• Sow grass seed in Autumn, whilst the weather is still warm.  Sow as soon as the weather conditions permit to ensure good, strong growth before the frosts start.  Remember not to mow new grass too soon.
• A more costly but instant option is to lay turf and October and November are an ideal time to do this.  The key to laying turf is to prepare the ground well in advance of laying and only buy your turves when you are ready to lay them.
• If you have a very mossy lawn use Autumn Lawn Feed and Moss Killer, eradicating your moss and topping up nutrient levels to help your lawn through the winter months.  Alternatively try using our new Autumn & Winter Lawn Enhancer which increases the root system of your lawn improving water and nutrient uptake and reducing the risk of drought or disease.
• Scarify your lawn using a spring tine rake to remove dead grass and moss, often referred to as ‘thatch’.  Whilst this may leave your lawn looking a little patchy it will thank you for it and soon recover.
• If your lawn is compacted you can aerate using a fork or hollow-tine aerator.  By opening up the lawn with small holes you will vastly improve drainage and reduce the risk of moss taking hold.  After aerating apply Lawn & Turf Dressing to help create a thicker, healthier lawn.
• Toadstools can be unsightly during Autumn but don’t despair.  Simply brush them off with a besom broom, they won’t cause any long term damage to your lawn.

Ladybirds and Lacewings love to munch on aphids so encouraging their numbers will go a long way to limiting the damage wreaked by the dreaded pests.  Don’t be too hasty to tidy away hollow stems and other branches.  Provided these are not diseased they make a fantastic home for overwintering insects and ensure they are already in your garden for the onset of Spring.

Sowing and growing wildflowers is a fantastic way of encouraging many beneficial insects and birds into the garden.  Growing a wide range of plants is a really good idea.  Not only does this cut down the risks of certain soil borne diseases getting a hold in the garden but it also encourages the broad range of insects and slugs that birds love to feed on.  Where possible leave seed heads on flowers such as Echinacea, Sunflowers and Teasel during the winter months as these will provide food for birds, encouraging them to visit your garden.

If you are lucky enough to have hedgehogs in your garden provide them with a safe and secure place for hibernation during the winter months.  Hedgehogs love slugs and will do a fantastic job of keeping down numbers in your garden.  Always check unlit bonfires before lighting as these are often irresistible to hedgehogs when they are looking for a home.  Never feed hedgehogs with bread and milk, this can be harmful to them.  Instead give dog or cat meat.

There are a great many plants that will attract bees and butterflies into the garden, below is a few ideas to get you started;

• Aquilegia
• Borage
• Buddleja
• Echinacea
• Eryngium
• Geranium (cranesbill)
• Honesty (Lunaria)
• Lavender
• Penstemon
• Phlox
• Scabious
• Sedum
• Tagetes

The most obvious reason is the cost. A box of lawn seed costs a fraction of the amount that a similar area of turf would cost.

But more importantly by choosing the right seed to suit your needs you can ensure that your lawn can thrive under the conditions in your garden.  Specific mixes have been formulated for shady lawns, premium lawns and lawns which are prone to drought as well as hard wearing multi-purpose lawn seed for high traffic areas such as the family lawn.

When you make the right choice and follow the sowing and growing instructions, you will create a weed free lawn in a matter of weeks. However it will be a few months before it can be used for football, or will withstand general wear and tear.

Mowing Lawn

In their natural habitat wild grasses are grazed by animals such as sheep and cattle. In order to survive the grass plants have evolved to grow from the base. By regularly mowing the grass we mimic the effect of grazing, which stimulates the grass to grow more strongly from the base. Here are our top tips for keeping your lawn in the best condition:

• Keep the blades on your lawn mower properly adjusted and sharpened.
• If the conditions are ideal for growth (warm, moist and sunny) then you may need to mow twice a week to keep it looking good.
• Don’t mow the lawn too short when it is very hot.
• If you are on holiday, cut the lawn before you go. Don’t be tempted to cut it very short, as this will cause it stress. Weak grass cannot compete well with invading weeds and moss and will suffer. Cut it as normal as near to your leaving date as possible.
• Don’t cut the grass when it is wet, or when the soil is waterlogged.
• It is safe to cut the lawn during winter months if it is still growing, but keep the blades high and avoid wet conditions.
• Never cut the grass in frosty conditions.
• When mowing a newly seeded lawn allow it to reach about 5cm (2inches) in height and then cut to 2.5cm (1inch).
• Very short grass clippings produced from regular mowing can be left on the lawn as a mulch during summer when the weather is hot. This helps to reduce water loss. Don’t allow this to build up though, or it will create thatch.
• Don’t compost grass clippings treated with Westland Lawn Feed, Weed & Moss Killer.