Is your lawn looking tired, dry and a bit unloved? Are you dreaming of a lush, bowling green? During the growing seasons (Spring & Summer), you can carry out a mini renovation on your lawn and have it looking incredible in 4-6 weeks. 

1. Start by getting rid of the dead stuff – thatch is all the old dead brown leaves that haven’t decomposed back into the ground, it will feel spongey and is a breeding ground for fungus.  You can get a dethatching rake from the hardware to remove it for small lawns and for big ones rent a machine from a hire shop.  They are like lawn mowers and easy to use.  

If you have a couch lawn you can do this by scalping the lawn – that is cutting it as close to ground level as possible, for buffalo lawn types avoid cutting too low as you’ll damage the grass.

2. Then get holey – 90% of lawn problems come from compaction and poor drainage so make some holes with a tine fork or garden fork (again rent something for larger lawns).  Plunge it in, wiggle it about and do it again and again….. and again.

3. Topdressing is a bit of hard work but worth the effort, a pure sand or lawn top dress will fill those holes again, this is important as you don’t want the holes collapsing in on themselves, but you do want to maintain the air pockets, hence the sandy soil.  Spread evenly and smooth out any lumps and bumps.  Avoid thick layers of sand as this can suffocate the lawn – you need some light on the leaves to promote the new growth.

4. With the tough stuff done its time to fertilise with a lawn fertiliser (these are high in nitrogen which is vital for leaf growth) and water it well – try to stay off the grass for as long as possible, avoiding the very English “please stay off the grass” signs.