Maintain a healthy lawn

Lush, thick grass -- it's the pride of many homeowners. Follow these common-sense guidelines for a healthy, manicured lawn.

Mowing
Mowing causes stress -- and stressed grass weakens lawns, making them more susceptible to invasion by pests and disease. Bearing in mind that no more than one-third of the length of the grass blades should be cut during a single mowing, cut your lawn with a sharpened mower to a height of about three centimetres during cool periods of the growing season and to five centimetres during the hot summer months. Shadier areas should be cut slightly higher.

Make your first spring cut only when the grass is about six to seven centimetres high to give the roots a chance to regenerate, and make your last cut of the fall when the weather becomes cold enough to stop the grass from growing.

Watering
Grass is smart. Grass will send you a signal when it needs water -- the blades turn a darker green and fold inward. When this happens, water deeply. How deep is deep? Generally, water to a soil depth of 15 to 20 centimetres. Depending on the type of soil you have, this translates into about 2.5 centimetres of water. (This is where a rain gauge comes in handy.) Watering deeply like this encourages a healthy, deep root system.