Expert Guide To Lawn Care

February 20, 2025

Your lawn is a crucial part of your landscape’s aesthetic appeal. It’s just a patch of green grass, and most of the time, people won’t notice it very much–that is until it starts to look unsightly.


Lawns are one of those things where people take for granted that they should look great all the time, so when they don’t, they really stand out.


Unfortunately, lawn care isn’t as simple as just lawn mowing. Lawn mowing does make up a large part of lawn maintenance, but without other maintenance, your lawn is soon going to fall apart.


So if you’re looking to learn how to keep your lawn in tip-top condition all the time, let’s begin. Alternatively, feel free to contact
Louisville Landcape Pros for a hassle-free, hands-off solution.


1. Mowing

Since mowing is going to make up the largest part of your lawn maintenance routine, let’s start with that first.


Your Grass Type

You may or may not know this depending on how involved you are with your lawn, but there are two main grass types for lawns–cool season and warm season grasses.


Cool-season grasses are used for regions where winters are colder and summers are milder.


Warm-season grasses are best for regions where winters are milder and the summers are hotter.


Warm-season and cool-season grasses have different active growth seasons, mowing requirements, water requirements, and so on, so you need to know your lawn grass type to be able to tailor your maintenance.


Frequency

Cool-season grasses grow the most in spring and fall, but even warm-season grasses still grow steadily during these seasons, so weekly mowing is recommended, whether it’s warm or cool-season grasses you have.


In summer, this is when warm-season grasses grow the most actively, so you’ll need to mow once every 5-7 days, and possibly even more if you see them growing extremely quickly.


For cool-season grasses, their growth slows down in the summer, so you should only need to mow once every 7-10 days.


In the winter, even the growth of cool-season grasses will slow down a lot, so whether it’s cool or warm-season grasses, you should only need to mow once every few weeks, or even none at all if your grass is in dormancy.


So those are general guidelines for each season. However, there can be exceptions. You may need to mow more or less often depending on your grass species.


You’ll know it’s time to mow when the grass blades are getting long or bending over, or if you see uneven patches.


How To Mow

A Louisville homeowner mowing his lawn using an electric lawn mower

Each grass will have an ideal height, so your goal should always be to maintain it at that height. However, there’s really no one height that fits all grasses, so you’ll need to read up and research your grass type’s ideal height.


Never cut more than a third of your grass height in a single mow, as if you cut too much, your grass may not have enough leaf surface area to photosynthesize and get enough food.


This also means that you shouldn’t let your grass exceed 1.5 times of its recommended height, or you’ll have to mow more than a third of it to get it back to its ideal height.


When mowing, make sure the blades are sharp so that they cut cleanly rather than pull at the grass, which can damage them and make them less healthy.


2. Watering

Now for the watering, you want to water deeply each time to encourage deeper root growth and overall better plant health.


Aim for 1-1.5 inches of water per week, and split it into 2 or 3 sessions per week. Don’t try to water less and more frequently, as that will lead to more shallow roots and weaker plants.


You want to water deeply and you want the water to stay in your soil, so 5-10 am is usually a good time to water as that’s when the sun isn’t up yet, so minimal water will be lost to evaporation.


These are good rules of thumb and should work for most lawns, but there can be exceptions.


Look out for water pools or mushy ground, as that means you’re overwatering. If instead, you see your grass blades start to wither and curl up, that means you’re not watering enough.



3. Fertilization

For fertilization, here’s when you should be applying fertilizer and how much for warm and cool-season grasses.


Spring

At this point, cool-season grasses are beginning to start actively growing, so you need to help their growth, starting with light fertilization, and then moderate fertilization in late spring.


Even though they’re actively growing, we don’t want to cause fertilizer burn, so it’s best not to do heavy fertilization as they will be coming out of dormancy.


For warm-season grasses, they’ll only begin actively growing in the summer, so not much fertilization will be needed.


Since you’ll want the fertilizer to start taking effect in the summer, you can begin light fertilizing in late spring. No fertilization whatsoever will be needed in early spring.


Summer

In the summer, this is the best season for warm-season grasses to grow super actively, so you want to heavily fertilize your warm-season grasses.


For cool-season grasses, their growth will slow down a lot, so just light fertilization will suffice.


Fall

A sun setting in the horizon during the fall season

When fall comes, it’s time for cool-season grasses to take the limelight. Fall is usually cooler than spring, which is why cool-season grasses grow the most actively in this season.


Of course, you should be heavily fertilizing cool-season grasses in this season to support their growth.


On the other hand, as you’d expect, warm-season grasses slow down their growth in this season, so just light fertilization is necessary.


Winter

Finally, during the winter, neither cool-season nor warm-season grasses are growing very much, and cool-season grasses tend to go into dormancy, so there’s no need to fertilize either grass type.


4. Aeration

Soil health isn’t often the first thing people think of when it comes to maintenance, but it’s an important component nonetheless. Without healthy soil, no matter how perfectly you water your lawn or how much fertilizer you give it, your grass isn’t going to grow very well.


Over time, even if your soil is initially healthy, it can become compacted, which means fewer gaps for water, nutrients, and even oxygen to reach the roots.


To test if your soil is compacted, try to drive a screwdriver into the soil. If it’s unusually hard to insert, chances are, your soil is compacted.


When this happens, you need to aerate your soil.


However, while it may seem logical to address the issue immediately, it’s actually better to wait till your grass is more actively growing.


This is because aeration, while beneficial in the long run, actually cuts away some of your grasses’ roots in the process, so in the short term, they need some time to recover.


This can be hard if they’re in slower growing seasons, especially when sunlight is scarce. As such, you’ll want to perform the aeration in the seasons where they’re actively growing so that they can regrow these roots and recover more quickly.


For cool-season grasses, this will be in the fall, while for warm-season grasses, this will be in late spring.


The reason why it’s better to aerate warm-season grasses in the spring rather than summer is that if you aerate them in the summer, even though that’s their peak growth season, the heat still adds additional stress.


As such, ideally, you want them to be able to use the period in late spring when they’re ramping up for summer growth to recover from the aeration.


5. Weed Control

Landscaper from Louisville Landscape Pros pulling out weeds by hand for a client

A lush, healthy lawn will naturally suppress the growth of weeds by competing with it for resources like water and sunlight.


But if that isn’t enough, you can either employ herbicides or opt for natural remedies like a vinegar solution. Natural remedies will do for less serious weed invasions, but for more severe cases, you’ll likely need to use herbicides.


6. Pest Control

Similar to weeds, more severe situations will warrant the use of chemical pesticides or insecticides. But for milder cases, chemical-free solutions will do. These include:

  • Traps
  • Diatomaceous Earth
  • Encouraging pest predators
  • Neem oil spray



Conclusion

Alright, we’ve covered all the important parts of lawn maintenance, so you should be well-equipped to keep your lawn in peak condition in all seasons.


Before we end off, one final tip is to keep an eye on your soil health. Like we explained earlier, you can do everything right and still not have a healthy lawn if your soil isn’t healthy.


As such, even if your lawn is healthy, it’s good to do a soil test every two years or so just to make sure that it’s still healthy, because you don’t want to wait till your lawn starts to show signs of distress to remedy it. Prevention is better than cure.


And if neccessary, of course, amend the soil as needed. As long as you’re doing your soil tests and the rest of your maintenance tasks, you’ll have a lush, green lawn all year-round (except winter of course).

You might also like

Low-maintenance rental property landscape with an artificial turf and native plants
March 26, 2025
Landscaping can bring up the value of your rental property and help you fetch a higher price on the market. However, while tenants may appreciate the landscaping, your tenants likely aren't going to place a huge focus on it since it's not their place and they won't be staying there permanently. As such, it doesn't make sense for you as a landlord to invest heavily in landscaping . You still want the landscaping to bring up the value of your home though. So the key is to find a balance of enhancing your aesthetics to boost curb appeal while not overdoing it to the point where tenants wouldn't be willing to pay more for a nicer outdoor space. This means you should be focusing on cost-effective landscaping projects that can help you get a better price for your rental home and that don't require too much maintenance. Here are the best landscape projects for rental properties as well as some additional considerations when landscaping your rental property. Important Considerations When you landscape your rental property, you don't want to create an outdoor space that requires lots of maintenance. Otherwise, you'll either have to be the one doing the maintenance work or have to hire a professional landscaper to do it, which is extra cost. The point of landscaping is to allow you to earn more from your property, so it doesn't make sense if you're going to end up earning less from your property than you would if you didn't have to perform the landscape maintenance in the first place. Still, no landscape in the world can require zero maintenance. The key is to make this maintenance minimal so that you can easily do it yourself and the maintenance work will only need to be done ideally only once per month or even quarterly. The watering of plants is usually a key concern though as it needs to be done daily. Landlords will need to make it clear whether the tenant is expected to water the plants. If you want to make your property more attractive to your tenants, it's worth investing in irrigation systems that can automate the watering as well as reduce the maintenance burden on you if you're the one doing the maintenance. Finally, make sure not to have any particularly expensive features and elements, whether it's for your outdoor area or in your own home. Your tenant’s stay should be comfortable, so bigger investments like a good temperature control system that enhances their living experience are fine and will fetch you a higher price. However, expensive elements, especially those that don't add much or any practical value, should be avoided. First of all, while we don't want to question their integrity, expensive items create the temptation for theft. More importantly though, you can't assume that your tenants will take good care of your place like you do. After all, it's not their place. You should have taken two months’ deposit or so from them and set it aside to cover any necessary repairs, but even so, it's simply not worth investing in unnecessarily expensive items that won't help you get a higher price. An affordable resin-wicker outdoor sofa will do the same job as an expensive leather one. And both would likely get you the same price for your home. The point is, don't invest in unnecessarily expensive elements that won't serve much practical purpose. Now that you know what to keep in mind when landscaping your rental property, let's go over the best projects to fetch you a better price. 1. Outdoor Living Spaces
A fire-resistant landscape segregated into clear defensible zones
March 17, 2025
Wildfires have always been an issue, but in recent years, they have begun to happen more and more frequently. While you might believe the chances of it happening to you are low, it’s always better to be safe and sorry. Fire-resistant landscaping slows the spread of wildfires and can significantly reduce any potential fire damage and the chances of fires reaching your home. While fire-resistant landscaping won’t be able to fully stop wildfires, especially more serious ones, it will slow down the spread and intensity as it reaches your home, giving you crucial time to escape or for firefighters to arrive and do their work. Even for urban homes, fire-resistant landscaping can lower the chances of accidental fires from loose embers or cigarette butts.  In short, fire-resistant landscaping significantly enhances your home’s fire safety, whether you’re living in an urban or rural area. If you’re wondering how to do this, you’re in luck. For those looking for a professional to help them out, our team of experts at Louisville Landscape Pros will be glad to help you out. For those looking to perform the fire-resistant landscaping themselves though, in this article, we’re going to be covering exactly how to go about keeping your home protected from wildfires and regular fires. Key Principles First off, this article isn’t going to be exhaustive. There’s going to be things that we don’t cover. But by knowing the key principles, you can apply them to come up with your own strategies to make your outdoor space fire-resistant. 1. Defensible Zones
Beautiful garden in summer landscaped by Louisville Landscape Pros
March 12, 2025
If your landscape only looks great in the spring, fall, and summer, you're missing out on winter, which means your landscape is 25% less effective aesthetically as it could be. Or worse, some people’s gardens only look good in the spring and fall, not even in the summer, which means a 50% loss of effectiveness. So why waste your outdoor space’s potential? With a little thought and smart landscaping, you can turn your outdoor space into a year-round stunning oasis. Read on to find out how! (Or feel free to contact Louisville Landscape Pros ) 1. Spring Spring is the first season after winter when everything wakes up, so you want to start things off with a bang. This means vibrant colors and landscaping to ensure you're creating the best environment for your plants to emerge strong. Plants This is the season for bold, vibrant colors and flowers. And needless to say, they should bloom in spring. This means plants like daffodils, azaleas, petunias, and so on. As you’re choosing your spring-blooming plants, make sure to take note of when they bloom and for how long, as certain varieties only bloom for a few weeks. Then, incorporate a variety of plants if needed to ensure that your garden will have color throughout the season. Pruning & Trimming Pruning and trimming are key maintenance tasks as your plants will be looking to maximize any nutrients they have to have a strong start. As such, it’s imperative that you cut away any damaged or dead parts so that no nutrients and energy will be wasted on those pointless parts. Pruning and trimming also gives you more vibrant plants, as naturally, healthier plants grow better. Your Lawn Part of what makes your garden and landscape beautiful is your lawn. Your lawn is usually just there, green and pristine, until it’s not. Most people take a lush, green lawn for granted, but the moment there are any issues, any defects, they’re quite noticeable and will ruin your aesthetics. Since your lawn, like the rest of your garden, is just emerging from winter, it's crucial that you give it the support it needs to emerge strong. You don’t want to overfertilize it, but setting a good foundation and allowing your lawn to emerge strong is key to its overall health for the rest of the seasons. Assuming you’ve done your fall prep properly, your lawn should have a headstart already, but it’s still important to do some extra work to ensure your lawn is set up for success. First off, due to the cold and inactivity, winter can freeze your soil and cause it to become compacted, and there may also be a layer of thatch that blocks essentials like air and water from reaching your roots. As such, dethatching and aeration may be needed if you see that water seems to be pooling up and if the layer of thatch is more than 0.5 inches. Then, as mentioned earlier, to aid its growth, apply slow-release fertilizer to give it the nutrients it needs to thrive. The winter may also leave some gaps or cause some thinning. If that’s the case, you should also overseed any areas that are lacking to ensure your lawn is healthy all around. 2. Summer
More Posts
Share by: