If you’re not sure, consider these easier-to-maintain alternatives, which will still leave your yard looking well-maintained:

• Mulch: If you’ve got a smaller yard, or a side yard, mulch could be an inexpensive alternative to grass. You can buy it anywhere, it’s easy to apply, and it comes in a variety of colors. It’s also easy to remove, if you ever decide to regrow your lawn, and it’s easy to work around if you want to add shrubs or other plants.The drawbacks? Since it’s so lightweight, mulch can be easily disturbed. It will scatter over your walkway, and with any amount of activity, the surface will show wear. Plus, the color could fade, and you’ll probably have to lay down some new mulch every couple of years as the old stuff composts.
• Rocks: Many homeowners who have homes in arid areas – or homes in coastal areas with sandy soil – go for this look. Laying it down is much more difficult than mulch – in fact, if you want to install such a yard, you’ll almost certainly have to order a truckload of gravel, pebbles, or whatever other stone you prefer. Once you’ve put in the time and the expense, however, your rock-covered yard will need almost no maintenance. The stones will occasionally need to be swept off your walkways, and they might get stuck in your shoes on occasion, but they’ll last longer than your home. And if you install a French drain under them, you’ll never have to worry about your yard flooding. The only drawback? If you ever want to remove the stone yard, it’ll be almost harder than installing it.
• Pachysandra: If you  still want your yard to be green, you could think about planting pachysandra. These ivy-like plants don’t require the maintenance of grass, and live on much less water. They’re not quite as functional as a walking/playing surface, though if you do walk on them they’ll survive.

• Ivy: Ivy, like pachysandra, can be a green surface cover that needs much less maintenance than grass. Of course, once you plant it, it can – and will – spread everywhere, so plan accordingly.

Unfortunately, many homeowners have trouble keeping a lush lawn all year long. Each year, some owners are puzzled when they watch their lawn yellow or become overrun by weeds, despite their efforts. If you’re one of these people, you should keep the following tips in mind whenever you’re tending to your grass.

Watering

Believe it or not, you should only water your lawn when it begins to yellow, the grass blades are starting to fold, and when the imprints of your shoes stay for more than a day. You should only water your lawn before 9:00 AM to prevent the sun from evaporating the water before it reaches the roots. Any water that is not used by the roots will be evaporated.

Never water your lawn at night to prevent your grass from getting diseases. At night, excess moisture won’t be absorbed until the next day. During this time, your soaked grass is prone to contracting diseases from airborne bacteria.

Cutting Your Grass

Don’t wait until your grass is really long before mowing it. Experts recommend that homeowners mow their lawn as often as possible. By mowing your lawn often, you are forcing the grass to grow thicker and faster. If your grass grows thick and fast, there will be little room for weeds to grow.

Before mowing your lawn, you should ensure that your mower’s blades are sharp. If you use dull blades to mow your lawn, it will only beat up and bend your grass instead of cutting it. Grass that is weak from dull blades is more prone to contracting diseases. To prevent bald spots in your lawn, do not mow your lawn while it is wet.

Mulch Clippings

Many homeowners are surprised to learn that bagging and dumping mulch clippings is a waste of time. Believe it or not, you should leave mulch clippings in your grass instead of throwing them away. The clippings should decompose and naturally fertilize your grass, making your grass greener and healthier.

Of course, neighbors may see you as ‘lazy’ or ‘dirty’ if you don’t throw away mulch clippings. You could try sprinkling some clippings into your lawn while throwing away some clippings.

There should not be many clippings to bag if you mow your grass often. By mowing your grass often, you are not giving your lawn enough time to grow very long. Therefore, each time you mow your lawn, there should be less clippings. In addition, the clippings that are there should be relatively short and small in size.

If your yard does not have many trees (including smaller shrubs and bushes), then you need to plant some more. Trees are very good for the environment and are very pleasing to the eye. Plus, when strategically placed with the landscape in mind they are suitable for every yard and garden.

Trees provide oxygen, and they also protect your home from the harshness of cold winds and the sweltering rays of the sun. This means that your heating bill in the winter will be less, as will your power bill in the summer. Trees are your outdoor heater and air conditioner! This is one way to save more on your energy bill. Trees also provide shelter for small animals and birds. When you are outside gardening on a warm day with company- your family pet- your dog or cat is likely to enjoy the shade of a beautiful tree to lie under while you do your work!

Use natural materials in your garden at every opportunity. When adding any type of feature, use materials that are kinder to the environment. Use stone timber and decorative aggregate, such as granite chippings, slate mulches, sand, etc.). These substances are a more ecologically sound choice than are cement, brick, or any kinds of metals or plastics.

Choose local products and manufacturers whenever possible. Find out from your supplier where the materials you are interested in purchasing come from. For example, when you are looking for timber it is best to buy local timber that is certified as being from a sustainable source.

Compost at every opportunity! If you build a compost pile that is made up of vegetable scraps from your kitchen, as well as grass clippings and leaves, when these material meld together and rot they will prove very nutritious for your soil. Not only that but they will help a green lawn look as lush a green as you could want!

Almost any type of organic substance can be used as mulch provided it is not fresh. For example, dead leaves work better than fresh leaves. The best quality compost for mulch needs to be rotted or if not, then well on its way to rotting.

One of the best choices for mulch is animal manure. It is abundant in nitrogen and will encourage growth. Well-rotted manure is best as it is very plant-friendly. If you put fresh manure on your soil, it can burn plants as it gives off heat. Any type of animal manure is fine, but cow and horse manure are two of the best choices and most likely the simplest to obtain.

You might want to mix animal manure with wood shavings or straw to make it lighter and easier to spread. If you choose to use organic matter such as straw, wood or sawdust, then compost those first before you combine them with the manure.

Rotted leaves are a good option for mulch, however they are not that rich in nitrogen until they really get the chance to rot. This can take as long as three years to happen. What you can do is rake up the leaves that have fallen onto your lawn and then place then in recycled bags, a holding pen that is constructed from wire mesh, or a plastic compost bin with no lid.

You will know once the rotted leaves are ready to use as mulch because they will disintegrate and take on the appearance and consistency of soil. In other words, they will no longer resemble leaves anymore. In some cases they may end up looking like flaky pieces of soil.

Another option, if it is available to you, is mushroom compost. If you know of a mushroom farm nearby, then you might be able to get a hold of some mushrooms that are rotting and would work well as mulch material.

You can buy a special T-handled core sampler, or you can just use a spade or trowel. Doing this can help you to identify problems as they relate to your soil, and from there a diagnosis can be made. Doing this can aid you in improving the way in which you water your soil.

Having the healthiest soil around and using water in the wisest possible way will not only save you time and money, but it also will enable you to conserve the resources you have, and it will take away the need to use any type of chemicals on your soil. A healthier garden and lawn is much easier to take care of and will look as though it is brimming with life because it will be!

How to Take a Soil Core Sample

If you decide to use a spade or trowel to do the sample, you need to carefully lift a slice of soil that is shaped like a wedge. Don’t worry about messing up your yard. Once you are finished you can simply put the remaining soil back into place, and it will soon look as if you had never removed it in the first place.

If you decide to use a T-handled core sampler, then lean on it and push the sampler three to six inches down into the ground. If the soil is damp or a little wet, it will be easier to maneuver. However, if your soil is dry or is very closely packed, then you may find that it is necessary to twist the sampler from side to side as you push down on it.

Take samples from a couple of different locations in your yard. In particular, if your soil starts to look a little different, then sampling is recommended.

A mulching mower is a modern type of mower that comes with a special blade that does not just cut grass- it cuts grass into very small fine pieces. The grass is small enough that it does not look unsightly lying on your lawn. The pieces can be left where they are and in a short period of time they will begin to decompose and will find their way back into the earth.

The soil will reap the benefits of the grass debris that the mulching mower creates. Sometimes referred to as grass cycling or mulch- mowing, a mulching mower is an excellent way to improve the environment!

Grass that is mowed with a mulching mower has the potential to be very green and healthy. It is also very nutrient rich. The fine pieces of grass that are deposited on the lawn are composed of nitrogen. Nitrogen is an element that is necessary for the growth of organisms. Scientifically written as N2, nitrogen makes up 80 percent of the atmosphere and is particularly beneficial to plant life.

If you are one of those people who starts raking immediately after mowing and does not like your lawn to look as though it has a green carpet on top of it, then you don’t need to worry- a mulching mower will bring an end to this! Raking up grass and bagging it becomes a thing of the past when you buy a mulching mower. As well, the look of a thick shaggy green carpet on the lawn also fades into yesterday.

The mulching mower produces pieces of grass are so fine that they will not look thick, clumpy and unsightly. Mulching gives a lawn a neat, clean appearance. It also makes less work for you. The engine on a mulching mower is very powerful, so this is important to be aware of.

Mulching mowers come in gas and electric. The most environmentally friendly of the two is the electric mower. The reason for this is simple- the electric mulching mower is quieter and there is no exhaust being emitted.