Look, I’ve been cutting grass for longer than I care to admit, and if there’s one thing that drives me absolutely crazy, it’s when people treat their lawn the same way in July as they do in January. Your grass isn’t some robot that needs the same thing year-round – it’s a living thing that changes with the seasons, just like we do. ## **Spring: When Your Lawn Wakes Up Hungry** Spring in Sydney hits different. One day you’re wearing a jumper, the next you’re sweating buckets. Your lawn feels it too. This is when your grass starts waking up from its winter nap, and boy is it hungry. Those first few warm days? That’s when you need to get moving. I always tell my clients – spring is like breakfast for your lawn. Skip it, and you’ll pay for it all year. Here’s what you gotta do: – **Feed it early** – but not too early. Wait til you see consistent growth – **Start mowing regularly** again, but don’t scalp it on the first go – **Check for bare patches** now, not in December when it’s too late – **Get your edges sorted** before they turn into a jungle ## **Summer: The Battle Against Brown** Summer lawn care? It’s basically a war against the sun. And in Sydney, the sun usually wins if you’re not prepared. The biggest mistake I see? People mowing their grass too short because they think it’ll mean less mowing. Wrong. Dead wrong. Short grass in summer equals dried out, brown grass. Keep it a bit longer – it shades its own roots. Smart, right? **Water deeply, not daily.** I can’t stress this enough. Your lawn needs to grow deep roots to survive our summers. Little sips of water every day just makes lazy, shallow roots. Give it a good soak 2-3 times a week instead. ## **Autumn: Time to Toughen Up** Autumn’s when you prepare for winter. Think of it like getting your lawn ready for hibernation. This is fertilizing season – but not the same stuff you used in spring. You want something that’ll strengthen the roots, not promote leaf growth. And please, for the love of all that’s green, don’t stop mowing just because it’s getting cooler. Your grass is still growing, just slower. **Pro tip:** This is actually the best time to fix those dead patches from summer. The soil’s still warm but the air’s cooler – perfect growing conditions. ## **Winter: Don’t Abandon Ship** Winter lawn care in Sydney is weird because our winters are pretty mild compared to other places. Your lawn doesn’t completely stop growing, it just… slows way down. The worst thing you can do? Ignore it completely. Sure, you might only need to mow once a month, but you still need to: – **Keep leaves off** – they’ll create dead patches – **Reduce watering** but don’t stop completely – **Stay off wet grass** – you’ll compact the soil ## **The Bottom Line** Look, I get it.

Look, I’ve been in the lawn game for longer than I care to admit… and let me tell you, nothing breaks my heart more than seeing someone dump the wrong fertilizer on their grass. It’s like watching someone put diesel in a petrol car. Just painful. ## **Here’s the thing about grass types** Your lawn isn’t just “grass.” It’s a specific type that needs specific food. And if you’re in Sydney like most of Mr Lawn Man’s customers, you’ve probably got one of a few main types. ### **Buffalo Grass (Sir Walter, Palmetto, Sapphire)** Buffalo is the tough guy of the grass world. Drought tolerant, shade loving, but here’s the kicker – it can be a bit sensitive to nitrogen. Too much and you’ll burn it faster than a snag on Australia Day. **Best fertilizer approach:** – Slow-release granular with lower nitrogen (something like 12-2-8) – Organic options work brilliantly – buffalo actually responds better to gentle feeding – Apply every 8-10 weeks during growing season – Half strength is better than full strength. Trust me on this one ### **Couch Grass (Common Couch, Santa Ana, Wintergreen)** Couch grass is hungry. Like, teenager-after-school hungry. This stuff loves nitrogen and will take whatever you throw at it. **What works:** – High nitrogen fertilizers (20-2-8 or similar) – Can handle quick-release formulas – Feed every 6-8 weeks in summer – Don’t be shy – couch can take it ### **Kikuyu Grass** Ah kikuyu. The love-hate grass. Grows like crazy, invades everything, but man does it make a tough lawn. **Fertilizer strategy:** – Balanced fertilizers work best (16-4-8) – Needs regular feeding to keep it thick (otherwise it gets stemmy) – Every 6 weeks in growing season – Add iron if you want that deep green color ### **Zoysia Grass** The premium option. Soft, beautiful, but a bit high maintenance when it comes to feeding. **Best approach:** – Low to moderate nitrogen (14-2-8) – Slow-release only – quick release will cause surge growth – Every 8-10 weeks – Benefits from potassium for winter hardiness ## **OK but what about those fertilizer numbers?** You know those three numbers on the bag? Like 16-4-8? That’s N-P-K. Nitrogen-Phosphorus-Potassium. – **Nitrogen (first number):** Makes it green and grow – **Phosphorus (middle number):** Root development – **Potassium (last number):** Overall health and stress tolerance ## **Seasonal considerations (because Sydney has seasons, sort of)** **Spring:** Time to wake up the lawn. Higher nitrogen to get growth going. **Summer:** Keep feeding but watch the heat. Slow-release is your friend. **Autumn:** Switch to higher potassium. Helps with winter prep. **Winter:** Most grasses are dormant. Maybe one light feed if you have winter-active grass. ## **My personal recommendations** After years of testing products… **Organic lovers:** Can’t go wrong with good old composted manure or seaweed solutions. Takes longer but builds better soil. **Quick results:** Scotts Lawn Builder or similar. Just follow the damn directions. Seriously. **Budget conscious:** Generic slow-release from Bunnings works fine. It’s not rocket science. **Problem lawns:** Sometimes you need

Look, I’ve been gardening for… well, let’s just say a really long time. And if there’s one thing that’ll make you want to throw in the trowel (see what I did there?), it’s pests. Those little buggers can turn your beautiful Sydney garden into a wasteland faster than you can say “aphid infestation.” ## The Truth Nobody Wants to Hear Here’s the thing – there’s no magic bullet. Sorry. I know you wanted me to tell you about some secret spray that’ll solve all your problems but that’s not how gardens work. Trust me, I’ve tried everything. What **actually** works is being smarter than the bugs. And honestly? That’s not as hard as it sounds. ## Start With Prevention (Yeah, I Know, Boring But Essential) Think of it like this… would you rather spend 10 minutes a week preventing pests or 3 hours on a Saturday trying to save your tomatoes from caterpillars? Exactly. Here’s what’s worked for me: – **Choose the right plants** – Some plants are basically pest magnets. Others? Bugs hate ’em. Plant lavender, rosemary, and marigolds around your garden beds. They’re like bouncers for your vegetables. – **Keep things clean** – Dead leaves and old mulch? That’s a five-star hotel for pests. Clean it up regularly. Yeah it’s a pain but so is losing your entire lettuce crop. – **Water smart** – Water in the morning. Wet leaves at night = slug party central. And nobody wants that. ## When Prevention Fails (Because Sometimes It Does) Okay so the pests showed up anyway. Now what? ### Natural Solutions That Actually Work **Neem oil** – This stuff is gold. Mix it with water, spray it on affected plants. Bugs hate it, plants love it. Just don’t spray during the hot part of the day unless you want crispy leaves. **Soap spray** – Regular dish soap + water. Sounds too simple right? But it works on aphids, mites, all the soft-bodied pests. Just go easy on the soap – we’re not washing dishes here. **Beer traps for slugs** – Put out shallow dishes of beer. Slugs love it, crawl in, game over. Just use the cheap stuff. No point wasting good beer on slugs. ### The Nuclear Option Sometimes you need to bring in the big guns. But here’s my rule – start gentle, escalate if needed. If natural methods aren’t cutting it, pyrethrin-based sprays are your next step. They’re derived from chrysanthemums so they’re… kinda natural? But they’ll knock out most bugs pretty quick. Just remember – they don’t discriminate. Good bugs, bad bugs, they’re all going down. ## The Secret Weapon Most People Ignore **Beneficial insects.** I’m serious. Ladybugs eat aphids like they’re at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Lacewings demolish mites. Praying mantises… well, they’ll eat pretty much anything that moves. You can actually buy these online or at good garden centers. Release them in your garden and let nature do its thing. It’s like hiring tiny security guards for your plants. ## When to Call in

Listen, I know what you’re thinking. Winter prep? In Sydney? But trust me on this one – your lawn needs some love before those cooler months roll in, even if we’re not dealing with snow like our mates up north. ## **Why Your Sydney Lawn Needs Winter Prep** Here’s the thing. Winter in Sydney might not be brutal, but it’s still tough on grass. The growth slows right down, we get those cold snaps, and if you haven’t prepped properly… well, come spring you’ll be looking at a patchy mess instead of that gorgeous green carpet you’re dreaming of. I’ve been in this game long enough to see the difference between lawns that get winter prep and those that don’t. It’s night and day, honestly. ## **When to Start? Right About Now** Look, timing is everything. You want to start your winter prep in late autumn – basically April or May here in Sydney. Don’t wait til June when it’s already cold. Your grass needs time to absorb all the good stuff you’re giving it before it goes into its winter hibernation mode. ## **The Essential Winter Prep Checklist** ### **1. Give It One Last Good Feed** But here’s the trick – not just any fertiliser will do. You need a **slow-release winter fertiliser**. Something with less nitrogen and more potassium. Why? Because nitrogen makes grass grow like crazy, and that’s the last thing you want heading into winter. Potassium though? That strengthens the roots and helps your lawn handle the cold. I usually recommend applying it about 6 weeks before the first frost (if we even get one in your area). ### **2. Adjust Your Mowing Height** This one’s crucial and so many people get it wrong. As autumn progresses, gradually raise your mower height. You want to leave your grass a bit longer for winter – around 5-7cm is perfect. Why longer? It helps protect the roots from cold and gives the grass more leaf area to photosynthesize during those shorter winter days. Plus, longer grass = fewer weeds. Win-win. ### **3. Deal With Those Autumn Leaves** I get it, raking leaves is nobody’s idea of fun. But leaving them on your lawn is like putting a blanket over your grass – it blocks light and traps moisture, which leads to fungal diseases. Not good. Don’t just bin them though! Those leaves are gold for your compost or can be mulched up and spread on garden beds. ### **4. Aerate If You Haven’t Already** If your lawn cops a bit of foot traffic (kids, dogs, regular BBQs), it’s probably compacted. Aerating helps water and nutrients get down to the roots where they’re needed. You can hire an aerator or, for smaller lawns, just go at it with a garden fork. Best time? Right before that winter fertiliser application I mentioned. ### **5. Top-Dress Bare Patches** Got some thin or bare spots? Now’s the time to fix them. Mix some good quality soil with couch or buffalo grass seeds

## Hey there, lawn lovers! So lets talk about something that might sound a bit fancy but is actually super important for keeping your grass happy and healthy – aeration. I know, I know… it sounds like one of those technical garden terms that only the pros use, but trust me on this one. ## What exactly is lawn aeration anyway? Okay so picture this. Your lawn is like a sponge, right? But over time – especially here in Sydney where we get our fair share of foot traffic and weather extremes – that sponge gets squished down. The soil gets compacted. Its like when you sit on a cushion for too long and it goes flat. Aeration is basically poking a bunch of holes in your lawn. Yep, thats it! We use special equipment that pulls out little plugs of soil (they look kinda like wine corks made of dirt). These holes let your grass breathe again. ## Why your lawn is literally suffocating without it Heres the thing… grass roots need three things to survive: – **Air** (yes, roots breathe!) – **Water** – **Nutrients** When your soil gets all compacted and hard, its like putting a lid on your lawn. Nothing can get through! Water just runs off instead of soaking in. Fertilizer sits on top doing nothing. And those poor roots? They’re gasping for air down there. I’ve seen lawns go from looking half-dead to absolutely thriving just from a good aeration. Its honestly one of those things where you wonder why you didn’t do it sooner. ## Signs your lawn is screaming for help How do you know if your lawn needs aerating? Well… **The puddle test:** After it rains, do you get puddles that stick around forever? Thats water that cant penetrate the soil. **The screwdriver test:** Try pushing a screwdriver into your lawn. If its harder than pushing it into a block of cheese, you’ve got compaction issues. **Brown patches:** Those ugly brown spots that wont go away no matter how much you water? Could be compaction. **Thin, weak grass:** If your grass looks more like a bad comb-over than a lush carpet, aeration might be the answer. ## When should you aerate? (Timing is everything) In Sydney, the best time is usually early spring or autumn. You want the grass to be actively growing so it can recover quickly. Doing it in the middle of summer? Not so great – your lawn’s already stressed from the heat. Most lawns need aerating once a year. If you’ve got heavy clay soil (hello, Western Sydney!) or lots of foot traffic from kids and pets, maybe twice. ## The magic that happens after This is the cool part. After aeration: – Rain actually soaks into your lawn instead of running off – Fertilizer reaches the roots where it matters – Grass roots grow deeper and stronger – Your lawn becomes more drought-resistant – Those bare patches start filling in naturally Its like giving your lawn a

Look, I get it. You want that perfect lawn but you’re sick of spraying chemicals everywhere. Maybe you’ve got kids, pets, or you just don’t want to mess with the environment. Good news – you can actually beat those weeds without going nuclear on your yard. ## The Real Deal About Natural Weed Control Here’s what nobody tells you… weeds are just opportunists. They’re looking for weak spots in your lawn. So the best defense? A thick, healthy grass that doesn’t give them room to breathe. I’ve been working with lawns here in Sydney for years, and trust me, the chemical-free approach works. It just takes a bit more patience. ## **Start With Your Grass (Seriously)** The strongest weed killer you’ve got is… your grass. Dense, healthy turf literally crowds out weeds. They can’t compete when your lawn’s thriving. Here’s what actually works: – **Mow high** – Keep your grass at 7-8cm. Taller grass shades the soil, blocks weed seeds from germinating – **Don’t scalp it** – Those super short cuts? They’re basically rolling out the red carpet for weeds – **Sharp blades matter** – Torn grass gets stressed. Stressed grass = weak lawn = hello weeds ## Natural Weed Killers That Actually Work Okay so you’ve already got weeds. Now what? **White vinegar** is your friend. But not that weak stuff from the supermarket – you need the 20% acidity kind from the hardware store. Mix it with a squirt of dish soap (helps it stick) and spray directly on weeds on a sunny day. They’ll be toast in 24 hours. **Boiling water** works too. Sounds too simple right? Pour it straight on weeds growing in cracks or edges. Instant death. Just… watch your feet. **Corn gluten meal** – sprinkle this before weeds sprout (early spring). It’s like birth control for weed seeds. Won’t kill existing weeds though, so timing’s everything. ## The Secret Weapon: Proper Feeding Hungry grass is weak grass. And weak grass invites weeds. Feed your lawn with organic fertilizer 3-4 times a year. Not the synthetic stuff – go for blood and bone, compost, or worm castings. Your grass gets stronger, weeds get pushed out. Simple. ## Water Smart, Not Hard Here’s where most people mess up… They water a little bit every day. Bad move. That creates shallow roots and guess what loves shallow, moist soil? Weeds. Instead: – Water deeply once or twice a week – Early morning is best (less disease) – Your lawn needs about 2.5cm per week total ## When You Need to Get Physical Sometimes you gotta get your hands dirty. For those stubborn weeds: – **Pull them when soil’s moist** (after rain or watering) – **Get the whole root** – leave bits behind and they’re coming back – **Do it before they seed** – one dandelion = hundreds of seeds = nightmare A good weeding tool makes life easier. Those long-handled ones save your back. ## Overseed Like Your Lawn Depends On It (Because it does) Bare patches