Having a healthy and gorgeous lawn doesn’t have to be an expensive task. You can keep your garden looking beautiful well into the fall months without breaking your budget.
I’ll show how to care for your lawn on a budget. In this post, you’ll learn a handful of tips and tricks that will help you have a lush lawn that your neighbors will envy.
1. Maintain Your Own Lawn
This first tip may sound obvious, but many people think that they must hire a lawn care company to get a beautiful lawn. However, the costs can add up over the summer season, with the average person spending a lot of money on lawn maintenance.
Maintaining your lawn on your own won’t cost nearly as much money, and you can get pretty good results without a lot of work. All you need is a few general tools and supplies, a little time, and some simple advice to have a healthy and green lawn.
2. Don’t Over Mow Your Lawn
If you cut your lawn too short, you’re leaving it vulnerable to several problems. These include weed growth, heat and scorching, and drought.
Ideally, you want your lawn to stay around two inches long all season. This is easy to maintain if you adjust the height of your cutting deck on your lawnmower. Most mowers have this option available.
When you cut your lawn, you can also save even more money this season by switching to a cordless electric lawnmower. You won’t have to worry about gas to run it, and it operates on batteries, so it uses little electricity. Plus, these machines cut grass just as good as their gas-powered counterparts, if not better.
To see what’s available, take a look at my best cordless electric lawn mower reviews. This has a list of the top five mowers you can buy today.
3. Fertilize Twice Per Year
You need to feed and nourish your lawn to jump-start the growing season and to get it ready for the winter months. This application of fertilizer can help to control weed growth, heal any damage, protect the roots, and promote healthy growth.
You can find an organic-based fertilizer at nurseries, plant stores, or hardware stores. A light application in the spring and fall is enough to sustain your lawn.
4. Make Your Own Fertilizer
A single bag of fertilizer is expensive, especially if you need two or three bags to cover your entire yard. You can make your own fertilizer mix that’s cheap, and you can make it in larger quantities.
If you have a freshwater fish tank, you can pour the dirty water onto your lawn for excellent fertilizer. Coffee grounds, eggshells, Epsom salts, and green tea are also great fertilizer components. Just remember that less is more.
5. Avoid Watering Too Much
It’s very easy to overwater your lawn. Overwatering can lead to weak grass, and it can make it prone to more diseases. It can also cost you spending too much on your water bill.
One of the tricks to having a lush lawn is to water more infrequently but for more extended periods. The goal is to give your lawn about one inch of water a week.
To do this, you can get a WiFi smart sprinkler controller and set it to run once or twice per week for an extended length of time. A good time is at dusk or dawn, so the water doesn’t get evaporated by the sun.
To learn more about this sprinkler system, take a look at my reviews of the best WiFi sprinkler controller. You’ll find an assortment of products that can save you money while getting the job done effectively.
6. Make and Use Your Own Insect Spray
A lot of store-bought insect sprays can contain strong chemicals that can be bad for your pets, family, and the surrounding environment.
You can make your own insect spray without using harsh chemicals, and it’s more cost-effective as well.
Mixing soap and water can deter whiteflies, aphids, and mites. A mix of equal parts fresh garlic, cayenne pepper, and water can deter beetles and cabbage loopers.
7. Aerate Your Lawn Twice Per Year
When you aerate your lawn, you’re giving your lawn several useful benefits at once.
Aeration allows air to reach your lawn’s roots, facilitates good nutrient absorption, and it improves the water penetration levels.
You should aerate your lawn once in the early spring months and again in the late fall to get it ready for winter. You can rent an aerating machine for cheap, and you can reduce the cost further by splitting it with a neighbor.
8. Reduce Your Yard Area With Plants
Is your yard too large for you to upkeep all spring and summer long? You can reduce the area you have to upkeep and maintain by putting in flower beds and borders.
If there’s an area that isn’t great for growing grass, add hardy groundcover or plants with a layer of mulch. It’s an inexpensive way to add texture and color to your lawn. You can buy mulch in several different colors, and it’ll help to hold the moisture in.
9. Let the Grass Clippings Work For You
If you don’t have a bag attachment for your lawnmower, you may be tempted to go around and pick up all of the lawn clippings.
However, these lawn clippings can actually do some of the fertilizing work for you. They’re a source of natural fertilizer as well as natural mulch. These clippings promote healthy lawn growth and help your lawn retain any moisture.
10. Don’t Mow the Same Way Twice
When you mow your lawn, go in different directions each time you mow. This can help to expose all of your grass’s sides to the elements.
Mowing this way also helps to reduce matting, and it reduces the possibilities that you end up with ruts. You should notice a greener lawn along with fewer weeds because the soil will be less compacted.
Bottom Line…
As you can see, these lawn care tips are simple and easy to do and can help you have a beautiful lawn without breaking your budget. As long as you take care of your yard all season long, you’ll end up with healthy and beautiful green grass all summer long.
