If you want to make your bluegrass last long and look beautiful, there are some things you can do to take care of it. While bluegrass doesn’t require much maintenance, there are a few things that will help keep the grass healthy and looking great in your landscape or garden. The following guide will tell you how to take care of your Kentucky Bluegrass so that it stays healthy and beautiful year after year.

Aeration

Simply put, aeration involves manually removing small plugs of soil from a lawn. This process allows more oxygen, water and nutrients from rainwater, fertilizer and ground soakage to penetrate down into grass roots. Aeration helps reduce thatch, an organic layer in soil that prevents water and oxygen from getting where they’re needed most; down at grass roots.

The Art of Over-Seeding

It’s not necessary to overseed your lawn every year if you keep a healthy stand of grass and monitor it for weeds. But after one or two years, it’s a good idea to rebuild your turf with new seed. While you can technically overseed in any season, it’s best done in spring when conditions are ideal and birds won’t feast on your turf while still vulnerable.

Water Quality

Your Kentucky Bluegrass is a beautiful lawn but it will not thrive if you have low-quality water or if you don’t provide enough water. You’ll need to test your water at least once a year, but probably more often than that, especially if you live in an area where water treatment has been used. If your water quality is poor, consider having a professional come out and do some testing for you.

Fertilization

Grass is a weed, and it will grow year-round. It just slows down in winter when there’s not much sunlight. So, make sure you fertilize it twice per year: once in late spring (early June) and again in early fall (mid-September). Spread 3 pounds of fertilizer over 1,000 square feet. I like Milorganite because it’s organic, but you can use whatever you prefer. Make sure that you mix it with water according to package instructions before applying it.

Weed Control

Weeds compete for nutrients, sunlight and water with your turf grass. As a result, they steal energy from it. Keep weeds out of your yard by using herbicides, removing weeds manually or installing an irrigation system that waters deeply, infrequently; ideally three to four times per year in 20-minute sessions when rainfall isn’t enough.