Monty Don’s gardening tips: Love your lawn! Simple tricks to bring it back to …

By
Monty Don

PUBLISHED:

17:30 EST, 22 March 2013

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UPDATED:

17:30 EST, 22 March 2013

Monty Don’s tips for lawn-loving

After the soggy, miserable winter we’ve had, your lawn might be looking a little sad, but it’s starting to grow again and will soon be flourishing.

However, there are a few things that are easy to do to get it looking its best, whether it is a long-established lawn or a brand new area you are planning to make – because the next few weeks is the best time to sow or turf any new grass.

If you are growing grass from seed you must decide first between a perfect lawn or one that will withstand hard wear and tear. The two are pretty much incompatible.

A hardwearing lawn, suitable for family rough and tumble and more casual care will be based upon ryegrass, while the perfect, sacrosanct swathe of green will be mainly chewings fescue.

Shady soil needs a special mix of seed. If in doubt, ryegrass mixes are much cheaper than grass for fine lawns and price is likely to be as accurate an indicator of what you are buying as anything else.

When you buy turf it should be moist, green, reasonably thin and weed-free. Long rolls are better than short slabs of turf because they dry out more slowly.

Try to get your turf delivered on the same day as you’re planning to lay it, but if you have it delivered more than 48 hours before you can use it, unroll the turf on any surface and then water it well.

The secret of a good lawn is lots of sun, moisture and good drainage.

Provide those three things and the grass is guaranteed to thrive, and where grass thrives almost all else will play second fiddle, including moss, daisies, thistles, bents, buttercups and dandelions.

Sunlight can be increased by cutting back shading branches, moisture is rarely a problem in this country but drainage is the hardest to provide and maintain because the very act of walking on a lawn – let alone riding bikes or playing football or whatever else you may use it for – will compact the soil.

This is why it’s a good idea to aerate the turf each autumn and spring by prodding it all over with a fork and brushing in sand if the soil is heavy.

When it comes to mowing the lawn, the most harm that you can do is to cut it too short. The healthiest height for grass is about 2½cm (1in) – much longer than most people regularly mow down to.

Also, do not take too much off in one go, especially at this time of year. A light trim will make a dramatic difference – and be much quicker than a less frequent scalping.

ASK MONTY: Our gardening expert answers your toughest questions

Q I recently moved and took two cuttings from my beautiful wisteria. Miraculously, they took and are now growing in 3in plastic pots. I water them once a week. What should I do next?
Mrs SE Hughes, Broughton in Furness, Cumbria

A I suggest repotting into a (23cm) 9in pot and letting them develop this year in a sunny, sheltered spot. They can then be planted in their final position next spring.

Q I cut back my winter-flowering jasmine to a few inches after flowering last year and it has regrown to only a third of its normal size with few flowers. Did I cut it back too much?
Mrs GA Knight, Southend, Essex

A Normally a hard prune would mean cutting it back to within a couple of feet of the ground – rather than a few inches – but it will recover its normal size and floriferousness in a year or two.

Q I have had an aspidistra for 25 years and had flowers on it on occasion. But 15 years ago I divided and repotted it and have not had any flowers since. How can I encourage it to flower again?
Mrs JM Hartland, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands

A Aspidistras produce their flowers only very rarely, so you were lucky to get what you did. It would be most likely to flower in good conditions of warmth and light. Feed it diluted seaweed in summer and let it rest in winter. The flowers will normally appear in early spring.

MONTY’S PLANT OF THE WEEK: SWEET VIOLETS

SWEET VIOLET (Viola odorata)

Violets have one of the richest colours of any flower and their scent is powerful and intoxicating – a little bunch of violets will infuse a room with their gentle, persuasive fragrance.

They spread by runners just like strawberries and along their length new plants root into the soil.

The combination of seed and runners means that given the right conditions – which is essentially deciduous woodland – they will spread quickly.

They are happiest in slightly damp, shady places and in my own garden they run happily along the bottom of hedges.