In an article published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the agency tackled the effects of COVID-19 and other pandemics on peoples’ emotional and mental states. The CDC noted how infectious disease outbreaks cause negative emotions such as fear and anxiety, which are often manifested through sleep deprivation, appetite loss, and difficulty concentrating. In worse cases, the stress brought by such outbreaks ultimately leads to the aggravation of existing mental and chronic health conditions.
Fortunately, all hope is not lost. According to the Yale School of the Environment, immersing oneself in nature is a great way of reducing stress, as well as inducing a healing effect. In what it calls ecopsychology, the school explained that it only takes 120 minutes (two hours) for a person to feel a general sense of well-being and health by spending time with nature or anywhere there is a patch of green. This is perhaps one great reason why home gardens sprouted everywhere almost overnight and why the gardening industry suddenly bloomed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
So, if you have a patch of green in your property that you think is not green or lush enough, you should do something about it. The good news is that there are some simple ways on how you can make your outdoors thrive and become more inviting and relaxing.
Here are six hacks to make your landscape thrive:
1. Install an irrigation system. An irrigation system that functions perfectly throughout the year (but particularly during summer) is a critical factor in achieving lush outdoors. You should, therefore, invest in great-quality irrigation so your plants, grass, and trees get the nourishment they need. You should get automated sprinkler systems from a reliable brand to do away with the troublesome manual irrigation. There are professional irrigation system installers who can design, install, and take care of securing necessary permits. All you have to do is hire them, and they’ll take care of everything for you.
2. Weed out regularly. Weed is one of the biggest sources of nuisance on any lawn, which means you need to wage an all-out war against it. Regular lawn weeding is required if you want your lawn to thrive and not look a total mess. There are several tricks that professional lawn care specialists to do get rid of pesky weed in lawns, which include using herbicides, pre-emergency preventers, and mowing turf to a certain height. You can do the weeding out yourself or just hire a competent lawn care company to take care of your weed problem.
3. Fertilize periodically. Just as how our body needs vitamins and minerals, plants, and grass also need nutrients to stay healthy. You can buy commercial fertilizers that are specially manufactured for landscaping purposes or you can penny-pinch by creating a compost pile that serves the same purpose.
4. Aerate, so you won’t become irate. Among the top hacks to making any lawn teeming with life and vibrancy is to do regular aeration. This landscaping trick involves poking the soil with garden tools such as pitchforks, spiked boots, and aerators (for best results). Aerating the lawn basically loosens up the soil to allow easier ingress of nutrients and prevent thatch buildup. With this one landscaping hack, you can have a lush lawn that won’t leave you irate for a long time (or any given time, for that matter).
5. Mow regularly and properly. No lawn care set of tips would be complete without this one. Regular and proper mowing ranks high in the hierarchy of the most essential and beneficial lawn care procedures. This would require doing some research (to know the appropriate mowing height based on the type of grass you have) and sticking to a recommended schedule or frequency of mowing. Keep in mind that mowing at the wrong moment or to a wrong height could only backfire and lead to your grass looking like a sorry mess. If you’re not confident about the whole thing, just leave the legwork to your trusted local lawn care company.
6. Should you seed, or should you sod? That is the question. Is seeding the right move? Or is sodding the proper approach? The answer to this burning question depends greatly on your budget and your willingness to wait (or the lack of it). If you have the money or you want to have a quick, lush lawn, sodding is the obvious choice. Meanwhile, if you don’t want to spend much on your quest for a verdant patch in your outdoors and you’re willing to wait, then seeding is just perfect.
These six hacks will help you enjoy your own lush haven. Just follow them and you’ll have a piece of nature right outside your home.
