Is your soil sweet or sour? The only way to know if your lawn is acidic or alkaline is to have it tested. You want the pH to be between 6.5 and 7.0.

"I've found in my experience with our Florida test sites that it can make a dramatic difference," says Peter Sawchuk, the lawn guy at Consumer Reports.

So why is the proper pH so important?

"It allows the fertilizer to work better; grass seed grows better in the proper pH and all of the funguses and viruses and things like that that grass can catch don't work as well when the pH is correct."

Sawchuk says you should have the pH tested every 3 years. Consumer Reports tested the kits you can use at home and found them to be lacking.

"Unfortunately the meters and the kits you buy don't do an accurate enough job," Sawchuk told me.

He suggests taking a soil sample to a local nursery or cooperative extension office. The cost of the test is minimal. Be sure to take those samples from several places in the yard. The analysis will tell you what needs to be done to get your lawn back in balance.

Know how to mow

It's only natural -- you want to mow the lawn as little as possible. So it's tempting to mow too low. If you want a great-looking lawn, you need to set the blade at the right height. That means between 2.5 and 3.5 inches off the ground.

"Have a sharp blade. Sharp blades really do a much better job on your grass and stress it much less."

Peter Sawchuk compares a dull blade to hitting the ground with a baseball bat.

"If you look at the tips of the grass it almost looks like a split end, it's got a lot of frizzy ends on it and it gets brown and of course it stresses the grass more."

When it gets warmer you need to raise your mowing deck one notch. The longer blades of grass will do better in the heat.

One more tip: use your mowers mulch setting. As those clippings decompose, they put growth-promoting nitrogen into the soil. Consumer Reports says mulch can reduce fertilizer needs by a third. And that will save you money.

For More Information:

7 lawn care secrets for a perfect lawn and yard