Routine lawn care and maintenance will keep your yard looking good, but sometimes, mistakes are made that can negatively affect your lawn. Among these mistakes include not switching up mowing patterns and pruning at the wrong time, which can leave you with vulnerable grass and weakened plants. You should also follow proper fertilization and mulching practices to keep your turf and plants healthy and looking their best.

Common mistakes in mowing, fertilizing, pruning, and mulching are avoidable. The first step to prevent yourself from making these mistakes is understanding what they are and how they can affect your yard. Keep reading to learn more about these common mistakes so you can observe proper practices to keep your lawn in great shape.

1. Not Switching Up Your Lawn Mowing Patterns Weekly

Mow patterns in lawn after service in Haslett, MI.

Mowing your lawn is an important maintenance task as it keeps your grass looking nice and manicured. However, it is important that you follow correct techniques like switching up your mowing pattern to ensure you don't cause any damage to your lawn. When you mow the grass consistently in one direction, your turf recognizes the mowing direction and can start to lean in one direction. Switching up the mowing pattern will also prevent soil compaction, which can happen when your mower is consistently going over the same spots. If your soil becomes compacted, it will make it difficult for essential nutrients to reach the roots of your grass.

2. Trying to DIY Your Fertilizer

Our fertilization expert holding fertilizer and dirt on a property in Haslett, MI.

Fertilizers are essential for your plants, but only when you give them the right product at the right amount. To do that, you should only use high-quality fertilizers and avoid trying to apply the treatment yourself. The idea may seem reasonable to save money, but a lot can go wrong if you don't fully understand what you're doing. When you commit a mistake applying fertilizers, you may end up causing more harm than good. Here are some of the possible issues that can occur when you try to fertilize your own lawn:

  • Using the wrong type of fertilizer - Depending on where you live, different types of grass, like cool and warm season grass, require varying fertilizers that will suit the environment where they are.
  • Using too much or too little - If you use too much fertilizer, your plants could develop fertilizer burn. Meanwhile, too little of it can cause nutrient deficiencies that will leave your turf vulnerable to several lawn diseases.
  • Applying it at the wrong time - Cool and warm-season grasses have different requirements and if you apply fertilizer at the wrong time, you may be wasting your time, or even worse, causing harm to your grass.

Fertilizers are chalked full of essential nutrients including nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. When applied correctly, they will give a boost to your lawn.

3. Pruning at the Wrong Time

Our tree and shrub health specialist pruning a branch for health on a property in Dewitt, MI.

Pruning is the method of removing dead or diseased branches and leaves from plants and shrubs to promote healthier growth. Timing matters when pruning, and it usually depends on what type of shrub or plant you have. Pruning at the wrong time will only stress the plant, so it is best to consult professionals who can assess your plants and determine the right time to prune them.

4. Adding Too Much Mulch to Your Landscape Bed

Our landscaper installing fresh mulch on a property in East Lansing, MI.

The saying "too much of a good thing is bad" rings true when mulching. Mulch is a form of ground cover that retains soil moisture and helps regulate the temperatures of your plants. You might think that adding too much to your landscape bed is fine because it performs significant functions. This is the wrong mindset. Too much mulch can suffocate the plants, causing significant damage to them. The mulch in your landscape beds should be about 2 to 4 inches thick and it should be replenished annually.

Contact us today to schedule our lawn care and maintenance services!

Lawn care and maintenance involve back-breaking jobs best left in the hands of professionals. We offer superb lawn care and maintenance services performed by our trained and skilled crew. Our lawn care services include fertilization, while our maintenance services include mowing, mulch installation, and pruning, among others. Our services are available to properties in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, MI and surrounding areas. Call us at (517) 333-7999 to get an estimate.