lawn making Flashcards
Turf grasses
Turf grasses are among the oldest plants used for landscaping.
It is a green carpet for landscape.
Most turf grass used in landscapes are perennial.
Nearly all species can be reproduced from seed
There are
Cool season grasses
Warm season grasses
Selection of grasses
The selection of grasses can be made as per the choice, area and availability of water.
Warm season grass:
Burmuda (Cynodon dactylon), Korean grass( Zoysia japonica)
Cool season grass:
Agrostis tenuis, Fetusca rubra, Poa pratensis, Lolium perenne
Growth habits: Rhizome producing (rhizomatous)
Stolon producing (stoloniferous)
Bunch type
Bermuda grass: warm season rhizomatous and stoloniferous
Carpet grass: Warm season, stoloniferous
Kikuyu grass: warm season, stoloniferous
Texture, colour and density of grasses
Texture: Grass texture is a way of describing the width of the grass leaf blade. The wider the blade, the coarser is the texture.
Fine textured grasses are more attractive than coarse textured grass.
Fine texture are more expensive
Colour: varies form light green to dark bluish tones
Density: refers to the number of leaf shoots that a single plant can produce (sparse to thick)
Mixtures, blends and single species lawns
A mixture combines two or more species of grass
A blend combines two or more cultivated varieties of a single species
Blends offers uniform colors and texture, resistance to damage and pest and the varieties in blends will have similar maintenance needs.
Mixtures are more common in temperate zone landscapes and single species are more common in subtropical and tropical landscapes
Preparation of soil for lawn making
Soil should be fertile and well-drained with good water holding capacity, ideal pH of 5.5-7.
During summer (April-June) soil should be dug up to 45 cm by spade.
The clods of earth is exposed to the scorching sun, killing weeds, harmful insects and microorganisms.
Few days before the rain, add 5-7 kg/m2 of well rotten FYM in soil
D. During mixing of FYM, remove stones, roots of weeds and undesirable matter.
E. Rolling is done lightly to level the land.
F. During rains, soil will settle down and weeds will germinate which should be removed.
Lawn making
- Seeding-Most common and cheap
Seeds can be sown by hand or with spreader, cultipacker seeder
Should be evenly sprayed to prevent patchy lawn
In case of small seeds mix the seed with carrier material such as sand or top soil for even spreading
Mulch and water
Remove mulch when the seeds starts germinating - Sodding-When a lawn is needed immediately
Sod is a established turf which are grown in one place and sold or moved to landscaping areas.
A sod cutter is used to cut the sod into strips.
These are then lifted, rolled up and placed onto pallets for transport.
Expensive but provides instant landscaping
sodding procedure
1.The soil should be moist before installation of sod
2. Sod should be installed soon after it has been removed from the original place/nursery
3. Individual strips are laid into place
4. Sod should not be stretched to fit as it will shrink later, leaving gaps in lawn
5. Each strip should be fitted tightly against each other
6. Use flat roller to make sure all the strips are touching the soil
- Plugging
Sprigging and stolonizing
Methods selected will depend upon: species of grass, type of landscape, how quickly the turf must be established
Plugs are small rectangular, circular, or square sods.
Certain grasses such as Bermuda, St. Augustine are not usually reproduced from seed.
Placed into new lawns as plugs of live, growing grass at interval of 12-18 inches
Time consuming
However necessary for warm season grasses that are poor seed producers - Sprigging and stolonizing
Sprigging
A sprig is a piece of grass shoot
It may be a piece of stolon or rhizome or a lateral shoot
Sprig do not have soil attached to roots
Planted at interval of 8-12” into prepared, conditioned soil
Mainly used for warm season grasses
Slow and tedious if done by hand but can be mechanized
Stolonizing
Stolonizing is a form of sprigging
The sprigs are distributed evenly over a site and covered by soil lightly.
Then they are rolled or disked
Since each sprig is not inserted into the soil individually this method is faster
Six steps to be followed by a landscaper to assure a successful beginning for a lawn
- Plant at proper time of year-
Warm season grasses: Plant in spring just prior to the summer
Cool season grasses: early spring or early autumn, prior to the cool season in which they flourishIf cool season grasses are planted too close to intense hot or cold days of summer and winter respectively, they will die or become dormant before establishing - Provide proper drainage and gradient(slope)-
Drainage/creating gradient so that water moves slowly into the soil without erosion or puddling
Removal of stones, even the smallest should be removed
Make soil loose to a depth of 5-6 inches
Organic matter should be applied - Condition the soil properly
- Apply fresh, good quality seed, sod, plugs or sprigs.
- Provide adequate moisture to promote rapid establishment of the lawn
- Mow the new lawn to its correct height-
First mowing of a new lawn is important
Encourage horizontal branching to create a thick, dense lawn
First mowing should be done when new grass has reached height of 2.5- 3 inches
Should be cut back to 1.25-1.6 inches
Thereafter, different species require different mowing heights for proper maintenance e.g. For Bermuda grass 1-2 inches, tall fescue is 1.5-3 inches
Collect and remove grass clippings
Artificial turfs
Commonly used in athletic fields and in residential and commercial landscaping.
The blades of the artificial grass are made usingpolyethylene or nylon.
It Reduce the cost of maintenance and care compared to natural grass.
It conserves water
