Although places like Old Poway Park, Blue Sky Reserve, and Twin Peaks Trail are great for visiting once in a while, it's hard to deny that sitting in your yard on a summer afternoon is way more relaxing and therapeutic. You feel a sense of safety in your own home that you don't feel anywhere else. This is a major reason why people want lush yards to relax, workout, and party in. In Poway, this trend is far more prevalent than in many other cities because the area is very open with a lot of greenery.
Whatever your reasons for being interested in lawn care, you should know that doing it will not be as easy as you might think. The soil in most of San Diego is very clay-like and unfavorable for the growth of many kinds of grass. Moreover, the semi-arid climate with an average of 13 inches of annual rainfall (about one-third of the U.S average) is not really conducive to the survival and growth of ornamentals. Therefore, if you're thinking of getting your hands dirty with lawn care, your first course of action should be improving the quality of its soil. A lot of techniques like fertilization, appropriate irrigation, aeration, and mulching can improve the quality of your soil.
The problems working with clay soil
The composition of soil varies from region to region. Samples of soil from two separate cities might differ in a lot of features, an important one of which is the size of soil particles. Soil can be classified as clay, silt, and sand, in the order of increasing particle size. The smaller the soil particles, the more tightly they are packed. Thus, clay soil, such as that in Poway, has the following challenges with respect to lawn care.
1.Hardness
Be it wet or relatively dry, soil containing large amounts of clay tends to be hard. It can be so firm, in fact, that the roots of your grass are unable to penetrate through it and spread. If you have difficulty digging your yard with a shovel, this might be an indication of large amounts of clay.
2.Poor drainage
As the small soil particles in clay are densely packed, they clump together to form chunks of dirt that contain an appreciable quantity of water but don't allow it to seep through the soil. Hence, clay absorbs water very slowly, with much of it forming puddles on its surface when you water your lawn.
3.Low level of air
Again, the interparticle spaces in clay are much less abundant than sand and silt. Therefore, air can enter clay only minutely. This deprives the roots of the much-needed oxygen and stunts their growth.
4.Easy compaction
Clay is easy to mold and change in shape. In areas of your lawn with a lot of foot traffic, the soil can become compacted. Compaction worsens the problems of hardness, poor water absorption, and the lack of air that are already pretty bad in clay soils.
5.Alkalinity
Clay tends to be alkaline, perhaps due to the plenitude of basic metallic oxides in it. Although mild alkalinity can benefit some plants, you should keep the soil pH close to neutral, which is beneficial for a much wider collection of grasses and ornamentals.
The pros can help you run soil tests and lawn checks that can make the diagnosis of these issues much easier and quicker. You can then employ their help to devise an effective strategy to deal with such problems.
Things to keep in mind while maintaining a Poway lawn
From lawn care novices to those who have been doing this for a long time, everybody has room for improvement. Lawn Love has gathered some of the best tips to help homeowners in Poway get an enviably lush lawn.
1.Irrigate in the afternoon
San Diego is a warm place, especially in June, July, and August. There is also an ever-existing shortage of water. In such conditions, you have to irrigate your lawn wisely. Preferably use sprinklers instead of a hosepipe for this purpose and try to do it in the afternoon. The reason is simple: If you water it in the morning or at noon, the midday heat will evaporate most of the water. This is a huge waste.
2.Aerate annually
As we have already mentioned before, the clay soil of Poway is easy to compact. You should, therefore, aerate it at least once a year before you plant new grass for the next season.
3.Apply acidic fertilizers
Acidic fertilizers will help lower the pH of your alkaline soil, not only helping the plants grow but also making it favorable for soil-residing decomposers to reproduce.
4.Clean regularly
Lush lawns are pleasant to look at, but a neat one is far superior in beauty. Use a rake to gather fallen leaves, check for blockages in the pipes and gutters, and remove any other debris from your lawn to help its deep green color pop out.
5.Mow high
Mowing the grass too short can cause quite a lot of damage, which you can't afford in the early stages of establishing a new lawn. Take care to leave at least 3 inches of grass when you mow. Plants use their leaves for making their food and transpiration. Cutting its blades too short can put immense stress on the grass, especially when the water supply is also restricted.
Lawn Love is a platform that offers you a convenient way to find some of the best providers of Poway lawn care. They can not only make your lawn look its very best, but also advise you on how to do it yourself. So, hop on our website and begin the process!
