Scarifying – the secret to a perfect lawn

Ask lawn experts to give you their ‘top tip’ for a healthy, green lawn and often they will cite scarification. But what is scarification and why is it necessary?

Why do I need to scarify my lawn?

One of the main reasons for a yellowing, spongy, patchy lawn is thatch. Living and dead stems, roots, rhizomes and stolons from the grass plant build up a thick intermingling layer between the grass tops and the soil. This inhibits the plant’s ability to absorb water, nutrients and air at the roots. Your lawn can become prone to disease and insect damage and is much less responsive to fertilizers and requires heavier watering to keep it alive. Thick, sodden thatch can provide the perfect growing conditions for moss. If left untreated thatch can kill large patches of your lawn.

Why does thatch accumulate?

During the main growing season, the grass plants are growing faster than the old grass stems are decomposing. This new growth pushes up through the layer of old stems creating a mat of thatch. With arguably the best collection system, the Powered Grass Collector sweeps the grass when mowing and, by itself, actually reduces thatch. However, even with regular use of a PGC, thatch still builds up from the natural decomposition of the plants, and scarifying is required at least twice a year.

How does the scarifier work?

The Countax Powered Scarifier has specially designed tines that rotate at high speed (driven from the tractor’s power take-off) teasing the thatch and moss from the bed of your lawn. The angle and shape of the blades ensure that healthy grass plants are left intact, whilst unwanted material is thrown up to the surface of the lawn ready for collection. The scarifying tines also gently disturb the soil surface allowing oxygen to the roots of the plants and help reduce lawn compaction. Collection of the material could not be easier with a Countax Powered Grass Collector. Driven from the tractor’s PTO, it effortlessly sweeps up waste ready for emptying into the compost heap.

A single pass with a Countax Scarifier is often enough to complete the job and bring a thick layer of thatch to the surface of your lawn.

What results can I expect?

Immediately after scarification has taken place, the grass can look bare and scalped, this simply illustrates the damage that the thatch had caused to the healthy shoots. After a short period, with the grass receiving the required moisture, oxygen and nutrients, the lawn grows back thicker, healthier and greener with reduced moss and weeds.

Regular aeration with an aerator, slitter or spiker will further ensure that compaction is reduced and oxygen levels maintained.

A problem lawn may be down to compaction

Lawn compaction is a common problem. If you are experiencing patches on your lawn or perhaps an accumulation of moss, weeds or thatch – aeration might be the answer…

What is aeration?

Put simply, aeration involves making holes in the lawn to allow moisture and air to reach the roots of the grass plant and to allow carbon dioxide to be released from the soil.

Why do I need to aerate my lawn?

Through the course of a year, the soil beneath the turf can become compacted. Compaction can be caused from using your mower or even by children playing. The normally loose particles of soil that hold the grass roots of your lawn clump together. This heavy soil cannot drain moisture away and prevents oxygen from reaching the grass roots

What are the effects of lawn compaction?

You may notice a build up of thatch or lawn patches. Because of poor drainage, moss in the lawn may become an increasing problem.

How to aerate a lawn?

Without the right equipment, aeration can be an exhausting and lengthy process. That said, for smaller areas of lawn, a simple garden fork can be used. Sink the fork into the grass to a depth of around 8-10cm. Gently wiggle to create a slight gap then remove the fork. Repeat every 15cm or so. For heavily compacted areas, a hollow-tine spiker could be the answer. The hollow tines on this tool actually remove three plugs of soil at a time. Please note: hollow-tine forks should be used sparingly – every 3 years or so.

For larger lawns, owners of garden tractors or ride-on mowers can fit a towable slitter or spiker to their machines.

When should I aerate?

You can aerate your lawn from spring to autumn – but do look at the weather. The process is made much easier if the ground is moist and not too dry. Avoid aerating in times of drought or when a long period of dry weather is forecast – spike dry ground and you can expect to see cracks appearing.

Do not be tempted to spike a lawn that is wet or water logged – this could end up damaging the turf.

How often should I aerate my lawn?

This is dependent on the condition of your lawn, but consider spiking your lawn at least once a year.

What results should I expect?

After 2-3 weeks, you should notice the lawn becoming greener and less patchy.

BEST POWER ATTACHMENTS FOR LANDSCAPERS

As a landscaping professional, you understand how expensive professional-grade equipment can be. In order to run your business profitably, it’s important that you learn how to make the most of your equipment by getting the most out of it.

One option is to purchase a power source designed to add a variety of attachments. Adding attachments to this type of power source is a great way to add to your repertoire without breaking the bank.

Here are nine of the most popular attachments for you to consider:

CURVED SHAFT EDGER

A curved shaft edger attachment is a must-have tool if you’re looking for a means of adding that finishing touch to a just mowed lawn. It allows you to cut a finished edge along sidewalks and driveways, giving yards a truly professional feel.

GARDEN CULTIVATOR

A garden cultivator attachment is extremely versatile. You can use it to prepare soil for seed planting, to help control weeds, or simply to make sure soil has enough nutrients to handle a particular plant. It’s essentially a miniature plow for gardens!

BRUSHCUTTER

A brush cutter attachment gives you the tool to attack thick undergrowth, or cut down shrubs in an instant. You’ll even be able to cut down saplings.

BLOWER

Adding a blower attachment to your power source helps make cleaning up small yard debris a breeze. You’ll be able to quickly and safely clear any sidewalks or walkways of grass clippings and small twigs. In the fall, you can use it as a leaf blower on your deck.

STRAIGHT SHAFT TRIMMER

Straight shaft trimmer attachments are an essential choice if you do not want to buy a dedicated unit used only for trimming yards. The straight shaft (vs. curved shaft design) offers better reach. Some also come in a higher ‘torque” version for tougher grasses and terrain.

HEDGE TRIMMER

Shrubs are notoriously hard to keep groomed, and trimming them by hand is an arduous task. A commercial-grade hedge trimmer attachment lets you keep shrubs beautiful quickly and easily. Articulating hedge trimmer attachments, as shown here, give you the ability to adjust the angle of the blades.

POWER PRUNER

A power pruner attachment is the perfect tool when you have a lot of branches that you want to remove quickly. Ideally, you will remove brush or branches with the power pruner, then use a more precise tool to for fine tuning.

BRUSH

If you’re regularly clearing or cleaning the surface of lawns or sod, you need a rubber paddle attachment. It sweeps the surface of a lawn or sod without harming the grass, efficiently clearing it of dirt, sand, and other debris.

ATTACHMENT EXTENSION

Finally, a durable attachment extension improves the reach of all your other attachments, making it easy to handle tall or out-of-the-way problems. Just make sure to find an extension that’s compatible with the rest of your attachments.

5 TIPS BEFORE STORING YOUR ECHO TOOLS THIS WINTER

With winter upon us, now is the time to prepare your ECHO tools ready for winter storage. If you just put your tools in a garage/shed without any sort of cleaning or servicing measures, you could affect the performance of your landscaping tools. To keep your equipment working at peak performance for years to come, follow these simple instructions to get your tools ready for winter storage.

The following steps will talk you through the basic measures you can take for a trimmer, power blower, and edger – three very crucial landscape tools that can last for years to come with proper maintenance.

Empty the Tanks

Before you can begin cleaning, polishing, or prepping the tools for storage, you will first want to empty the tanks of their fuel. You can do this by using each tool one final time to ensure the fuel is consumed or by emptying the fuel from thetank into an appropriate disposal tank. Emptying the fuel first will allow you to handle the equipment more easily, without worrying about spillage if you need to turn the tool on its side. Run each piece of equipment until it is empty, ensuring there is no more fuel in the lines.

Disconnect Spark Plugs

As an added safety measure, be sure to disconnect the spark plugs before beginning any maintenance. This will ensure they cannot start up. You will also want to inspect each plug, making sure corrosion has not occurred and to properly clean or replace each.

Cleaning

Leading into winter, your tools have probably worked just as hard as you have. And after months of hard work, these tools are probably loaded with more dirt, grass, and debris than you realise. Cleaning each can be the most time consuming but will also keep these tools running like new.

First remove major clumps or visible debris from the blades, guards, and exteriors. For your edger, remove the blade to remove trapped grass or debris. This will also allow you to clean, sharpen, and oil the blade. A wire brush will make short work out of clearing the months’ worth of dirt and grass. Similarly, clean out your trimmer by removing any caked on debris under the shield. Most blowers can be wiped down with a very lightly dampened cloth as they don’t usually have the same debris issues mowers or trimmers have.

Filter Cleaning

Your air filter has likely been working overtime if this is the first cleaning session you’ve given your tools. Be sure to clean these out and keep an eye out for any holes, tears, or signs of wear around the seals. Keeping your filters clean will keep each tool from working too hard. Use an air hose being careful not to clean too hard and puncture filters or replace as needed.

Storage

Finally, consider the space you keep these tools in. How much moisture gets into this space? Are other metal tools or equipment consistently rusting in there? Can you afford the space in a better sealed/ventilated garage to store your power equipment? While you may not want to pour too much money into fixing up a shed, look for anything you can do easily or cheaply to seal the shed, prevent moisture, or increase ventilation.
And just like that, your trimmer, edger, and power blowers have been made ready for winter storage. At the start of spring, you’ll be ready to put in some landscaping and your tools will function like new. Just be sure to give each piece of equipment ample fuel and warm up time after sitting all winter.

BEST PRACTICE WITH YOUR LEAF BLOWER

Plan where you want your leaves to ultimately end up. Put a sheet in the chosen spot, so it’s easier to carry all of the leaves to your compost heap or to bag them.

Work in one direction only especially if there’s a breeze, try and work with it rather than against it; this will help to collect ll of the leaves in just one area. 

Hold the blower at your side and point at the ground at a shallow angle. Use a smooth back-and-forth motion as you walk slowly with the leaf blower in front of you.

Blowers work best on dry leaves, grass clippings, and thin twigs; but keep in mind that on a hard surface they move much more easily than those on a lawn. If you are working on your driveway, turn the setting to the lowest power.  

Dry leaves are easier to remove with a blower than wet leaves.

Remember to wear eye protection, as small sticks, leaves, and other debris can easily get blown upwards.

A general advice with all of the landscaping chores is to wear a pair of long trousers, a long-sleeved shirt, and a good pair of gloves will protect you from dirt, scratches, and cuts.

Never point the working end of a leaf blower toward people or pets.

Common courtesy asks for a self-imposed ban too early or too late or when next-door neighbours are entertaining or enjoying the outdoors.

A blower is not just for leaves! You could also:

§  Blow light snow off a car or a path

§  Dust off cobwebs from the shed

§  Scatter puddles of water that linger on your driveway

§  Dry your car after washing

§  Clean the gutters

BEST PRACTICE FOR YOUR HEDGE TRIMMING

The best ways to keep your hedges healthy.

Keeping your hedge trimmer blade sharp is the best way to keep the hedges healthy. Dull blades make ragged cuts tearing foliage instead of cutting it cleanly, which can compromise its health.

Before starting your cutting session, you should check for the presence of animals, birds’ nests, bats, hedgehogs or even cats.  Did you know that all wild birds, their youngs, their eggs or active nests are protected under the law? Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act – 1981 it is an offence to damage a nest intentionally while it is in use or being built and hedge cutting is highly likely to damage nests or cause them to be deserted.

Save yourself some time by spreading a plastic sheet on the floor below the hedge to catch the excess clippings. Once you’ve finished, use a brush or rake on the top to dislodge the clippings or your nicely trimmed hedge will appear unsightly.

Cut the vertical sides first with an up-and-down sweeping motion, and cut the top narrower than the base, maximizing sunlight exposure. Trimming it too straight could create bare spots at the bottom.

The top of the hedge should always be cut last; when you cut the tops of the hedges that are chest-high or lower, hold the trimmer at a slight angle (about 10 degrees from the horizontal) to move cut leaves and branches out of the way.

To cut a straight top, use the line formed by a twine strung between the stakes along the top of the hedge. Once you have the guide in place, keep the hedge trimmer at that height and walk along the hedge.

Watch out for dips in the ground, which can cause an uneven line. Before putting the finishing touches on the top cut, take a step back and check it from a distance, but the best practice is to err on the side of caution, rather than taking too much off.

The last thing is to finish the edges. A hard, sharp corner has less leaf material and tends to look sparse and ragged, so a 45-degree edge will give the hedge a softer appearance; a softer corner will also allow the hedge to shed ice and snow.

Once you’ve finished, clean the sap from the blades; a build-up of sap makes it difficult for the blades to move freely and cut efficiently. Lubricate when a build-up is noticed.

BEST PRACTICE TO KEEP YOUR LAWN HEALTHY

How to get the best results from your lawn care routine.

The more efficient way to cut your lawn is to trim the edges first. This will allow for the clippings to be either mulched or collected by the mower. Cut around the edge wide enough so you can turn the mower around without driving into a flower bed.

To avoid brown patches, don’t cut the grass too short; during the cold season, leave the lawn from 5 to 7 cm long, during the warm season instead, 3 to 6 cm.

Take your time; if the grass is tall or slightly wet, it can cause clumps of mulch and uneven patches.

Don’t look at the wheels but look at the ground 5 meters ahead of you, it will help you going in a straight line

Picking up clippings will keep the garden cleaner but mulching puts the grass particles back into the turf, providing nutrients such as nitrogen to the soil, so in the end, you'll end up with healthier turf.

Grass will grow in the direction in which you mow it. Changing direction each time will encourage grass to grow straighter and healthier.

Check if the blade is sharp. A sharper blade makes cleaner cuts that will keep your lawn healthier throughout the year. A dull blade rips the grass blade instead of cutting it sharply, which will make the grass plants more susceptible to disease.

Each time you mow your lawn, make sure you check it first; pick up rocks, sticks, toys, and anything else that may nick the blade as you go along. Also, try to mow the grass when it is dry as wet grass will cause the blade to dull much faster.

Plan to sharpen your blade at least twice each season. First, remove the battery and remove the safety key. Remove the blade and clean it off wearing safety gloves. To sharpen your blade, clamp your blade in a vice and file both edges of the blade with a fine tooth file. Make sure that you file at the same angle as the existing cutting edge.

Apply a fertiliser to your lawn to replenish any missing nutrients. Continue to water it if necessary. Remember it is best to do this in the evenings or early in the morning. This gives the water a chance to sink into the lawn rather than evaporate.

For the best results aerate your lawn by spiking it with a rake or using a scarifier or aerator and then water. Alternatively, mow your lawn in the evening during hot periods as this reduces the risk of excessive dehydration.