Choosing an irrigation system is about convenience, efficiency, and water conservation. Deciding on portable sprinklers or an in-ground irrigation system basically comes down to cost versus time and convenience.Portable sprinklers aren’t necessarily the most efficient system to use to water your grass. You know — hooking up the oscillating or impulse sprinklers, dragging the hose all over the lawn, watching the clock, and trying to remember when you should move the sprinkler to a different part of the lawn.

How to mow a lawn or grass the right way is one of the most important practices in keeping your lawn healthy. Grasses are like most plants — if you clip off the growing points (for grass, it's in the crown, where the new leaves develop), the plants branch out and become denser, which in this case, turns thousands of individual grass plants into a tightly woven turf or a lawn.

Tool sheds and garages can harbor some of the least green garden products on the market. In addition to chemicals for killing weeds and pests, you’re likely to find fossil-fuel-burning gas-powered lawn mowers and electric tools. Cut down the energy you use in the garden by replacing your power tools with manual alternatives: Replace an electric or gas lawn mower with a push reel mower, also known as a hand mower.

Laying sod is a gratifying experience—you get a new, green lawn in no time! The time to lay sod is early morning before it gets too hot. The soil in the planting area should be moist, not soggy or dry. Water thoroughly one or two days before the sod is delivered so that the top several inches of soil are wetted.

Small dead spots are a fact of life for most lawn owners. A number of things can cause the spots, including spilled gas or fertilizer, insect damage, or dog urine. Whatever the cause, patching a dead spot is relatively easy. In fact, there are several lawn patch kits available at most nurseries and garden centers.

Aerating is the process of punching small holes all over your lawn. The most effective type of aerating is with a gas-powered machine called a core aerator that pulls out small cores of grass and soil. Other aerators use short spikes to punch holes in the turf. Spiking is not nearly as effective as core aerating, but it’s better than nothing.

Choosing the right lawn sprinkler is one of the most important decisions you can make if you want a healthy lawn without wasting water. Sprinklers are either portable or fixed: Portable sprinklers: Portable sprinklers come in myriad styles with varying application rates (how fast they apply water) and application patterns (covering square, round, or rectangular areas).

Here’s a shocker — how often you need to mow your lawn depends on how quickly it grows and each type of grass has an ideal height. Of course, how quickly your lawn grows depends on a number of conditions: How much you fertilize: The more nitrogen fertilizer you apply, the faster the lawn grows, and the more you have to mow.

If your yard includes some lawn and you aren’t yet ready to replace it with more sustainable alternatives, make your grass as green as possible by using eco-friendly, toxic-free methods to keep it healthy. Follow these suggestions: Use native grass seeds. They’ll grow better in your local climate than other varieties.