Your Pre-Spring Lawn Checklist for Northern NSW

Work Through These Steps Before Growth Kicks In

Tackle these jobs roughly in order for the best results, waiting until your lawn is actively growing before the heavier renovation work.

• Service Your Mower Your mower will get a serious workout once warm weather arrives, so give it a once-over now. Clean the deck and air filter, change the spark plug, check the oil on four-stroke engines, lubricate the throttle cable, height adjuster and wheels, top up with fresh fuel, inspect the pull cord for fraying, and sharpen or replace the blades. A sharp blade cuts cleanly rather than tearing the grass, which makes a real difference to how your lawn recovers.
• Test Your Soil pH Grab a pH testing kit from your local hardware store and check your soil before you add anything else. Lawn turf performs best when pH sits between 5.5 and 7. Outside that range, nutrients in the soil become harder for roots to take up, no matter how much fertiliser you apply. If your reading is off, correct it before moving on to the rest of your renovation.
• Get on Top of Weeds First Deal with weeds a couple of weeks before you do anything else to your lawn. For common broadleaf weeds like clover, bindii and oxalis, a broadleaf herbicide is your best option. Getting weeds under control early means they are not competing with your turf when it starts pushing new growth.
• Dethatch If Needed Walk across your lawn and pay attention to how it feels underfoot. A spongy feeling often means thatch has built up, which is a layer of dead and dry plant material that sits in the lawn profile and blocks air, water and nutrients from reaching the soil. If that sounds like your lawn, dethatching before you aerate and top dress will make the rest of your renovation far more effective.
• Aerate Compacted Soil Hard, compacted soil makes it difficult for roots to push deep and for water and nutrients to soak in. Use a garden fork or tyne aerator to open up the soil profile. This improves drainage, encourages deeper root growth and leaves your lawn better placed to handle the heat of a Northern NSW summer.
• Top Dress Uneven Areas If your lawn has low spots or you want to improve the soil composition, apply a thin layer of soil or sand and work it into the profile. Top dressing is best done once the lawn is actively growing so it can grow through the material quickly.
• Apply Fertiliser, Pre-Emergent and Preventative Insecticide Finish your renovation with a granular fertiliser before or after top dressing to give the lawn a solid boost while it repairs. At the same time, apply a pre-emergent herbicide to prevent seasonal weeds from germinating, and consider a preventative insecticide to protect against lawn grubs and other damaging insects for up to six months. You can apply all three in the same session, which keeps things simple.