What is Turf Care?

Before getting into what turf care is, we first need to be clear about what turf is. You have probably heard the words turf, lawn, and yard used interchangeably throughout most of your life. While each of those words is quite similar in terms of their meaning, some notable differences lie between them. Turf is the soil on the ground surface that contains vegetation, usually grass. So when a landscape professional talks about turf, they refer to the layer of soil where the grass is planted.

Turf is also an artificial substitute for natural grasses, which is what you will likely find in sports fields. Turf grasses fall into 2 main categories: warm-season and cool-season grasses.

• Warm-season grasses like Zoysia and St. Augustine thrive in hotter conditions.
• Cool-season grasses like Kentucky Bluegrass and perennial ryegrass can handle colder weather.

Turf care is the process of studying and making corrections to soil and grass. Some components of turf care include

• soil analysis
• fertilization
• weed treatment

The goal of turf care is to make turf and lawn healthier, more resistant to pests and disease, and more beautiful and vibrant.

Another common turf mistake people make is improperly watering their grass or plants. For example, some homeowners opt to water their grass and plants for 5 to 10 minutes each day. In reality, watering for a longer amount of time and less often would be better. Deep watering provides enough water to travel deeper into the soil and absorb the roots. Weather can also affect how much to water grass. Hot temperatures mean additional watering, while rainfall may mean less or more depending on how much rainfall you get.

Grass plants grow root systems in proportion to their top growth, which means that when someone cuts their lawn too short, the grass is unable to make enough sugars for the roots to grow deeper into the soil. Those shallow roots can cause further turf and lawn issues, such as allowing the ground to absorb more sunlight, leading to weeds growing. Each grass type has a different ideal height, so reach out to Burkholder Landscape if you want to make sure your grass is the proper height.