Michelle is Ruskington Garden Centre resident horticulturist, she is available to advise on all aspects of your garden care. Michelle will also be writing regular articles on this page keeping you informed of what's currently available and making suggestions for planting and maintenance of your garden. If you have a specific question for Michelle, please email michelle@ruskingtongardencentre.co.uk Lawn Care Spring Summer You can feed your lawn at any time during the Spring and Summer when it is actively growing and weather conditions allow. In Spring and Summer it will appreciate a treatment high in Nitrogen (N) as this promotes green growth. Try EverGreen “I Want To Feed My Lawn After Cutting” or Scotts Lawn Builder Lawn Food. If you want to do more than feed, you can apply EverGreen Complete that feeds, weeds and controls moss in one simple application. Lawns are one of the most intensive and time consuming areas of maintenance in a garden, but the rewards of a well kept lawn are great. In the Summer months healthy grass grows vigorously and will need cutting around once a week, and care must be taken not too cut the length too short. Following the simple rules below can help bring out the best in your lawn and help keep work to a minimum. 1. Cut regularly Cut the grass as often as you are able to. Mowing encourages thicker growth, the development of fine grasses, eliminates coarse grasses, and deters flowering and seeding of weeds. The chart below is a good indication of the schedule of grass cutting you should adhere to under normal seasonal conditions. 2. Adjust the height Never give the lawn a close shave. It should be long enough to remain healthy but short enough to be visually pleasing. Here are some optimum heights for different lawn types. Do not mow more than a third of the height of the grass in one cut. 3. Trim the edges Trimming around the lawn gives a sharp edge that is very pleasing to the eye. You can buy a half moon edging iron that should only be used once or twice a year. At other times use long-handled edging shears to maintain a neat appearance every time you mow. 4. Sharpen the blades Have the blades of your mower sharpened at least once a year. Hanging baskets. Good quality composts such as Miracle-Gro Moisture Control Compost contain slow release plant foods that will feed your plants for up to six months. Most other composts will run out of steam and feeding will be necessary if your plants are to flourish throughout the summer and autumn. To feed just once a season push Miracle-Gro Controlled Release Plant Food Tablets into the compost to feed your plants for the next six months. Use four in a standard 12in basket, five in a 14in and six in anything larger. If you prefer to feed your plants regularly and get fantastic results use Miracle-Gro All Purpose Soluble Plant Food or a liquid concentrate Miracle-Gro All Purpose Concentrated Liquid Plant Food. Regular feeding will reward you with big, beautiful baskets full of colour.