a tiny swathe of grass with the blade set high, then go back, lowering the blade's height until as discussed some 40% of the leaf is cut. This 40% does not include the stems, that the leaves are attached, but only the leaves themselves.

So how frequently should you mow the grass? The solution is - it depends. Each or five days may well be better. Are you know the the Greens on golfing courses are customarily mowed a pair of times a day?

Consistent removing of OTT amounts of leaf in the plant's most active growing season, decreases the potential energy ready to the plant, when it most wants it. Also, scalping the grass, which occurs when the blade is too low, or when the grass is too high, exposes the stems to direct sunlight which can regularly cause direct damage to the grass.

The more healthy the grass the more hardy it is to pests and illnesses. Inversely , as the grass weakens, frequently as a result of a consistently poor mowing regime, the more vulnerable it becomes to pathogens, and the more weed species may be able to build themselves, so further weakening the lawn.