I’m a gardening whizz – the £10 tool that’s essential to get your lawn moss and thatch free
A GARDENING whizz has shared his top tips for making your lawn lush and moss free in time for summer.
Michel Griffiths, shared his gardening expertise via a video posted to his TikTok channel, where he is known as @themediterraneangardener.
The gardening lover said that you should remove thatch (dead grass) and moss from your lawn as it inhabits airflow around the grass.
All you need to do this, Michael explained, is use a garden rake, which you can pick up from the likes of Amazon for around £10.
Michael shared that before removing the thatch and moss, you should mow the lawn.
“This is going to make the whole process a lot easier”, he said.
After mowing, Michael advised gently pulling the rake across the lawn multiple times, whilst criss-crossing your way across the lawn.
If you have a large lawn, or aren’t a fan of manual labour, you can also use a mechanical scarifier, which you can purchase for around £70.
If using this tool make sure to set it to the right height and don’t scarify it too deeply, as you should keep around 1cm of thatch on top of the grass.
Once the moss and thatch has been removed from the soil, you can the aerate the grass, by prodding holes in it with a garden fork.
Aeration helps water and fertiliser soak into the ground, which promotes deeper routes and a healthier lawn.
After this, you should plant grass seed on your lawn (which you can pick up from £6.99 from Amazon) so that new, healthy grass can grow.
Make sure to keep the lawn moist, and in around two weeks, fresh grass shoots should appear.
In a second video, Michael revealed how you can repair patches in your lawn.
He explained that all you need to do is remove any weeds and dead grass from the patch.
Then, rake the soil so that it is level, and place some compost on top of it too “add goodness back into the soil”.
Shake grass seed over the patch and water it well.
Seasonal lawn care schedule
Lawn care varies from season to season, with some tasks helping to encourage growth and root development whilst others help maintain the soil quality.
Claire Baglin, landscaping category manager from Toolstation has shared lawn care tasks and tips for each season:
Spring (March, April, May)
- Start to mow the grass bi-weekly in March when the soil and air temperatures typically reach above 6C.
- Fertilise the lawn for the first time during March using some quick-release fertiliser that is rich in nitrogen to help promote shoot growth.
- Scarify the lawn for the first time during April to remove any built-up moss or thatch that can accumulate throughout the winter.
- Aerate the lawn during April by spiking holes into the soil surface. This will help to loosen the soil and encourage growth.
- Overseeding can also be carried out throughout April to patch up any thin or bare areas of grass.
Summer (June, July, August)
- From June start to cut your grass once a week – apart from in periods of extreme heat and droughts. Increase the cutting height to protect the lawn from any possible droughts.
- In June make sure to treat the lawn for any weeds – this can either be manual removal for individual weeds or using weed killer for larger clusters.
- During July and August make sure to water the lawn at least once a week by giving it a soak for 5-10 minutes.
Autumn (September, October, November)
- From September reduce the lawn mowing frequency back to once every two weeks and conduct the last mow of the year in November.
- Fertilise the lawn for a second time during October using a slow-release fertiliser that is rich in phosphorous and potassium to strengthen the lawn.
- Throughout October and November remove any fallen leaves and other debris from the lawn surface.
Winter (December, January, February)
- From December to the end of February leave the lawn alone. Grass typically does not grow in the colder winter temperatures.
- Winter is the perfect time of the year to conduct any lawnmower maintenance including checking over the blades and filters.
TikTok users raced to the comments section of Michael’s video to share their thoughts on his tips.
One person said: “I did this yesterday”.
Another person said: “To aerate the grass, I use those shoe covers with spikes on.
“They go straight in when the grass isn’t too dry, it burn calories and does the job”.
A third said: “Great!”.
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