Nothing ennobles the area like wonderful green grass, playing in the morning with myriads of sparks of dew or whispering softly under the breath of a light evening breeze. Therefore, a beautiful lawn is an integral part of the arrangement of the yard or garden. Various types of lawns will beautifully decorate any part of the terrain, regardless of soil, shade or other features. Even with the most difficult terrain, the territory can be landscaped or given a flowering appearance.
Lawn classification
The classification of lawns and the characteristics of each species will help determine their choice when arranging a site near a house, a summer residence or territories requiring landscaping. Depending on the functionality, grass coverings can be divided into three main groups:
- decorative;
- sports;
- special.
The group of decorative lawns has many types and is the most popular. Grass cover of this type can be seen near houses, cottages, in parks and other places of recreation. It consists of special types of plants that, thanks to their very fast growth, create a thick carpet of magnificent greenery.
Sports lawns consist of very hardy grasses. They are used in fields intended for sports or competitions.
Special grass coverings are not only for beautification. They perform certain functions, which determines the places of their use.
The main criteria for choosing a lawn
The current market can offer a variety of types of lawns, the harmoniousness of the entire landscape design depends on the correct choice of which. There are several criteria, guided by which each owner of the site will be able to equip the most suitable lawn:
- it is important to determine the function of the lawn: it will be purely decorative, intended for rest or for playing sports;
- you need to find out what is the degree of shading of the area intended for the lawn;
- the availability of free time to care for the lawn: some types of turf need a systematic cutting;
- availability of funds: the price of the arrangement depends on the quality of the materials used;
- what types of lawn will be used: perennial or annual, natural or artificial.
For complete confidence in your choice, you can read reviews about grass coverings and at the same time find out the features of caring for them. It will be useful to consult a specialist who will help you choose the right lawn. Types of lawns, lawn grasses and their mixtures have unique qualities that should be considered. Since the cost of these herbs is quite high, it does not hurt to make sure of the good reputation of the company in which they will be bought.
Types of decorative lawns
Depending on the purpose and mixtures of plants used for turf, decorative lawns can be divided into several types:
1) Ground floor is a very high quality lawn that requires careful care. To create it, low-growing herbs are used that have thin shoots and delicate leaves: a thin and shoot-like field birch, perennial ryegrass, red fescue and other types of herbs. They grow and shrub very well, so this type of lawn has a high density and velvety surface that suppresses the growth of weeds. You can find different types of lawns on the site near the houses, but the ground floor is always in the most prominent places. It perfectly combines landscape design elements and perfectly emphasizes the architectural features of buildings.
2) Park lawn is usually used for landscaping parks and gardens. It is slightly inferior to the ground, but still has excellent quality. Grasses that are used to obtain this type of lawn have the same color and high density. To obtain a mixture, they often take the seeds of such herbs: meadow mint, forest or flattened, pasture ryegrass, sheep and red fescue , team hedgehogs. To obtain a dense, uniform turf at the places of shading, white clover seeds are added to the composition . Park lawn is resistant to trampling, which allows its use in recreation areas.
3) Meadow grass is often used for landscaping gardens, parks or recreation areas. The mixture is composed of cereal herbs with the addition of seeds of some flowering meadow plants. Haircut is carried out about two times a year. To create a bright meadow cover, a mixture of Moorish lawn is added to the seeds.
4) Almost all types of lawns used in the country or near the house require a haircut. And if there is no time for such leaving? Then the Moorish lawn would be ideal. It is also called flowering, because in addition to cereal, it includes flowering herbs. To make such a lawn look bright for a long time, plants are selected that replace each other during flowering periods. The composition of the mixture usually includes lupine, cornflowers, chamomiles, poppies or other flowering herbs. It is worth noting that such a lawn is not suitable for the front part of the courtyard: flower beds, alpine slides or other design elements will be invisible against its background.
Characteristics of sports lawns
Sports lawns are created from grasses that can tolerate heavy loads and recover very quickly. The composition of the mixture used for landscaping a field or site directly depends on the sport. For example, for a football field, they use red fescue, meadow bluegrass and a meadow. These plants create a thick coating and, regardless of weather conditions, sprout quite quickly.
To create a cover on the tennis court, one type of cereal grass is used. The field should be absolutely flat, and the grass should be low cut.
Equipping golf courses, they often use a lawn from a combination of different types of fescue. Herbs of this species are quite unpretentious, tolerate shading and drought.
To equip a sports ground near the house or cottage, you can use any kind of lawn designed for sports fields. After all, their main quality is resistance to trampling, and this will allow you to have a beautiful playground for sports.
Special lawn features
Special lawns are created for specific purposes. On slopes and slopes, herbs that have a very strong root system are used. This strengthens the surrounding soil.
Special lawns are distinguished by their ability to absorb harmful substances in large volumes. Because of this quality, they are often used near gas stations, roads and railways, and industrial enterprises. They also perfectly absorb noise, which led to their use near airfields and sites for helicopters.
Lawn bookmark
The laying of the lawn should be treated very carefully. The final result will depend on the quality of its implementation. It can be divided into three stages:
- soil preparation;
- sowing;
- service.
The first stage is quite laborious. To equip the lawn, you need to plow the earth and clean it from the roots and debris. You can do this by sieving the soil. It is important to ensure that the fertile soil layer is at least 20 cm. This will ensure good growth of grass cover. The cultivated area must be absolutely flat. It must be rolled in.
The next step will be weed control. The easiest way to get rid of them is through treatment with complex herbicides. You can also clean the soil by systematic plowing.
The soil intended for lawn also needs to be fertilized and carefully watered. This is best done two weeks before sowing, so that the soil is well saturated with nutrients.
Immediately before sowing, the ground needs to be loosened. This can be done using a rake. Sowing seeds can be done manually or with a special seeder. The second option will allow you to get a uniform distribution of seeds throughout the territory and ensure the beauty of the future lawn. This plays a big role if you prefer combined types of lawns, photos of which can be seen below.
The first shoots will appear in a couple of days, and in three weeks the land will be covered with delicate greenery. When the grass reaches a height of 10 cm, you need to carry out the first mowing. Mowing should be done in dry weather so as not to damage the turf.
Rolled lawns
If it is impossible to grow a lawn for any reason, or if the owner of the house or cottage wants to equip a garden or yard as soon as possible, you can order a roll lawn. It has been grown in nurseries for several years. When the turf grows well, grass with the upper layer of earth, in which its rhizomes are located, is cut using special machines. After that, the turf is rolled up and delivered to the customer.
Rolled lawn is unpretentious, because the grass cover is fully formed in the nursery. It also has no weeds, and only lush velvety grass will delight the eye. Such a cover is very convenient to use in areas with difficult terrain.
Types of Roll Lawn
Like sowing, roll lawns are of different types, depending on the mixtures of herbs used and the intended purpose:
- decorative;
- sports;
- special.
Any type of grass cover allows you to green the area in a short time or to prepare the area for specialized use. It is very beneficial to use a roll coating in gardens and courtyards with high shade. In such places, the seeds germinate unevenly, and the sowing lawn does not acquire the desired appearance for a long time. But the roll will immediately delight with thick grass. This is a really great solution.
If the presented types of rolled lawn do not suit the consumer, then he can order grass cover from a non-standard mixture of herbs. They will best suit his preferences.
How to choose a lawn roll?
When purchasing a rolled lawn, you should pay attention to the quality of the goods offered and directly contact the supplier company to check the condition of the turf. You need to roll the roll, lift and shake it. In this case, the plate should retain its appearance, not crumble and not break. If the root system is well formed, the thickness of the plate will be about 9 cm.
You should learn more about the composition of the herbs used and the conditions in which the lawn grew. It is very important to ensure that the cut was done correctly and that the roots are not badly damaged. In the opposite case, the sod simply does not take root.
Laying a roll lawn
To lay the rolled sod, the soil must first be prepared. It must be cleaned of debris. If there are too many residues of building materials in the earth, then it is better to sift it or replace it with fertile one. It is also worth getting rid of weeds in the allotted territory.
After cleaning, the soil must be leveled, loosened and slightly tamped. An ideal horizontal surface will guarantee a beautiful and even lawn. A week before laying the grass cover, the site must be fertilized.
The turf plates are stacked in tight rows like masonry. Each roll is rammed with a special roller. If the lawn turns out to be uneven, you need to raise it and add or remove excess soil. Align the edges with a sharp shovel or knife.
It is important to understand that the turf rolls should take root, so the grass cover should be abundantly watered for 10 days. When the grass has taken root, it can be watered as needed. Two weeks after styling, you need to have a haircut.
Artificial grass and its varieties
An excellent alternative to natural coating is artificial turf. It is used for landscaping places where it is almost impossible to grow natural grass. Artificial grass can be used not only for open areas. More and more designers are using it in home decoration.
There are different types of artificial grass:
- decorative - used in the design to simulate natural grass;
- sports - designed for the arrangement of sports fields.
Artificial types of lawns are becoming increasingly popular due to their long service life and high level of wear resistance. Such a coating is cheaper than natural, does not require complex care and will be green throughout the year.
Laying artificial turf
Before laying artificial turf you need to clean the surface of debris. When leveling the soil, a slight slope should be made to drain the water. Fold out the plates. This will ensure that the edges match. If the edges protrude, they can be trimmed and glued with a special tape or brackets. After that, the coating is slightly tamped. The edges of the lawn can be fixed using special skirting boards or borders. To ensure good traction, artificial grass is abundantly watered.
Knowing all types, types of lawns, you can green the area, giving it a comfortable look. The yard and garden of any house or cottage will look amazing, and its residents will be able to relax on the soft grass or engage in favorite sports on it.