Post category: Lawn and Meadow

 

Grass takes up the largest part of most gardens, covering the soil and leaving the space available for a variety of leisure purposes. But a lawn has a major decorative role too. A well-laid and well-maintained lawn is an ornamental feature in itself and it is a very fine foil for trees, shrubs and flowers in surrounding beds and borders.

 

 

Lawn and Meadow
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Fertiliser and lawn weedkiller are used to encourage vigorous grass growth in a fine lawn. Regular mowing achieves the smooth surface that is such an important aspect of the ornamental value of a lawn.

The shape of lawn can be very important. A lawn with straight edges or geometric curves gives the garden a formal appearance, while a lawn with sweeping gentle curves is more informal and decorative in a different way.

Where a more natural appearance is required, a wild flower lawn, or wildflower meadow can be grown. A wild flower lawn is one where the broad-leaved lawn ‘weeds’ are not killed with weedkiller but encouraged by little or no feeding, just an application every two or three years of high potash/low nitrogen fertiliser. Mowing is not carried out as frequently, giving the wild flowers time to flower between mowings.

 

 

Lawn and Meadow
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Best suited to large gardens, wildflower meadow is not mown at all until July and then just three or four times more; no fertiliser or lawn weedkiller is used. The first heavy mowing requires a rough grass mower or sickle bar mower, which can be hired.

With a flowering meadow, the aim is to reduce the vigour of grass growth and encourage wildflowers such as cowslips, clovers, birdsfoot trefoil, poppies, and oxeye daisies on dry soil; self-heal, bugle, cuckoo flower, buttercup and hawkbit on damp soil.