Rain, Rain, Go Away!

With Spring Fever creeping up on all of us, this rain, and SNOW in some areas, is not something we like to wake up to daily in our Spokane area. However, as the saying goes… April Showers Brings May Grass! Ok- so I changed the saying a bit. J

Although water is good for a lush lawn, there are some downfalls to nature being involved in ‘over-watering’ the lawn. As stated by organolawn.com: “Some signs of over watering are standing water, over abundance of insects, molds, and a shallow root system. Over watering causes the soil to become poorly aerated and increases the lawn’s susceptibility to disease. Too much water fills the soil’s air pockets and makes it so little or no air can reach the root system.” (Read more at http://www.organolawn.com/lawn_tips.php). Of course there is still hope for your yard after all this wet stuff has bogged us down. It is just a matter of taking time and care into making sure your yard has a good plan for recovering. One example would be setting up good drainage or filling up shallow spots with soil. It is also important to kill any pests, weeds, or diseases that you have noticed taking over ASAP. And of course dead spots can always be re-seeded and fertilized to encourage growth. This may seem like a lot of work- but well worth it to fully enjoy your yard all season.

And although the rain can be discouraging- I want to remind everyone that with a hopefully warmer summer coming to remember to take advantage of our natural watering system. It may be a good idea to set up a rain gauge (parhaps a marked coffee can or bucket) so you can measure after a rainfall how much watering has taken place on your lawn. Then you’ll know how much more watering, if any, you’ll need to do yourself which will help to avoid overwatering. According to allaboutlawns.com: “A general rule of thumb is that your lawn should receive at least 1 inch of water per week… Basically, your lawn needs moisture (water), nutrients, and air to grow.” So measuring how much water already has been done on your yard through the natural process of raining, you’ll diminish the problem of watering too much and “saturat[ing] your soil to a point [where] the grass roots lack air and cannot grow deep enough”. (See http://www.allaboutlawns.com/lawn-maintenance-care/watering/how-much-should-i-water.php)

Have a great rest of your week and stay dry!