INTERIORS • GARDENING
Grass ROOTS Top garden tips for maintaining a lavish lawn
Wo r d s PAT R I C K M A R T I N • G a r d e n s P M L A N D S C A P E S
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rban lawns are often subject to a unique set of potential problems which can make the up-keep a
challenging prospect. Play area, football pitch and pet pen are some of the demands placed on the lawn and it only takes a couple of hours, used in this way, for damage to be done. Lawns located under or near to large trees are in line for additional punishment. Large trees extract nutrients from the soil, cast shade and worst of all, deposit a blanket of leaves during autumn. If you only do one bit of lawn maintenance - other then mowing, rake up the leaves as fast as possible. Regular mowing throughout the season is a good idea to avoid letting the grass grow long before a short cut which can dry out the roots. All considering, it is not surprising that
there has been a significant shift from natural lawns to hard wearing, minimal maintenance artificial grass. Some years ago, artificial grass was not really a viable option - brittle, fake looking and obviously plastic, it often resembled the type of material that covered the display outside the green grocers shop front. In fact it is quite feasible that this material and some of the early artificial grass products were one and the same! Nowadays, artificial grass is a completely different prospect. Numerous companies have sprung up offering both a supply and installation service. Some of the products are very realistic including such detail as gold and brown strands mixed into the pile
“Years ago, artificial grass was not a viable option - brittle, fake and obviously plastic” to imitate the look of natural grass and ‘memory pile’ to ensure that the grass stands up even after heavy use. A useful guide when choosing an artificial grass product, is to view a sample from the side - if the grass is totally flat then chances are that is exactly what your lawn will look like too! If, on the other hand, the pile is more vertical and brushes up easily, then you should get a much better result. A pile of 30 to 40mm is probably best for this. If you are thinking about artificial grass installation, make sure that your contractor specifies a timber
frame to contain the sand base and to provide a secure fixing point which should hold the artificial grass in place over time even with heavy use. A cheaper but far less satisfactory method is to simply fix the grass with spikes straight into the sand base avoid! A weed control fabric laid between the sand base and the artificial grass is also essential. In gardens with poor drainage or soft ground, it is necessary to first lay and compact a layer of type 1 Mot (a type of c hipped aggregate) to stabilise the ground and improve drainage so that the artificial lawn dries quickly after rainfall. PM LANDSCAPES offer free consultations and quotes for complete design and build garden projects including artificial lawns and will supply samples of artificial grass products to view.
www.pmlandscapes.co.uk
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