Annual Lawn Care Schedule

Lawn Feed

The Lawn Care Process at Total Lawn Care we use slow release granular fertilisers that evenly distributes nutrients and nitrogen over an eight to ten week period. Lawn feeds are generally applied 4 times a year,

• Spring
  • A spring feed is applied to help the grass to grow during these often tough growing periods
• Early Summer
  • slow release fertiliser is very useful for the grass plants as it gives a constant supply of food for them to stay strong and healthy
• Late Summer
  • Keeping the correct balance of food and water for the lawn is essential, as it helps to keep the grass healthy and strong, so that weeds and moss have a reduced chance to invade
• Autumn / Winter
  • This feed has a lower nitrogen and a higher potassium content to aid root regeneration through the cold winter months

All lawn feeds are priced by the square meter and an assessment of your lawn will enable us to supply you with an annual quote.

Lawn Weed treatment

We use a liquid based (child and pet safe, once dry) specialised selective weed killer. This is sprayed onto the lawn or affected areas once at the end of Spring / beginning of Summer; for more stubborn or persistent weeds, a second application may be required. These harder to kill weeds may need further applications or may (in extreme cases) need to be dug out of the lawn, new soil would then need to be brought in and the area levelled and re seeded.

All common lawn weeds will be eradicated, including:

• Buttercup
• Clover (red and white)
• Daisy
• Dandelion
• Wood-rush
• Yarrow
• Speedwell
• and many more…

Weed killer is priced by the litre, and an assessment of your lawn will enable us to supply you with an annual quote. In addition to our lawn weed killer, we can also supply a weed killer for driveways and paths which will keep these areas clear of weeds for up to ten weeks – We can include this service as part of your annual lawn care program. Please ask for more information.

Moss treatment

We use a professional iron based moss killer that is fast and effective. The moss killer is in liquid form and is sprayed onto the lawn, and will only affect the moss. (some times the tips of the grass blades can be discoloured by the application,but this will wear off) The moss will quickly turn black and should be completely killed down the the root in approximately 10-14 days. (at this point we recommend that the lawn is scarified) Although you will see the blackening affects with in about an hour.

We can also offer lawn sand, that is applied with a spreader. This will be discussed with you depending on the requirements of your lawn. based on the level of the moss problem and the condition of the lawn in general.

Lawn Scarification

Why should we scarify the lawn ?

Lawn scarification is the process of raking your lawn to remove the build up of thatch and decaying organic matter that can build up in the lower levels of the lawn. The thatch can help to provide humid, moist conditions for fungal lawn diseases to take hold, eg. moss, and moulds like fairy rings. as well as diseases like red thread, rust, leafspot and many more.

We use professional Camon lawn scarifiers that use a sprung tine system, which allows for a more even removal of built up thatch and moss. Prices are usually built into your annual quote, although a price can be given for a one off request.

Lawn Aeration

Why should we aerate the Lawn ?

Aerating your lawn provides the following benefits to the lawn and its root system:

• Oxygen can get down to the roots and the soil, allowing it to breath.
• Allows organic fertiliser and nutrients to access the root system.
• Aids water to soak into the soil to get to the roots.
• Loosens tight compact soil to allow the root system to grow.
• Helps break up surface thatch.
• Reduces the likelihood of disease by promoting a healthy root structure.

What is aerating?  Aeration is simply the act of removing small cores, or plugs of soil from the lawn. Depending on the soil type and compaction a solid tine is also some times used.

The cores are usually left on the lawn in the autumn or early spring so they can break down naturally. We can remove these at the customers request, but it is not advised. Unless you intend to top dress the lawn at this stage in the lawn care diary.

We use a professional Camon aerator that benefits by having inter-changeable tines, both solid and hollow depending on soil type and condition. Prices are usually built into your annual quote, although a price can be given for a one off request.

Top dressing – levelling – and over seeding

If your lawn is bumpy, you may decided to get the roller out. DONT, it rarely removes the high points in the lawn and all that it will achieve is a more compacted soil. (we would then need to re-aerate the lawn) A top dressing can be raked into the lawn. Top dressings are meant to be a composition as close to the soil that already exists. For this reason, it is vital that we make sure that it is the best option. (best to do this after the lawn has been thoroughly scarified and aerated. At this time it is wise to over seed the lawn generously, so as to make sure its the grass that grows in the gaps and not the weeds and moss.)

If a lawn is very bumpy it may be that a mechanical solution is required. patches of the lawn or some times the entire lawn can be rotovated and leveled. Either seed or turf can be laid at this stage.