Is is possible to have a healthy lawn in the mid-Atlantic without watering/sprinkler system?

Question

My lawn has been slowly deteriorating since it was sodded a few years ago. A lot of my neighbors have sprinker systems and their lawns are perfect. I'm wondering if there are any techniques, aside from regular applications of fertilizer, to maintain a healthy and thick lawn in the midatlantic region (I'm near Washington D.C.).

I don't like to water because it's a bit wasteful and tedious. I don't really want a sprinkler system because it is also wasteful, expensive and incurs yearly maintenance. I'm ok with the lawn going dormant (brown) during the summer as long as it rebounds in the Fall

So is there anything I can do to keep my lawn from slowly dying/being overcome by weeds? Thanks

Answer 1

A  healthy lawn of perennial grass can survive months of drought and still come back green in the spring.  If you do everything you can during the wet months to ensure that it's a thick, healthy monocultural turf, then you should be able to let it go dormant in the summer without developing *too* many weed problems.  (I'm afraid that does probably involve regular applications of weed 'n' feed during the wet months, though.)

I don't blame you at all for not wanting to go the regular fertilizer route.  It's a pain, and bad for the environment to boot.  Have you considered a clover lawn?  I don't know if you have homeowner or deed restrictions constraining your options - perhaps it's not an option for you -- but clover makes a nice green lawn, doesn't require the same constant fertilization that grass does, stays green throughout the summer, and is even better at competing with weeds than turf grass.  On the downside, however, you will need to reseed it every two or three years or so, and it doesn't hold up quite as well to foot traffic as grass does (so maybe not the best choice if you have kids who play hard on your lawn).

I personally think that lawns of Dutch Clover look much greener and nicer than grass lawns -- but then, I'm a d**n hippy, so my taste may be suspect. :)  At any rate, it might be worth looking into.  A search on "clover lawns" should give you plenty of information on how to proceed, if you're interested.

Answer 2

Absolutely, feed the lawn in Autumn and Spring, cut the lawn as high as the mower will go (3-3-1/2") and cut no more than 1/3 of its growth at a time. (in Spring and early Summer this may require cutting every 4-5 days)

I never water my lawn and it remains one of the greenest in the neighborhood. Cutting the grass long, encourages deep root growth and shades out potential weeds.

Answer 3

Just as you need water to survive, so does your grass.

You still need to water the lawn, although there are a few things you can do to minimize you water usage.

Areate your lawn at least twice a year. Then topdress with a good compost to retain moisture.

Make sure you are not cutting your lawn too short, in summer try to maintain a 3" height.