Once your lawn is established, it is easy to keep it beautiful indefinitely. The three essentials are: Water, Mow, & Fertilize. By following these steps, you can have a beautiful, healthy lawn with a minimum of effort. A thriving healthy lawn will keep weeds out, eliminate disease, and have a beautiful lush appearance.

Rules of Watering
     1.  It is best to water late at night or in the early morning when it is cooler, more humid, less windy, and less evaporation is occurring. At these times, your lawn gets more of the water you put on it because it stays around longer.

     2.  The most efficiently way to water you lawn is with deep waterings that reach the entire root zone several inches below the ground. The grass plant absorbs most of the water it uses through its roots, not its blades. Wetting the entire root system helps it use the moisture most efficiently and also trains the roots to stay and grow deep. In order to achieve this, simply apply the water slow in heavier amounts fewer times. This also helps keep weeds away that are trying to sprout in the top layer of the soil.

     Soils play a major role in accomplishing this. Water penetrates into heavy clay soils slower. In clay conditions, you need to apply the water slower. Water your lawn for 10-30 minutes twice allowing 45-90 minutes between cycles so the water has a chance to soak in. Clay soils will accept more water and create a suction once they are moist because of open pores. This method also helps on hill sides where water has a tendency to run off. Simply water twice with some time between waterings to allow the water to soak in. In loam soils, one watering usually works fine but you need to water for a longer period of time for a deep soaking. Sandy soils are the opposite. Water quickly runs through sandy conditions so you have to water more frequently. The water penetrates deep but does not stay around long enough for the grass plant to use it before it moves deeper. Water more regularly in these conditions.

     The amount of time you run the sprinklers depends on the quantity of water they apply. Sprinklers are now available that put water on slower allowing it to soak in better.

     3. The frequency in which you water your lawn depends on the time of year and the weather. Watering is totally dependent on weather conditions, not the days between waterings. During the heat of the summer, you might have to water every few days or more depending on soil type. In the spring and fall, once  every 4-7 day can be enough. Even in the winter during dry, windy spells, if the ground is not frozen, your lawn can dry out and needs watering every 3-6 weeks.

     4. If footprints appear in your lawn a half-hour after walking on it or it has a grey-blue cast, your lawn needs watering and is wilting. Footprints will disappear within minutes on a well watered lawn.

     5. If water is running off your lawn onto sidewalks or puddling, back the water off. Also, take into consideration different exposures to sun, shade and slopes. Grass in these varied conditions need to be watered differently.

     6. To test if your lawn is getting enough water, stick a screw driver or knife into the ground. If you can not get it in more than two inches, your yard needs more water.

Mowing

     Mow your lawn at least once a week during the growing seasons to a height of 2" to 3". The shorter you mow, the less drought and heat resistant the grass will be. Never cut off more than a third of the grass blade height during a mowing. This will stress it. If you get behind on your mowing, mow off 1/3 of its height and mow again in a few days to get it back to its regular height. Also, if your mower is having a hard time time picking up the grass clippings, rake up the piles so they do not form a matt and suffocate the grass under them causing dead spots in your lawn. A healthy lawn can require mowing every 3-5 days during growing times in the spring and after heavy applications of fertilizer.

     To bag or not to bag. It is fine to let grass clippings fall back into your lawn or remove them when you mow. If you do not want to bag, mulching mowers help by cutting the clippings into smaller pieces so they do not suffocate the yard and distributes the clippings more evenly. Grass clippings will add nutrients back into the soil and help hold in moisture. Grass clippings do not create thatch which is a accumulation of dead and living roots and grass stems. If you are mowing off a lot of grass, pick it up. If you are not mowing much off and your mower is dicing it up into small pieces, it is fine to let it remain. A sharp mower blade always helps in any mowing situations. If your blade is dull, it tears and damages the tip of the grass leaf. If you notice the tips of your grass blades are brown and ragged, your mower needs sharpening. Sharpen your mower blade every fourth to sixth mowing.

Aeration
     Aerating at least once a year is beneficial in the Colorado's climate and heavy soils and is better than power raking. Plug aerators, which remove a small half inch round core of your lawn 1-3 inches in depth are the best and help relieving soil compaction and thatch. Opening all these little holes in your yard also will help water penetrate deeper into the root zone and keep thatch accumulation to a minimum. It is fine to let the plugs rest on the lawn or rake them up.