Lawn & Garden Care 101 with Pennington Smart Seed and a $50 American Express Giveaway

Lawn & Garden Care 101 with Pennington Smart Seed

As we all get ready to work out in the yard for the spring and summer seasons, I am happy to partner with Pennington Smart Seed to bring you some lawn maintenance tips.  A few years ago we had some grass seed sown in our yard, and it didn’t come in quite as nicely as we would have liked.  Not to mention, we still had a ton of weeds!  Fortunately we’ve been introduced to Pennington Smart Seed and have been provided with all the information we need to get the job done right this time!

About Pennington Smart Seed

  • Pennington Smart Seed remains green for up to three weeks without water and requires up to 30 percent less water year after year versus ordinary seed.
  • Lawns planted using the Pennington Smart seed are healthier and greener and require less maintenance.
  • Pennington offers products that are especially for your specific region and climate.

 

How to Successfully Plant Your Lawn:

Preparing the Ground

Before planting new seed it is important to prepare the soil.  If you have weeds and other unwanted grass, you should first use a non-selective herbicide labeled for lawn use.  After the grass turns brown,  you can should till the soil to a depth of four to six inches.

Once the ground is tilled, you should conduct a soil test.  If you are unable to do this, it is recommended that you apply a complete lawn fertilizer according to the directions on the package. You can always hire a professional to do this, but there are also kits available so you can easily do it yourself.  The soil test will tell you. the level of nutrients that are in your soil and also let you know the pH level so you will know how well plants will be able to draw nutrients from the soil.

Fertilizing and Sowing the Seed

After you have conducted this test, you may apply fertilizer and soil amendments at the recommended rates.   Next spread your grass seed evenly at the recommended rates and rake it into the soil at 1/8″ deep.  Be sure to keep the lawn watered every day for a couple of weeks so that the seeds can germinate properly.  Then after the initial 2 weeks, water every third day for 15-20 minutes until the grass is fully grown.

Now what if you’ve already good a good lawn and you just want to maintain it?

If you already have a healthy looking lawn but would like to re-seed to fill in bare spaces, you should conduct a soil test and then fertilize and add soil amendments as needed.   Then mow your grass very closely. Rake lightly and aerate the soil, and then sow your see.  Water your lawn as needed.

Fast Facts: Drought, Water Use & Your Yard

  • 36 states anticipate on-going local, regional or statewide water shortages, even under non-drought conditions.
  • Lawns require approxiately 1 inch of water per week to stay green in summer.  This comes to about 2500 gallons of water a week for the average lawn.
  • Up to 50% of water is wasted due to evaporation, wind, and runoff.

 

Giveaway!  The great folks at Pennington Smart Seed would love for to make your yard look great this spring, and to help you do just that, they are offering one Simply Sweet Home reader a $50 American Express card.

To enter, please use the Rafflecopter form below.

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Comments

  1. My favorite garden tip is to use a sprinkler system set to go off at different intervals, because sometimes it’s hard to get outside and water the garden.

  2. This isn’t much of a tip but what I keep telling my husband boils down to slow and steady. It’s not going to all be done in a day. Likely, it’s not even going to be perfect after a month or even this year. We’ll get there though.

  3. Don’t overseed! The seeds will just be fighting each other for nutrients. Follow the instructions and your yard will flourish.

  4. Lisa Brown says

    During warmer weather, water at night or early mornings to conserve water and prevent your lawn from burning.

  5. My tips is to make sure your plants get enough water

  6. Mary Happymommy says

    Get the kids involved in gardening to make things more fun.

  7. Amanda S. says

    My favorite tip is to have fun!

  8. My tips- start small and grow weed-less.

  9. Amanda Sakovitz says

    my tip is to make sure you remove weeds regularly

  10. Sheila K. says

    Set your lawn mower to its highest height to keep weeds at a minimum!

  11. Amy Orvin says

    Fertilize often is my favorite tip.

  12. Thomas Murphy says

    Don’t forget to water!

  13. I dont have the best advice when it comes to lawn and garden as hubby does the lawn, and I attempted a garden, and failed. My mistake was not watering enough. make sure you water your garden enough or it will die, especially in Florida heat!

  14. Don’t forget to use lawn fertilizer.

  15. Sandy VanHoey says

    Use weed killer and also make sure to fertilizer in fall as well.

  16. Don’t put the lawnmower blade less than 3 to 3 1/2 inches.

  17. Kimberly Bauer says

    Don’t water your yard too late in the day. A wet lawn sitting in the dark is a recipe for fungus.

  18. Harmony B says

    Use newspaper as a weed block

  19. Audra Weathers says

    I like to save newspapers and use them as an underlay under my mulch beds. Works great as a weed barrier, but you do have to lay them thick and redo yearly.

  20. Cynthia R says

    i actually am not much of a gardener. My tip is if you aren’t a good one, to hire one, lots of companies out there!

  21. I water only in the early morning or evening
    Thank you for hosting this giveaway

    Louis
    pumuckler {at} gmail {dot} com

  22. Marti Parks says

    My best tip is to keep it simple. A lot of plants and flowers can be really time consuming to take care of.

  23. Laura Jacobson says

    My favorite tip is when you boil or steam your vegetables for dinner, save the water! Once it cools down to room temp, you can put in on your flowers or plants! They love the vegetable water!

  24. Samantha C. says

    My only tip: water, water, water!

  25. My favorite tip is too not mow my grass too short. I never mow below level 4 on my mower. My neighbors mow at level one so they only have to mow once a month, and their lawns look horrible.

  26. Shelley C says

    before planting check area several times a day to see if it is shady or sunny etc. you want to plant a shade plant in the shade.

  27. Seyma Shabbir says

    recycle your peelings from fruits and veggies and use it for mulch

  28. Don’t mow your lawn while the grass is wet or damp, make sure it is completely dry…mowing while wet can cause your grass to get diseases easier.

  29. nannypanpan says

    plant marigolds near tomato plants as a natural bug repellant
    nannypanpan@gmail.com

  30. My favorite tip is to use egg shells for the soil.

  31. vicki wurgler says

    our city gives away free compost in spring I always add a layer to my veggie and flower garden

  32. dont water during peak sun time bc then it just dries up before the plants can drink!

  33. rebecca shockley says

    Don’t over-water or flood

  34. wendy rozema says

    my tip is to water in the morning daily

  35. Keep up with weeding and watering.

  36. I like to reseed the lawn each year!

  37. Lisa Langston says

    Daily weeding, even if its just a weed or two, will keep weeds getting to thick and will keep you from spending all day pulling bunches of weeds at once!

  38. Plant a couple of dill seeds with your squash to keep squash bug from ruining your crop.

  39. Sonya Morris says

    Use fertilizer.

  40. amy pugmire says

    we will be doing it for the first time this year, I have heard keep the weeds out and spray!

  41. Tabathia B says

    Try to water the lawn several times a week in the summer

  42. My best tip is to water late at night or early in the morning. You use less water and prevent your grass and plants from burning.

  43. Tracy Robertson says

    The only one I know is it’s best to water early in the morning.

  44. Wild Orchid says

    My favorite tip is to water early in the morning or later in the evening.

    Thanks for the chance to win!

    wildorchid985 @ gmail dot com

  45. D SCHMIDT says

    My best tip is to always mow your grass tall. Set your mower on one of the higher settings. Your grass will respond by growing deeper roots to match the increased top growth.

  46. Make sure to water it reguarly. You want your hard work to pay off!

  47. Use weed killer!

  48. Make sure to water your lawn every other day unless it’s humid. Over watering can kill your lawn.

  49. Heather Hayes Panjon says

    Get The Kids Involved, Make Fun Gardening Labels, Also Weed Garden Often!

  50. Tian A. says

    The basic gardening tip for me is setting the soil.

  51. Cheryl@ Sew Can Do says

    Newspaper covered with lots of mulch keeps the weeds out. Took me years to find a solution!

  52. I like to water my plants/lawn later in the afternoon!

  53. courtney b says

    get your husband to help you out !:) work goes by so much faster with 2 people!

  54. Jennifer H says

    water in the evening

  55. Ellen B says

    try to get rid of those weeds

  56. Susan C says

    My lawn guy says watering in the morning is the best time.

  57. Start your seeds indoors in the early Spring and by the time it’s warm enough to plant outside you’ll have a great head start!

  58. dont cut your grass to short, it hard on it

Trackbacks

  1. […] to thank everyone who participated in our giveaway.  You guys shared some great lawn care tips here on the blog and on my Facebook page, which I’ve enjoyed reading.  By the way, one of my […]

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