Top Dressing; When and Why?

Posted on 11/10/2012 by Kim

Applying a top dressing to your lawn is appropriate when it needs a boost of nutrients, is uneven or contains holes.

You should undertake top dressing to repair holes or uneven lawn just prior to the growing season, usually the beginning of Spring; not when the lawn plants are in their dormant phase or you run the risk of damaging or even killing the lawn entirely. Top dressing for nutrients can be applied at any time. Do not top dress on an annual basis regardless of popular belief as this will just accelerate the build-up of thatch. Avoid top dressing if rain is predicted as the wet weather will make the dressing difficult to deal with and make levelling troublesome. READ MORE:

Spring Lawn Care

Posted on 09/08/2012 by Kim

Spring is the time when you should fertilise your lawn. This will help speed up new growth and help to establish strong roots for the hotter summer months.

Get rid of those lawn weeds – broad leaf spray

Posted on 09/08/2012 by Kim

Broad Leaf Spray Winter is an excellent time to focus on getting any invaders under control whether they are weeds or pests. In the cooler months of June and July, warm season turf like Sir Walter fall into a dormant state, while broad leaf weeds continue to grow and become more obvious. This means that it is the perfect time to nip them in the bud (so to speak) by taking some serious action. By taking care of these pesky tasks now, you will have a greener lawn that will be ready to spring back into full health as soon as the warmer months hit.

Creating and Maintaining a Beautiful Lawn in Autumn

Posted on 08/08/2012 by Kim

Autumn Lawn care The days are getting shorter and the temperature is getting a little cooler, but your lawn is still growing. Autumn is one of the most important times on the lawn care calender.

Lots of things can happen this time of year depending on your location.

Winter colour in your Sir Walter lawn

Posted on 08/08/2012 by Kim

Winter colour in your Sir Walter lawn Maintain your healthy looking green lawn with Sir Walter this winter. Part of the philosophy, and indeed the name behind Sir Walter, comes from its ability to maintain its strength of colour and coverage throughout winter.

When to fertilise your lawn (video)

Posted on 05/08/2012 by Kim

To keep your Sir Walter in peak condition you will need regular applications of fertiliser. Healthy deep rooted lawns are better equipped to deal with stress, maintain their winter colour and prevent the germination of weeds.

When laying you should always use a starter fertiliser such as Sir Launcher, then approximately 6-8 weeks after installation we recommend using Sir Walter Premium Lawn Food at 25grams per square metre. Then as an ongoing guide, fertilise your lawn with Sir Walter Lawn Food at the start of spring, middle of summer and autumn.When it is raining it is the perfect opportunity to get out your Sir Walter fertiliser, because you don’t have to water it in, you are saving water and your grass will love you for it! You can spread by hand or with a fertiliser spreader.

As a benchmark feed one small section of about 1 square metre with twice the amount that you apply to the rest of your lawn and water that in well too. If the rest of your lawn looses colour and this area retains its colour, it is telling you that it is time to feed again.So don’t forget regular applications of Sir Walter Premium Lawn Food will give you a nice healthy lawn all year round.

Watering tips for your lawn / Lawns tips & watering (video)

Posted on 30/07/2012 by Kim

Watering tips for your lawn / Lawns tips & watering

We cannot emphasise enough how important it is to water your lawn straight away, as soon as you have got it down. If you don’t water it your lawn will dry out and start turning brown and look very nasty. If you are doing a large area don’t wait until it is all finished, start watering once you have a few metres down, because that first hour in the sun is critical. Make sure you water methodically, thoroughly soaking every square metre before moving onto the next section.

Establishing your roots

The surface soil must be kept moist until the roots of the turf have established. To test later on, try to lift a corner of the turf, if it holds well it is established, if it comes away in your hand it needs more time. This is also the way to determine whether the lawn is established enough to be mown, this can take between 1 to 8 weeks depending on location and the time of year.The amount of water your lawn will need will depend on local conditions. A good idea is to leave a towel out on the lawn for the first few days, when the towel dries out, your lawn will immediately need more water, it is so critical for the first few days. Also move the towel around just so you don’t do any damage to the lawn.It is important that your lawn receives regular waterings and is prevented from drying out for the first 6 weeks or at least until it has been mown twice by which time it should be well established.

Remember less frequent deeper soakings are the way to go because that will encourage good strong deep roots, which is what every lawn owner should strive for.

If your lawn becomes slightly patchy 4 to 6 weeks after installation it is usually due to extreme weather or lack of correct watering during early establishment. There is not a lot you can do if this occurs, except give it some time and it will return to normal. Once it is established watering can be cut right back, Sir Walter lawns in most parts of Australia hardly need any regular watering to keep alive once established.

Except in really sandy locations such as Western Australia where weekly watering will be required.Don’t forget when it comes to watering always check and comply with any local water restrictions or better still if you haven’t done so already install a rain tank.