What do I need to do to get a lawn that is the envy of the neighbourhood?

Site preparation is essential. Dig over the entire site to at least 30cm removing any rock or rubble. Add between 3cm and 7cm of good quality compost and dig this in well. Soils with a high clay content will benefit from an application of agricultural lime at 150g per square metre. If your soil is particularly poor you may need to dig down and remove a layer of soil and bring in clean, sifted topsoil. Subsoil drainage may need to be brought in to help remove excess water. A pop up irrigation system will go a long way in reducing the guess work in keeping the water content at an optimum level. The choice of grass species depends on the site, its climate and the preference of the client. Kikuyu is reliable and versatile but a waterholic and is high maintenance. Berea will tolerate variable conditions but it dislikes high traffic and needs a regular mowing regime. Buffalo is tough and dependable but has a rough texture, offensive to some customers. Cynodon dactylon (kweek) is hard, drought tolerant, tolerant of a variety of conditions (except shade) and regardless of the type of lawn you plant will probably find its way into your lawn as it is endemic to this area. If mowed and maintained regularly makes a fine lawn, but its olive green colour and very fine texture puts a lot of clients off. We generally avoid the hybrids of kweek as they have been specifically developed for high maintenance conditions, such as golf courses, and are seldom successful for domestic gardens. Start the season off with a spring treatment of thatch removal and loosening up heavily compacted soils. Run your mower over the lawn to remove tufts and lifted thatch and then apply a thin layer of good quality lawn dressing and an application of organic fertiliser at 100g per square metre. Water well. As the days and nights warm, increase mowing until you are mowing on average every 4-5 days. Never allow the lawn to get too long between mowing as then you will scalp your lawn, the stems will burn in the hot summer sun and it will take some time and a lot of effort to get the lawn looking good again. Fertilise once every two weeks with an application of 50g organic fertiliser alternating with an application of LAN. Water this in well. Treat the appearance of pests as soon as they are noticed.

TIP : Edge the lawn with a line of cobbles or kerbs set onto a bed or mortar. This helps to define the line of beds and means the gardener does not cut away more of your lawn each time he trims. It also helps to prevent the lawn from invading your beds. Gordon Stuart Landscaping does this for all their new and existing clients; it is impressive how it immediately improves the appearance of the garden.