WITH Winter almost over, many avid gardening fans have already started prepping the outdoor space for the Summer ahead.
But before you dash outside to work on your garden, find out which common task could potentially destroy the grass, as explained by the gardening whizz, the one and only Monty Don.
Although the lawns does need mowing in March, there’s a vital mistake to steer clear of, Monty shared with the fans on his website.
According to the expert – who recently confirmed the return of iconic BBC series – fellow gardening enthusiasts shouldn’t cut their grass ”too short”.
”Just give it a light trim for the rest of this month,” the whizz explained in the post.
”This will encourage good root growth and as a result the grass will be a lot healthier and better able to resist summer drought.”
The 68-year-old, who’s been dubbed a ”sex siren” by admirers, also urged gardeners to take a different approach when working on their outdoor space.
”Put your efforts into healthy grass rather than fighting perceived ‘problems’ like daisies, moss, ants, worm-casts, moles, plantains, dandelions and fairy rings.
”Nine times out of ten if the grass is healthy then everything else will look after itself.”
According to the whizz, you can also tell a lot about the health of your lawn just by looking at the grass – and it’s bad news if your garden is covered in moss.
”The best grass likes very well drained soil. Moss, for example, is always a symptom of poor drainage, made worse by shade.
”Unfortunately even the best prepared soil becomes compacted by matted roots, rain and, especially, normal family use.”
The answer here, he noted, was to work on it at least once a year – simply by sticking a fork in the ground and then wiggling it about; a process which you should repeat every 6 inches or so.
You can then mix up equal portions of sieved topsoil, sharp sand and sieved leaf mould or compost.
For those who do not have these things, Monty said that a sharp or silver sand will do the job just fine aso.
”Spread it across the area you have pricked and brush it in with a stiff broom, filling the holes with the mixture.
”This will help drainage and feed the grass,” the guru told his super fans.
When it comes to preparing your lawn for the warmer season ahead, Monty also urged to give the area ”a good scratch” using a wire rake.
This easy yet effective step will get at all the overwintering thatch and moss, whilst also letting light and water get to the soil and to the roots of the grass.
”Put the debris on the compost and then mow. It will look a little bald for a week or so but will grow back thicker than ever.”
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