Even if you call in an expert to install your lawn, sound maintenance practices are the key to keeping a beautiful, healthy lawn.

1. Preparation of sodding site
2. SOD INSTALLATION
3. FINISHING
4. WATERING
5. MOWING
6. FEEDING YOUR LAWN
7. BATTLING WEEDS
8. DISEASE PREVENTION
9. CONTROL INSECTS
10. PREVENTING THATCH
11. REDUCING COMPACTION
12. RENOVATION OF POORLY MAINTAINED LAWN
13. THE KEY TO SUCCESS: GOOD MAINTENANCE!
14. HOW TO GET RID OF THESE WHITE GRUBS WHICH INVADES YOUR LAWN?
    

1. PREPARATION OF SODDING SITE

• Accurately measure the dimensions of the sodding site;
• Calculate the number of rolls required based on the following measurements: standard roll = 10 sq. ft. (18 in. X 80 in.), big roll = 360 sq. ft. (42 in. X 103 ft.);
• Delineate and mark off the space to be sodded;
• We recommend that you have your soil analysed (by a landscape professional, for example), to determine such factors as calcium content, and to add any required amendments;
• To enhance soil composition and improve water retention, ensure that your soil is more clayish than sandy, loamy rather than light;
• Topsoil should be at least three or four inches deep;
• Shape and grade the site to be sodded;
• Clear the surface of all debris;
• Fill any hollows to achieve a truly even lawn surface;
• Smooth the soil surface with a lawn roller, just until it shows no footprints. Do not compact the soil, as this will prevent rooting;
• Add 5-20-20 fertilizer at the rate of 5lbs./1000 sq. ft.;
• Incorporate fertilizer to a depth of 2 in.;
• For renovations, rototill in one direction and then in the other.

• Be ready to install your sod when you order it. Sod must be installed within 24 hours of delivery, while still cool;
• Leave sod in shade until it is installed;
• Place sod in an interlocking pattern;
• When a roll must be cut to size, use a sharp knife or hatchet to produce a neat joint;
• Never overlap the ends of rolls: all ends should be butted together.
  

• When the site to be sodded is steeply sloped, sod may tend to shift, which causes drying. We therefore recommend the use of fixing devices - preferably biodegradable - such as wood stakes or even a net placed on top of the soil to hold the sod in place;
• Once sod is in place, it should be levelled with a lawn roller.

• Saturate the sodded surface with water immediately after installation, until you can no longer walk on it;
• Maintain this condition for seven days following installation, adjusting watering to the weather;
• Thereafter, water sufficiently to maintain reasonable moisture levels. In summer, lawn requires almost one inch of water a week (including rainfall). Normal watering should be done once or twice a week, depending on the weather.
  
  RECOMMANDATIONS :
  
  Do not over-water : excessive moisture prevents deep rooting, causes the lawn and even roots to rot, and promotes disease.
  
  Water early in the morning or in the evening when there is less evaporation: this promotes better infiltration.

• Mowing is one of the most important maintenance operations;
• Always keep your mower blades sharp, to avoid tearing grass;
• Never cut off more than 1¼ inches at a time;
• Never mow grass shorter than 1½ inches;
• Do not allow grass to grow too high before mowing.

• Have your soil analysed in the fall at a garden centre or specialized centre to determine the quality of your soil;
• If your soil is acidic (pH less than 6), it must be limed;
• It is preferable to use dolomitic lime (bicarbonate of calcium/magnesium);
• Apply lime with a fertilizer spreader, preferably in fall or spring;
• Never spread lime on a freshly seeded lawn. Lime before seeding;
• If liming heavily, make two applications over two months.

        Fertilizer

• The quantity of fertilizer required varies depending on soil quality. An area of 1,000 square feet requires approximately :
  
  
  • 5-7 lbs. of nitrogen (N)/year (foliage growth and greening)
  • 2-3 lbs. of phosphorus (P)/year (root formation)
  • 5-7 lbs. of potassium (K)/year (winter and insect resistance)
    
    
• Application calendar :
  
  
  • Early May - late June: starter fertilizer;
  • Early July - mid-August: herbicide fertilizer (do not water for 48 hours);
  • Mid-August - late September: summer fertilizer (organic);
  • Mid-October: winter fertilizer.
    
    
• Water after each application to avoid chemical burning of grass (if it does not rain);
• Never fertilize during a drought, to avoid risks of chemical burning.

• If your lawn is well cared for and healthy, weeds will lack room to take root;
• You can also spray herbicides to kill weeds. These fall into two categories :
  
  • Postemergence herbicides applied after weeds appear;
  • Pre-emergence herbicides applied before weeds appear, to prevent seeds from germinating.

• Use enough fertilizer to ensure vigorous growth of your lawn, but do not over-fertilize;
• Fertilizer adequately (organic products) to prevent disease;
• Keep your mower blades sharp;
• Remove clippings as they accumulate;
• Use recommended preventive products;
• Keep grass just under 3 inches high;
• Regularly aerate your lawn (once a year);
• Do not over water;
• Begin watering only after 9:00 pm.

• White grubs :
  
  • Lives under the grass;
  • Attacks the roots;
  • Affects growth and appearance of lawn (yellow patches);
  • Treatment: spread 13-20 lbs./1000 sq. ft. of diatomaceous earth mixed with powdered soap or one tablespoon of pyrethrum /4 litres of water, four times a year.
    
• Sod web worm :
  
  • White moths;
  • Fly above lawn in spring;
  • Caterpillars eat the base of the grass blades;
  • Yellow patches appear in May and expand over the summer;
  • Treatment: Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) is effective against the caterpillars. If you see moths, wait 2 weeks before treating with BT. Also treat the following spring.
    
    Also treat with soapy water: 25 ml of pure liquid soap or 50 grams of toilet soap to 4 litres of water, once a week for several weeks. Dethatch and aerate the lawn then reseed bare patches.
    
• Chinch bugs :
  
  • Causes yellow spots that grow over the season;
  • Sucks the sap from grass;
  • Quickly becomes established in a lawn with foot traffic, thatch or poor maintenance;
  • Symptoms similar to those of drought;
  • Treatment: if infestation is serious, first treat with insecticide. After infestation has been eliminated, treat with environmental methods.
    
• Click beetle and iron lance :
  
  • The iron lance is the larva of the click beetle;
  • Lives in the soil and feeds on roots;
  • Thrives in poorly drained soil with high foot traffic and moisture levels;
  • Cuts roots at ground level;
  • May and June are best months for eliminating;
  • Treatment: same as for white grubs. Aerate soil.
    
• Bluegrass borer :


• Worm that attacks roots.
  
• Night crawler:
  
• Useful for aerating soil;
• Avoid killing.
  
• Web worm :
  
  • Brown worm just under 1 in. long;
  • Causes lawn to brown off

• Ants :
  
  • Don’t threat the grass itself, but build unpleasant ant-hills.
  • Will enter houses when looking for food.
    

• Thatch is the accumulation of dead leaves and stems, clippings, roots and other organic matter that has not rotted. Thatch prevents proper water infiltration, promotes the presence and growth of parasitic fungi and other diseases as well as harmful insects. It can make application of fertilizer ineffective.


• The best way to eliminate thatch is to use a dethatcher with the blades set very close to the ground

• Compaction is caused by heavy foot traffic on soil that is more clayish (heavy) than sandy (light). One way to reduce compaction without harming the grass is to use a mechanical lawn aerator. It bores holes in the soil which also allows nutrients to reach the grass roots which otherwise would be deprived of these elements;
• Repeat each year.

• Rejuvenation maintenance should be performed in the fall if grass is still in good condition, since roots grow more vigorously late in the season. This is also true in spring;
• Good maintenance includes soil analysis, appropriate fertilization based on the analysis results, reduction of compaction, adequate watering, measures to control weeds, and perhaps reseeding.

• Proper lawn maintenance reduces the incidence of insects, diseases and weeds;
• Mow to just under 3 inches;
• Fertilize adequately with nitrogen and potassium;
• Dethatch in the fall;
• Aerate in the fall;
• Water deeply and sporadically in summer;
• Amend and enhance soil;
• Water with soapy water at the proper time to control caterpillars and insect larva.

14. HOW TO GET RID OF THESE WHITE GRUBS WHICH INVADES YOUR LAWN?

White Grubs

White grubs the larval forms of the cockchafer. This insect overwinters in the soil as a fully-grown larva. A white grub eats the root of the grass and can destroy a whole land. They cause their damage mostly in spring and at the end of summer. An attacked lawn will be covered with big irregular brown spots. The grubs are usually at 1 or 2 inches deep in the soil and racoons and skunks will often dig whole in the lawn to eat them.

Click here to see the Grub life cycle


End-all

End-All is a biological product made of pyrethrine and canola oil. Spread one litre of End All mixed with one litre of warm water over 1000 square feet of infected lawn. Let dry for 20 to 30 minutes and water to allow the product to penetrate the soil. Repeat the treatment for weekly for one month. Note that End All does not prevent white grubs.

Merit

Merit is very effective against small white grub larvae. It also has a three-month residual effect to give long-term control. Since white grub larvae hatch out in late July or early August, plan to apply Merit in late June or early July. That way it will already be in the soil when the insects begin feeding. If applied according to the label directions and with the right timing, Merit will give 95% white grub control. If Merit is applied in mid to late August when turf damage from grub feeding is noticed, and when traditional grub control products have been applied, it will not give satisfactory results.