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Garden bed edging serves as a distinct boundary that separates gardens from lawns, walkways, and driveways, enhancing both functionality and aesthetics in landscaping. Now everybody will say what to use, how to install it, colors, and so on for garden edging. Just like plants and designs, people choose to have in their yard, the edging choice is up to personal likes and dislikes. Pros and cons of having edging. Maintenance of edging and types of garden edging. Pros vs. Cons- Going to list the common points. Pros-     Easier trimming of grass, if tall enough (i.e. just trimming in a horizonal motion, less need to follow trimming in a vertical motion.) But if a low profile or low set edging is used then you still have to trim what lays over the edging. I don’t just say let the mower deck hang over the edging to use the airflow to lift grass laying down. Check Con section for why. Mulch or stone doesn’t wash out and mix into other areas as much since the edging (if high enough) keeps material separated. If the edging is set deep enough, it will reduce grass roots growing into non grass areas. If tall enough, keeps grass clippings from getting blown into non grass areas. No need to have the garden beds edged every year or during the season. Cons-     Installing is time consuming and can be expensive to install. Can be pulled out, shift or settle and needing to be redone. Doesn’t keep grass and weeds from growing in non-grass areas. Bed material still washes out. Can’t let the mower deck hang over the edging and not need to trim after mowing, without hitting the edging with the mower blades causing damage.   No Edging at all-       An edge defined by shrubs and trees preventing grass from growing underneath them creating an edge between the lawn and the garden.   The edging defined by shrubs and trees is low cost, low maintenance, and natural looking, sometimes you can see this in maintained landscapes. But when these shrubs and trees either have dead lower limbs or completely dies, then grass and weeds are allowed to start growing underneath, creates another area to trim or reach under upper branches and going over roots and other debris. I do like having shrubs and trees with limbs low to the ground making a natural edge and is easy to maintain along wooded areas, just not close to houses or buildings (pest problems and poor airflow against the siding). Hand dug edge-      A traditional edge and most likely other names. Soil is removed between the lawn and garden. Usually, has a sharp edge along the lawn edge with a sharp or gently upward slope into the garden. Many people say this is “THE” garden edge and so on and so on. There are numerous tools and machines to create this edge, however you like it done is your choice. Removing soil and debris every year or every other year and moving it somewhere on the property or dispose of it off the property adds to the cost of doing a hand dug edge. Using a garden bed edging attachment. Instead of hand digging the edge. Now I spent some years doing landscaping on and around Cape Cod and the amount of time and effort to do a hand dug edge in the area was more than I had seen before. Which lead me to call it “ The Cape Cod edge” , now starts the same as the hand dug edge, but the slope into the garden bed is very gentle which requires to remove mulch and soil a foot or more into the garden bed. First time doing this extra soil needs to be removed so when mulch or stone is spread the low area next to the lawn is still low. But doing this edge adds extra time and a lot of soil and debris removed each year. I do offer “The Cape Cod Edge” , but depending on budget I edge the garden bed making a trough, if customers want to, I rake back the mulch and cut the edge of the trough off with a shovel creating a gentle slope into the garden bed and rake back the mulch or spread new mulch along the edge. Having a hand dug edge with decorative stone in the bed takes more time dealing with the edge and stone mixing together. Maintaining edging-        Depending on the edging changes maintenance needs. Plastic and metal edging may need to be adjusted if it shifted or replaced if hit by mower blades or trimmer damage. Or paint if faded from the sun. Natural stone or concrete edging may need to be washed, reset, or redo the joints with mortar or glue. Hand dug edging would need to be redone every year or other year and touched up during the season. Additional work may need to be done depending on the size of the edging material used. Smaller edging material can be easily moved around after being installed. Run over by lawnmowers and other wheeled equipment. Grass will grow over, under, and through needing extra trimming and mulch or stone can be washed over it. This just adds to maintenance instead of lowering it. Larger edging can be set deeper and more surface area if you want to use mortar or glue to join them together all of which makes them harder to move around once installed. Being set deeper and taller than the grass reduces trimming and keeping the grass in the lawn not in non-grass areas, of course the height will keep mulch and stone in the bed not the lawn. Yes, bigger material does have a higher cost, but over time less maintenance out ways the cost. Types of edging-       Plastic……now plastic edging was always the color black and had the round tube on top that would be easy to see and damage with mowers and trimmers. At that time the tube on top is what kept the plastic rigid, but now plastic is made differently…...without the tube on top. Now you have more color options, the finish can have a wood grain texture or smooth, thick as a 2X4 or 4X4 timbers. Some options are no-dig options so very rocky soils can have edging, not needing a trench dug out for other plastic edging. A ribbed type is made and is to be installed like most metal edgings, the top edge is set even with the soil surface only visible from the garden bed side. Metal edging- Has some color choices, usually installed with the top edge even with the soil surface and only visible form the garden side. Sometimes setting half the edging into the soil and the other half above ground and surface holding mulch and stone in the garden bed. Wooden edging-     Can be 2X4, 4X4 or bigger up to 8X8, “Railroad Ties”, or sawmill cutoffs (from squaring up the logs these are the pieces that still have the bark on them). Usually treated for ground contact, (except the sawmill cutoffs). (DON’T USE TREATED LUMBER NEAR FOOD GARDEN PLOTS!), the chemicals in the treatment effect the soil and can be absorbed into edible plants and make you sick. Good for straight bed edges, can make curves cutting many angles. Can finish them with paint stain or just natural weathering. May have to dig to set timbers or use long spikes or rebar to keep in place. Concrete blocks used as garden bed edging. Concrete curbing or blocks-     Lots of choices with concrete products, colors, textures, size, or a poured curbing. The curbing is mixed and then poured through a machine for shapes. To enhance the aesthetic appeal of your concrete, consider stamping it for added texture or exploring a wide choice of paint colors. Concrete blocks can be incredibly versatile, available in designs resembling wooden timbers, cobblestone paths, or bricks, adding diverse character to landscaping. Concrete is far more exciting today, available in a rich palette of colors beyond traditional gray, allowing for creative landscaping designs. Not just concrete gray anymore. Some base prep needed, remove topsoil down to subsoil or clay, compact subsoil, lay fabric over the subsoil, followed by a layer of process mix gravel or sand before setting. Poured Curbing can crack due to excessive movement. Natural stone used as garden bed edging. Natural stones- Often come in irregular sizes; embrace their unique shapes to design a personalized layout, or consider cutting them for a consistent look. However, while natural stone typically comes at a higher price, utilizing unwanted stones may offset costs. Some base prep, remove topsoil down to subsoil or clay, compact subsoil, lay fabric over the subsoil, followed by a layer of process mix gravel or sand before setting just like for concrete edging. Rubber-     Some color choices, shapes are currently a flat board or an "L" shape. The 'L' shape design is intended to accommodate the lawnmower wheel, reducing the need for further trimming around the garden. While rubber edging offers various color options, it can become hot when exposed to sunlight and may fade over time. Numerous creative methods exist for setting edging in your landscaping projects, allowing for unique personalization possibilities. Moreover, there are a plethora of innovative edging materials and designs available beyond traditional black plastic with a tube on top.

What about Mulch:  Mulch has many textures, colors, types of material as well as many different uses in the landscape. Since mulch is not just wood chips, some areas use other materials as mulch. Now mulch is a covering over the ground/soil around plants, cover bare ground/soil where you don’t want to have weeds or lawn to take care of, used to prevent soil erosion, quickly fill in wet areas on construction sites (instead of stone, depending on the location) or a temporary road to prevent soil compaction. Most people know mulch is used for fresh looking curb appeal, aid in controlling weeds in the garden beds, help retain moisture for plants to use, steady ground/soil temperature, adds nutrients to the soil or a laboring task in the spring either every year or every other year.  Mulch has been used for centuries in agriculture to help with crops. Now many different stories and times are referenced as to when mulch became popular for using in the landscape for purpose and decorative. So, I’ll just add my own story to the list of mulch becoming popular. Decades ago (late 1980’s) my father started ordering bark mulch for the gardens around the house to control weeds and improve the look of the house, because of shows like “This Old House” and “The Victory Garden” explained the benefits of mulch. People walking by would ask about the mulch and then soon those people were spreading mulch over the bare soil in their gardens and the rest of the family started spreading mulch as well, especially after seeing that there were less weeds to deal with. In old pictures, whether its family photos or historic photos, you saw bare soil or decorative stone in garden beds. Now, you can get it in bags from everywhere even grocery stores and some gas stations even! Details of mulch:   Commonly mulch is made of wood chips, but some areas use other material for mulch. In the southeastern USA pine needles are used as mulch. Pine nuggets were pieces of pine tree bark, the size of large potato chips, I don’t see it available as much in my area today. Continuing with pine tree parts, I’ve seen crushed pine cones as mulch once. Cocoa shells and Peanut shells that’s what I’ve heard and seen, there could be more natural materials that have been used as a mulch. On to non-natural materials that includes construction debris (dimensional lumber, sometimes old fences and pallets) get grinded into smaller pieces, the same way natural wood is ground into smaller pieces, then it gets colored sprayed for better looks. Usually, this type of mulch is cheaper, you have the possibility of getting metal pieces (nails, screws and small hardware). The equipment used to produce mulch has improved, but most of the time this mulch is listed or noted as being made of construction debris. Rubber mulch was made of used tires and other rubber products. At first a lot of rubber mulch you could find pieces with the metal mesh in it and again the equipment to produce Rubber Mulch has improved and are less likely to find metal mesh pieces. As a side note, I personally haven’t heard many people looking for rubber mulch lately, when rubber mulch first became available people asked about it. Colored/Dyed years ago the color would wash away or fade, now the colors don’t fade as much. Whatever you use to spread colored mulch with, will have some tint of the color on the surface until it rains or washed off. Not just red mulch, but black mulch or brown mulch can be colored and usually it is listed as colored mulch. There is no wrong color of mulch, pick what you like and enjoy. The materials used to create dye for mulch coloring varies. There is a mulch color spray available to mix with water and you spray it over the mulch to freshen the color. Natural/Natural colored. Fresh wood chips from a chipper have the natural color of the wood until it starts to fade and gray. Natural color, depending on who you talk with the way of naturally coloring mulch sometimes leads you to dyed mulch. Most mulch suppliers I work with, put wood chips in a pile and let the pile get hot to the point the chips start to char and darken, then the pile gets mixed to evenly char all the chips for a uniform color and not start a fire. If you have ever had a pile of wood chips in a yard and dig into the pile, then chips will get darker in color as you dig deeper into the pile. How long the dark color lasts depends on how much sun the mulch gets and by who makes it. Also, getting the natural dark color means the wood chips are in the process of decomposing. Mulch Texture . Fresh chips directly from a chipper is not a uniform size since branches or limbs are not the same diameter. Smaller chippers (like DR power chippers make small chips), bigger chippers (like the larger units that tree companies have make bigger chips). Now you can also get double grind/shredded or triple grind/shredded, each time the pieces get finer and smaller. Mulch/Bark blowers like finer mulch to flow through the hose (talk about this later in this post), the texture of the mulch is a choice like color and wood species type. Smaller chips decompose faster than larger pieces, which can change how often mulch needs to be spread. Wood Species. These are the natural wood chip sources, not Construction debris. Common types are Pine, Hemlock, Cedar, Fir, Hardwood Blend (Oak, Maple, Beech, Hickory, Mahogany and Walnut are the most common), Softwood Blend (Pine, Spruce, Cedar, and Douglas Fir are the most common), other mulch blends maybe listed with the state name or a local name to have a unique product name. Single species mulches are higher priced then blends, since it is only made of that species. Blends whether it’s called by a state name, local name or just called hardwood or softwood is a mix of local tree species. Bulk or Bagged mulch:  So, one (1) cubic yard is twenty-seven (27) cubic feet, when you are looking at a big mulch project and adding up prices. If you a small area that you are mulching or a location that you can’t have bulk mulch delivered, then bagged mulch is great. Large areas to cover then the math shows that bulk mulch is a good option. Bag mulch holds its color for a year or more and the chips are uniform in size, but expensive if you have a large area to cover. Mulch layer thickness:  This is a debated topic, most say 2”-3” inches. Then others say thicker or thinner, a new garden bed a thicker mulch layer to cover bare soil is okay. A garden bed that has had mulch spread over it for years and the mulch hasn’t decomposed much then a thinner layer is okay. Or if you remove the old mulch each year before you spread new mulch then a thin layer is fine since you are going to remove it next year anyway. In some situations, with healthy organisms in the soil that aid in decomposing the mulch which plants use as nutrients, a thicker layer will still look good and keep weeds down and also feed the organisms. Benefits and Downsides of Mulch:  Mulch does need to be redone or replaced every year or every several years. Wood decomposes overtime, some wood species decompose slower than others (i.e. Cedar and Oak). Areas that either wash away from stormwater or blown away during seasonal maintenance events. Depending on the health of the soil, supporting organisms that aid in breaking down wood chips into organic matter for plants and trees to use for nutrients. Colored mulch, mostly Red dyed mulch, decompose slower. Loss or bleaching of mulch color, whether it is dyed or natural color. These are some reasons that change how often you redo or add mulch. Benefits of Mulch:  Nice finishing touch of garden beds “Curb Appeal”. Helps control weeds growing in the garden bed. Covering weed seeds, preventing them from getting sunlight and the weeds that do grow through the mulch layer have weaker roots. Cedar wood is known for the scent it has, but it also is slower to decompose and is also good at repelling insects. Holds moisture in the soil. By the wood absorbing rain/irrigation water. Helps slow soil temperature changes. Being on top of the soil, the sunlight has to heat the mulch layer before radiant heat reaches the soil below, then during the night the heat in the mulch keeps the soil warm. In spring and fall this helps plants to start growing/continue growing and not be easily affected by frost. As the mulch decomposes, it adds nutrients to the soil for the plants. Depending on the species of wood mulch, you have a pleasant scent in your yard. Builds a layer of compose that works into the garden bed soil. Downsides of Mulch:  Mulch lasts a year or so before you have to spread it again. Depending on what and how the mulch is made it could have weed seeds in it that can be spread throughout the yard, have insects or fungus from the trees it’s made from causing headaches. Some material that is uses in the dye to color the mulch can introduce chemicals into the soil and effecting the plants. If the mulch is made from construction debris, treated lumber chemicals are introduced into the soil and shouldn’t be around edible plants, that also means water runoff from construction debris mulch working its way down hill to edible plants. Plus, the any metal hardware getting pass magnets during the mulch making process could be in the mulch getting in your hands or feet. In areas where water collects or drains slowly, the mulch doesn’t dry enough and starts growing mold and fungus. Mulch can introduce insects into the yard. (If the wood had insects in it when it was processed or where the mulch is stored insects can invest the mulch. Depending on how much mulch you need for your property, it can be expensive and time consuming. The color of the mulch fades. After years of spreading mulch, the height of the garden bed raises with a layer of composed old mulch, that sometimes has to be removed to keep from the garden beds becoming mounded. When to spread mulch:  Normally ads from stores say spring or before Memorial Day. After years and truckloads of mulch spread, the best time to spread mulch is either at the very beginning of the growing season (before tulips and daffodils spout), at the end of the growing season (after the leaves are cleaned up and flowers and shrubs are pruned for the colder months), right after planting a new garden bed or after shrubs have been trimmed (so the fresh mulch isn’t ruined by little trimmed shrub pieces throughout the mulch). I have seen and been told to spread mulch and then trim shrubs making a mess of fresh mulch, this situation does happen. Since spring plants spout through an old mulch layer, a layer of fresh mulch won’t harm or prevent any spouting plants. Having fresh mulch going into the winter months, makes the yard look fresh and clean until spring. Either time of year means less plants to spread mulch around, easing the task of spreading mulch a little bit. Also, you get to enjoy the plants and flowers growing and blooming surrounded by fresh mulch. Mulch suppliers will sell you mulch anytime of the year as long as they have it. Now if you have shrubs and not plants or flowers, then trimming the shrubs as usual first then spreading mulch after does make everything look great. Equipment to spread mulch:   Now working for other companies and growing up using a shovel to load the wheelbarrow and then to unload and spread, or use your hands to spread the mulch (now in tight areas using your hands maybe the easiest way, but not to go over the whole yard). Seeing one company using a mulch fork to load wheelbarrows and a smaller mulch fork or manure fork to spread the mulch. You can move more mulch with a fork then a shovel or hands and a fork is easier to push into the mulch pile to get the next fork full. Wheelbarrows, carts or front-end loaders to move the mulch from the pile to where you are spreading, could be a whole blog post. I found a kit to add rear wheels and a push bar to most wheelbarrows, I put the kit on a commercial 10 cu.ft. double wheel wheelbarrow and never disappointed with building it. But now you have powered wheelbarrows, carts to tow behind something, power dump carts and attachments for lawnmowers and a front-end loader to scoop and lift for you is a nice thing to have. All of these are good things to have, choose what you want to use to move the mulch. Dumping the mulch out in small piles throughout the garden bed and then spreading with a rake is fast in open areas without working around too many plants. Even better if you can dump and spread the mulch evenly. Now this next tool gets top marks to spread mulch fast, Bark Blower. A machine that feeds mulch into a blower that under air pressure blows mulch through a hose and spreads the mulch, as long as you load the hopper that feeds the blower. Now with these blowers can spread fast, after they are setup to run, can spread a thin layer of mulch if you are looking for just a cover layer. The mulch lays flat without lumps, now for most homeowners this is not something you are going to buy, maybe rent or hire someone who uses one. Bagged mulch is just cut one end and spread, just don’t lay the bag down flat, cut the top open, fold the bag out and spread the mulch to cover the bag. The plastic bag will prevent water getting through to the soil.

What is Topdressing? In this blog I am referring to Topdressing in lawn and landscaping. It is a process of spreading material over a lawn or garden, to improve soil quality to grow plants and grass. Some say Old Tom Morris while working on Prestwick golf course had spread sand over the grass and noticed an improvement in the turf, this was the beginning of topdressing. Old Tom Morris is also noted commonly with St. Andrews golf course groundskeeping and course improvements.  Similar theory to farmers spreading manure over their fields to add nutrients to the soil, topdressing your lawn or garden adds nutrients to the soil (but not using manure, which the high nitrogen in manure can burn the grass and most plants). Adding material to help the soil absorb water better or on the other hand drain water better. The thickness of the material being spread varies on the purpose or goal, (enriching the soil, overseeding or leveling the lawn. The type of material to use will vary, along with the time of year to do topdressing. What material do you use? Materials that can be used for topdressing can be topsoil, compost, sand or a mixture of these materials. Topsoil or compost will help add nutrients to your soil, in an organic way. If the soil in your yard has low nutrients for growing grass or plants, the soil drains too fast to be absorbed by the grass or plants, topsoil or compost will help hold moisture to be absorbed by the plants and grass. When the topsoil was removed and subsoil is left to try and grow the lawn or garden, topsoil or compost can be spread over what is currently growing to get organic nutrients to the grass and plants, without removing everything and starting with bare soil. Alternatively, topdressing can be a part of a fertilizing program. Using sand for topdressing is known and talked about on golf courses, sports fields or the people who reel mow they’re lawns. But in any lawn or garden you can use sand, for leveling and smoothing a lawn (sand is the best way to level or smooth out an existing lawn) and if you are looking to smooth out or level or yard there are other steps before/after topdressing with sand which is another topic or blog post.  The other common use for topdressing with sand is to help improve poor draining clay soils, sand does hold water in some cases and in other cases sand lets water drain through it and firm up the soil, which is why sport fields and golf courses use sand instead of using topsoil compost or clay soil mixes. Soil Mixtures are made at some suppliers not every stone, mulch, soil supplier. Some clients laughed thinking soil mixtures is a made-up term because it’s rare for homeowners to hear, but golf courses, sports fields and in construction and land development use it and know it. Soil mixtures can have variable amount of topsoil, compost and/or sand, maybe be just two materials for drainage needs and erosion control. So, if you want to add nutrients and improve soil drainage, try a soil mixture. How thick do you spread material when Topdressing? The common rule for thickness is to never completely cover the blades of grass on a lawn, in a garden the more you cover seeds the longer it will take for the spout to poke through the surface. On lawns when you are reel mowing the blades of grass are under one (1”) inch tall, most lawns are taller in the two (2”) – three (3”) inch range and that would be a lot of material to spread. So, for most lawns a quarter of an inch (1/4”) of material is the average, but you can go thicker. If you are looking to fill low spots, holes or level your lawn, you can leave the tips of the grass blades above the topdressing material or even add grass seed to thicken the spot. The equipment to do Topdressing. For all of the equipment, the drier the material can be the better it will spread. Shovel- You can always just grab a shovel and spread by hand, either by shaking the shovel as if you are spreading chicken feed or a swinging throw motion getting the material to spread. Labor intensive, can pull a muscle or if your aim isn’t great, you get material clumped or thrown into areas you didn’t want. You can follow up using a stiff bristle push broom or rake to spread out clumps. But for a small yard or tight access this is a good choice. Manual walk/push topdresser or peat spreader/metal basket/grated roller. The roller/ basket/ peat spreader are the different names for the same tool, which is grated metal in the shape of a drum with an access door to fill by hand, then push/pull/or tow. These are available from (24”- 44”) twenty-four inches to forty-four inches (the sizes I’ve found), the wider the roller use a tractor or other machine to tow it. These will also screen the material again as you spread. Faster than using a shovel, spread material evenly and careful that it doesn’t roll away from you. The manual topdressers are smaller non-powered examples of the bigger powered topdressers, you push a hopper filled with your material of choice, as you push and roll the wheels, you spread the material in the same way as using a drop spreader for fertilizer. Evenly spreads the material like the bigger topdressers, but at a lower purchase cost. Heavier to push even on flat ground, holds as much as a roller. Self-powered and tow behind professional topdressers, different styles available on the market and for rent. Most of them have a conveyor in the bottom of the hopper switch moves the material towards agitators to loosen the material before it gets to the spreading device. The machines are available as self-propelled, ground contact tow behinds, PTO powered, or hydraulic powered. These machines have different ways to spread the material, a spinning disc like a traditional fertilizer spreader, and the others use a brush, a roller with a groove pattern on it or another set of agitators and all of these spin at a faster rate than the conveyor. The spinning disc style does clog with wet material (I have access to this style of topdresser), it also doesn’t perform well with a sandy mix either, does spread evenly when the material is dry and light. Narrow areas you would have to make or use deflectors, if you want to allow over spray. The machines with the other spreading style work well with most material you would spread, breaks up the material better for more even spreading the pattern that it spreads material is as wide as the machine is with minor overspray. These are expensive units but are very good at what they do. The process of topdressing. First, thatch and core aerate the lawn. You don’t want to cover up a thatch layer which could hold insects and disease, slow down nutrients getting down into the soil. Core aerate to have hole to fill with the topdressing material for it to work and mix into the surrounding soil. Then use a drag or a broom to get the material off the grass blades. Watering is preferred after, if you don’t have irrigation sprinklers or plan to do this before it rains. This also aids in getting the material off the grass blades and get washed into the soil. Depending on how big the lawn is and the thickness, is a lot of material even at a quarter of an inch (1/4”). When do you topdress? Spring or fall when the grass isn’t under heat stress and is growing regularly since you will have thatched and aerated before topdressing. Topdressing can also be done as part of overseeding or renovating of your lawn, not just to add nutrients but cover the seeds with the topdressing material, providing good soil to seed contact, less likely to be blown or washed away, keep some birds from picking at the seeds and hold some moisture around the seeds to help germination.

Have questions about lawn aeration, here are answers to common questions. What is aeration?: Lawn aeration helps loosen soil for better root growth by allowing water, air and nutrient to get below the surface of the ground and be absorbed by the root system. Over time the soil becomes compacted from a normal walking path through the lawn or even mowing the lawn the same pattern, different soil types compact differently, unusual situations of having objects roll over or sit on the lawn create compaction. The lawn becomes lumpy and bumpy walking on it and pushing the mower while mowing, (rolled ankles suck), holding on to a lawnmower that is bouncing around or pushing it through the low spots of the yard makes it frustrating. Aeration won’t smooth out the lawn surface immediately, loosening hard spots do slowly smooth out the lawns surface. To really smooth out a lawn is more involved. Hard soil surface will absorb some water but have more water run off the lawn surface, aeration allows water to flow into and fill the holes made and slow down water running off. Water run off also washes away granular fertilizer that hasn’t been absorbed, then the lawn misses out on nutrient and wasting money on fertilizer that didn’t get absorbed. Signs of needing aeration?: Unlike thatching where you can see the debris in the lawn, aerating the lawn can be overlooked or skipped with poor seeding results to follow. Now soil types and grass type are a factor. Heavy clay soils need more aeration then sandy lose soils, some grass types can grow well in compacted soil (especially if the soil has good nutrient). One sign is seeing water from rainfall or irrigation puddled on top or running through the grass blades, like water runs off concrete or pavement surfaces. A thinning lawn even when you fertilize, water and overseed without seeing any improvement. If you overseed a lawn and during watering or rainfall the seed washes away. These are some situations I have come across. When I look at a lawn whether it’s for just aeration or overseeding, I will pull a plug of just soil or soil with grass to check how hard the soil is to pull a plug, the type of soil below the surface and see how strong and deep the roots of the grass are. This is the best way to figure out if you need to aerate your lawn. When to aerate?: Commonly people are told and advertise late summer early fall is the time to aerate the lawn along with overseeding, for cool season lawns. Different grass types and parts of the country have different times for best results. Aerating in the spring isn’t a bad idea to get spring rain to absorb into the soil drawing fertilizer into the soil and filling in the holes before the heat of the summer. One major thing not to do is aerate in hot dry weather, (I aerated my lawn when heavy rain was predicted and storm clouds approaching and the storm broke up and no rain for 8 weeks), will dry out the soil and lawn. If your soil is heavy clay or the grass has bad roots, aerating multiple times a year can be done. If you are planning to overseed a lawn aeration is a good practice to loosen the soil and have holes for grass seed to wash into instead of washing away or easily picked by birds or other yard animals. Things to do after Aeration: Overseeding is well known, through advertising and somewhat tradition. Other actions to do with aeration is topdressing (your choice of material), which will help with nutrient, drainage, leveling and/or firm up the soil. Applying fertilizer, either to revive a dormant lawn in the spring or early fall. Of course, watering the lawn either in reviving from summer heat or deep watering to get better root growth. Aeration Equipment: Solid or spike aeration usually mounted on a tow behind drum or a 3-point hitch attachment on cam drive system (which are driving the hollow spikes straight up and down into the soil instead of on a rotating shaft). Either have a pointed end or a solid rod and are pressed or driven into the soil creating the aeration hole. On some golf courses and sports fields this helps surface water go deeper and reach underground field drainage. Leaves no mess after your done depending on the machine this can be the deepest way to aerate, depth can be set by a gauge or by how much weight is in or on the drum. Some say the pressure of the spikes going into the soil create compaction in the area around the spike hole, but then water filling the holes does soften as water is absorbed. Works on any soil type. Hollow (core) spikes (spoons) most common type of aeration style, self-propelled machines, ride-on, tow behind, 3-point attachment or cam driven machines (which are driving the hollow spikes straight up and down into the soil instead of on a rotating shaft). Some also have a mountable seed hopper. Hollow formed tubes all have a sharpened edge and are driven into the ground, then remove a small piece of grass or soil which is pushed out of the spike the next rotation into the ground.  Depth can be set by gauge or the weight of the machine, add more weight for more depth in heavily compacted soils. Leaves behind the cores that were pulled out of the ground, you can use these plugs to see what type of soil you have, do you have a thatch layer on top of the soil, and the roots of the grass (root mass thickness and depth the roots reach). Works on any soil type. Flat blades shaped like large shark teeth (Slicing). Self-propelled machines, 3-point attachments and tow behind units. Number of blades vary by size and capability of the machine. Rotating from a center shaft the blades are pushed into the soil leaving a thin slice in the soil. Depth is set by gauge or weight of the machine, add more weight for more depth or heavy compacted soil. The teeth can reach up to four inches. No mess left behind, by slicing your cutting the roots of the grass to help create a thicker root mass where each cut of roots you get at least two more roots from the cut is one benefit, less soil movement with it being a slice not a hole. Smaller space for water air and nutrient to get into, but creating a thicker root mass has benefits as well. If the soil is compacted and other aeration tools can’t be driven into the soil, these thin blades maybe what you need to start loosening the soil. Works on any soil type, used more on sport fields and golf courses. Aera-vators are made with solid spike tines that vibrate creating a hole and loosen the soil in the root zone. Becoming more popular usually available mounted on certain machines, 3-point PTO driven attachments and tow behind attachments. Some come with a mountable seed hopper and you can in one pass aerate loosen soil and seed at the same time. This is a good option if you are trying to bring a lawn back to life with the least amount of passes and big impact. Depth is set by gauge and the machines are heavy and wide so soft spots in the yard will be found and sharp grade changes in your yard may not get the same depth across the width. No cores to clean up just soft soil, if used on bare soil the end result looks like you tilled the soil. Highest level of reducing soil compaction and areas created for water, air, nutrients, and grass seed to reach the root zone. Works on any type of soil.

Watering is important for grass seed and sod. Daily watering for the first two weeks is important to keep the soil and seeds moist to start germination for seeds, and for sod the roots need to grow into the soil and need moist soft soil to grow into and take in water to keep from drying out. First two weeks water daily, unless more than a (1/2) half inch of rainfall has or is going to happen, these first two weeks the grass seed needs to be kept moist to start germination. After two weeks the 3rd and 4th weeks you can water every other day, depending on the temperature and amount of sun the lawn gets during the day. The 5th and 6th weeks watering every three to four days is fine as long as the grass doesn't show signs of drying out or signs of over watering. After six weeks watering as needed to keep the grass from drying out is fine. Now some people say new grass is fully established after two years from the time of planting. I think at least one year or keeping the new grass growing through one summer season, and getting it to recover in the fall as the grass being established. But the soil quality and fertilizing can vary new grass getting established. This leads me to say, during a “dry spell”, small “short” drought, or anytime seven days or more of less than (1/2) half an inch of rainfall, water your lawn at least one day, more than (1/2) half an inch of water, especially if you have a completely new lawn or a lawn that you are trying to fill a lot of it in for a thicker look. So, watering your lawn is needed even if it is established. Watering grass seed depends on how often you get rain that is over a 1/2 inch of rainfall, how well your soil holds moisture after it rains and how much sunlight the lawn gets during the day (shaded areas may not need to be watered as much as full sun areas). Soil quality (nutrient and beneficial bacteria to help establish new grass seed’s roots). During each watering a ½ inch of water is normal, you can always adjust watering to fit the needs of your lawn. Depending on the time of year you are seeding or sodding watering amounts may vary, adjust as needed for your yard. Grass seed and sod take months to be established and well rooted, high heat, drought and frost can stress it out months after planted and growing. Now sod needs a lot of water, I really mean it, sod needs a lot of water. It seems crazy at first to hear how much water sod needs but it is true, unless the sod is in full shade. If you see the sod grass blades look dry, it needs more water. On the flip side if water is pooling on top of the sod around the blades of grass or the grass blades at the base are starting to yellow, that’s a sign of too much water. The thin layer of soil with the sod, (if the sod comes from a sod farm), are all that is left of the root system that needs to stay wet enough to not dry out and soft enough to get the roots to grow down into the soil you just rolled the sod on to. Feeding or fertilizing new lawns or sod using starter fertilizer at the time of planting lasts six weeks. After six weeks a low dosage of regular fertilizer can be used or I recommend another dosage of starter fertilizer, easy to apply and gentle on the new grass and roots. (Starter fertilizer is always good to use on your lawn, if you’re unsure of what to use or anytime seed or sod has been put down). Depending on fertilizer sources you can have different options to choose from or even mail order (if your state allows mail order deliveries of fertilizers). Strong fertilizers can burn and kill off new growing grass. Weed and feed fertilizers will prevent grass seeds from sprouting, but now newer options to have a starter fertilizer with a weed preventer, that prevents new weeds and discolors current growing weeds, which slowing dry and die later. Those are the results I have seen with these new starter fertilizers with weed preventer. Mowing, can be done after the 4th week, if the grass is tall enough. Set your mowing height 4 inches or higher, avoid hard turns that could rip or tear the new grass, make your turns wide and gentle and bag the clippings so no clumps are sitting on top of the grass, for the first two mowings. On the third mowing you can mulch the clippings if you would like, 3 inch minimum for mowing height and still be gentle with turning, and for the rest of the mowing season you can either mulch the clippings or bag them. Avoid letting the lawn getting too tall and cutting a lot of the grass blade off in one mowing, this can burn new grass. Don’t let clippings make a thick or clumping layer on top of the lawn, the new grass is weak and can’t always be able to push through or stand up against a thick layer of clippings or clumps.

What is thatch? Below the green blades of grass and above the soil surface, is a layer of mixed debris of dead grass, grass clippings, surface roots, blades of grass that grow horizontally instead of vertically (lazy grass) and then leaves, sticks, tree nuts and half eaten sandwiches. Like a carpet or rug debris can settle into it and needs to be cleaned out. Having a thin thatch layer helps hold in moisture in the soil, keeping the lawn from quickly drying out in the summer and allows water, air, and fertilizer to pass through into the soil. The thatch does decompose and help feed healthy microbes in the soil making good soil to grow better grass. Less watering and fertilizer can be used since results will be seen quickly. Too much thatch slows down water, fertilizer and air passing through to the soil. Water will run off the grass to the surrounding yard carrying fertilizer that doesn’t work into the soil, which more fertilizer is needed to see results which are slow to see. Once watered the thatch becomes a sponge, leaving the lawn to feel always wet and rot the grass blades. Grass roots being to grow towards the thatch to get water, air and fertilizer that gets trapped in it. Shallow roots dry out during the summer faster, leading to the lawn drying out quickly needing more water. Lawn disease and fungus happens more often in thick thatch layers. Creating discolored grass color, spots on the grass blades, dead grass patches or dead thinning grass throughout the lawn. Insects like to populate in and under the thatch, which spread out the yard. Some insect activity is fine and normal, but having ant hills through the yard then are dug out by insect eating animals, that are always happy to be surprised (skunks for example). Signs of thatch buildup? Look at the grass, can you see the soil below? Do the blades of grass standup or do some grow along the ground and look like a fresh game of pickup sticks?  Walk on the grass does it feel soft and squishy? Take a knee and drag your fingers through the grass like a claw, do you have any debris or pale dead grass come out or random long blades of grass like a bad haircut? Or do you have signs of lawn disease, fungus or insect problems? If you see any of this, your lawn needs to be thatched. When to thatch? If you have an insect problem or a fungus/disease issue, maybe dead patches or dead thinning throughout the lawn. Remove the dead grass before treating. (If you don’t have a thatch layer, just fungus/disease or insect problem, no need to thatch). Problems like these happen throughout the growing season, treat as needed. Normally thatching is done in the spring or fall. Reasons as to why vary depending on the region you live in and grass type. Spring Thatching lifts up grass that has laid down during the colder dormant months or snow and ice on top of the grass blades, also get any leaves, sticks, tree nuts and other debris that blew on to the lawn out and not damage mower blades. If you use a dethatcher your lawn will have stripes for a nice clean look. Fall Thatching lifts up any grass blades that grew horizontally during the growing season, remove any clippings that didn’t break down and get leaves out that can prevent grass from growing and making a small bald spot in the lawn. Also, using a dethatcher will stripe your lawn, making your lawn look good until a blanket of snow, ice or heavy rain flattens out the grass during winter. These were the reasons I heard growing up, may vary by region and grass type. Thatching Equipment. Some types of thatching equipment ranging from inexpensive up to expensive. Starting with hand rakes, different shapes, sizes and build material. Great for small areas and/or hard to reach spaces. Steady pressure until your arms get tired. You can pick up the debris as you go. Purpose built thatching rakes are another hand tool with thin vertical blades that you push and pull through the lawn. Faster than a hand rake… (a little), same as hand rakes when your arms get tired you slow down and still have to pick up the debris as you go. Spring thatching mower blade, an aftermarket mower blade with one spring tine at each end of the blade. Usually for 21-inch rotary mowers. Ground pressure is set by the mower deck height. Can help pick up debris into the bag of the mower. I haven’t seen these blades in stores around me for anything other than a 21-inch mower. Good for small to medium yards or if you have tight gates or pathways to get to your lawn. Small cored electric dethatcher/verticutter (ex. sun joe) non-commercial machine depending on how many extension cords you have you could cover a lot of ground with these machines. Like the more common gas-powered power rake dethatchers, also you can switch drums from a spring tine drum or a verticutter drum easily, and are cheaper to own and easier to store in sheds or garages. Quicker and more towards a professional level of results. You have to pick up debris after. Tine rake dethatcher attachments for lawn mowers, can either be front mounted or tow behind. Can be used on small to large yards, you do need a self-propelled/ride-on mower, tractor or UTV/ATV. Spring tines are pushed or dragged through the lawn. Great for helping maintain a healthy thatch layer, multiple and alternating passes over the lawn would need to be done to remove as much thatch as a power rake dethatcher. Can pick up the debris as you go, if it’s a front mounted rake. Gas powered dethatcher/power rake/lawn comber most noticeable and common of all thatching equipment. Gas powered, unlike the sun joe cored electric unit. Various widths sold and even a tow behind extra wide units, these machines can have spring tine drums, flail blade drum or a verticutter (fixed blade) drum. Size and drum style vary depending on availability in your area. Good on any size yard, can easily adjust drum height to lightly rake through the grass or go into the surface of the topsoil, just be careful these machines can remove most grass or weak rooted grass leaving you with almost no lawn. Depending on the health and look of your lawn could be what you need to start getting a better lawn. You after to pick up debris after. Another type of equipment are rotary brooms. Sizes vary from narrow trimmer attachments or mounts, walk behind models, machine mounted and tow behind models. Stiff bristles pulled out debris out. Height adjustment can be done of ground pressure, smaller units may come with wheel kits depending on manufacturer. Size of the yard varies by the size of the broom. These can also be used for other tasks besides thatching throughout the year. How to Thatch:  Mow your lawn low, at least two and a half inches (2.5”), make it easier to get the thatch and debris out, no matter which tools or equipment you use and bag the clippings. Rake out any tight areas that you can’t reach with bigger equipment, then thatch the lawn. Next depends on how much thatch is pulled out of the lawn which determines if you (need/or should) thatch again in a different direction. One pass with the equipment may have been all you needed to do on the other hand a lot of thatch is now on top of the lawn and you can’t go over the lawn until the thatch is picked up off the lawn to see if you need to remove more thatch. Picking up the thatch, can be done by raking into piles and moving the piles, use your lawnmower to bag the thatch or use a lawn vacuum. After all of that, one more time over the lawn with either your lawnmower with the bag on or a lawn vacuum to pickup any leftover thatch and trim up any long grass that was hiding in the lawn.

As the name implies, cleaning up the yard in spring. Depending on how long winter snow takes to melt and ground temperature warming up to allow leaves not be frozen to the ground can change from year to year. Your yard may have stayed clean during the winter and a few details are needed to get your yard looking fresh and ready for warm spring weather. Or your yard has leaves that blow in from everywhere and fallen branches to clear away. A “Normal” or “Basic” Spring Cleanup is blowing out garden beds to clear out any leaves and other debris that blew in during the winter, pick out the other debris (sticks, trash, etc.). With the leaves out on the lawn I use vacuum bagging systems on my mowers, to not only pick up the leaves, but also lift leaves and other lose debris out of the lawn.  Bagging mower blades (High lift style) or a lawn/Leave vacuum will do the just about the same. Now doing more than just “Normal or Basic”, I recommend raking the lawn in the spring and here are a few reasons this is a good idea. One, get the debris out of the lawn “Light Thatching”, when debris works its way into the blades of grass it creates a small bare spot which then leaves a spot for weeds to start growing, you step on it while walking or trip, or if it’s a small stick, stone, rock or wood chip the “One in a Million” situation your mower hits one of these and shoots it out of under the deck at anything or anyone around you. If you have an area of grass that gets snow piled on “the lawn at the edge of the road or sidewalk”, the pile of snow flattens the blades of grass, raking will fluff and stand the grass backup to get growing again. Scratch the soil’s surface, making little grooves for spring rain and fertilizer to work through and not just run off the lawn. Get the blades of grass to stand up and not grow horizontally blocking fertilizer, water and air from getting to the soil surface. I use front mounted tine rakes on my mowers and you stripe the lawn for a nice look while you’re getting the yard cleaned up. Other landscape tasks that can be done or added to a Spring Cleanup. -Trimming any trees, shrubs or hedges that received damage during the winter, either from an ice storm, heavy snow, or high winds. A fresh trim, cable and brace back into shape, on the other hand just a fresh trimming to start the season. -Cleaning out garden beds, besides getting the leaves out of the garden beds, cutting back last year’s growth from perennials, remove annuals, or cut down ornamental grasses. Some people have garden beds cleaned out in the fall, and some wait until spring or during the winter (if there is no snow on the ground of course). -Garden bed edging, trimming the lawn edges against sidewalks or driveways for a crisp clean look to start the outdoor season, plus the debris from edging can be picked up along with the other yard debris. -Another garden bed task is dealing with the mulch. If the mulch is still in good condition or you had fresh mulch applied in the fall, “fluffing” the mulch. “Fluffing” the mulch is using a rake, small cultivator (garden weasel) or a push broom to stir up the mulch to bring back the color it was when you first spread it and loosen it up to look like fresh mulch. If the color has faded in the mulch but the wood fibers haven’t decomposed, a mulch color spray can be used to bring back the color of fresh-looking mulch. On the other hand, you may need to spread a new layer of mulch, or remove the old layer of mulch and then spread a new layer of mulch. Early spring is a good time to spread mulch before your perennials or spring bulbs start growing, that way you can quickly spread the mulch and the plants will grow through the mulch layer. -Lawn aeration can be done with a spring cleanup, if you don’t have irrigation spring aeration will allow spring rain water and any fertilizer to reach the roots of the lawn to have a healthy lawn before the hot summer. You can follow the aeration with topdressing or overseed the lawn. If you do overseed the lawn in the spring be sure to use a fertilizer that allows the grass seed to germinate, most early spring fertilizers have weed control that works towards preventing crabgrass, dandelions and other common weeds but will prevent grass seed from germinating. So, check and read the labels to find a fertilizer that will control weeds but let grass seeds germinate, if you use a traditional spring fertilizer most say on their labels to not plant grass seed for thirty (30) or forty-five (45) days after applying. -Brush mowing/control with the leaves off of the brush to see what your cutting, on the other hand avoid rocks or forgotten metal objects hidden by the leaves. Poison Ivy still has oil in the stems, but in colder weather wearing long sleeves and pants reduces the chance of getting the itchy rash. Stinging pests like hornets and wasps are less likely to be active in the cold weather. A nice benefit is you can use your lawnmower to keep brush from growing back if you mow it down when you cut your grass to slow or prevent regrowth. -Stump grinding is always in season, but since you are already cleaning up the yard have stumps removed, either from old shrubs in the garden or tree stumps in the lawn. The chips from grinding the stumps can be either covered by mulch in the garden beds or the stumps in the lawn can be cleaned out, filled with dirt and spread grass seed or sod. These are tasks that customers have asked for over the years to have completed when performing a Spring Cleanup. Depending on the area, climate and environment you live in, other task may or may not be offered or done for many reasons, but if you do your own cleanup or hire a contractor to do a cleanup, you can plan about having these other tasks done at that same time. Before you know it summer weather will arrive and wouldn’t you rather enjoy the warm weather and not be sweating working on the yard?